Stygian Solace
by Uzumaki-sama
Summary: By taking Riku's hand, Sora alters their destinies, and Riku takes his rightful place as the keyblade master. Now as Riku plays between his duty as a hero and his own confused judgment, Sora tries to suppress the darkness within both of them. RS
1. Ch 1: Exploiting the Horizon v 3

_Author's Notes:_

Welcome to the first chapter of Stygian Solace. I'll have you know that you're in for a very long, plot-driven emotional ride of love, destiny, hope, and betrayal. If you think you've stepped into a fanfic about pointless fluff and humor, you're in the wrong place. While this **does** have romance and sex and all of that yummy yaoi stuff, this fanfic deals with more deep emotions and insanely twisted plots than normal fanfics.

This fanfic is an epic. It is **NOT** a novelization of Kingdom Hearts. It has its own plot, written deep with KH's major themes, and while it has many original ideas, it still loyally follows KH's true story. Stygian Solace may start off slow with its first six chapters, but I assure you, the story does pick up and it **doesn't** leave you with excess baggage. 

Without further ado, here's the first chapter. ^^ And enjoy!

_A look ahead:_

A little game of Island War. Riku's Plan A? Hidden crushes and sandy butts.

___________________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter 1: Exploiting the Horizon_**_ v. 3.0_ (redone November 2003)

  
  


"Alright soldiers... Listen up!"

Exactly four pairs of eyes were focused on Tidus as he aristocratically marched down the beach, his wooden staff slung over his shoulder like some sort of military rifle. His five friends were sprawled out in different positions on the sand below him, a few of them still trying to fully awaken for the day's events. It was a particularly warm morning that lacked the normal island breeze, and the air was dreadfully thick and sticky with humidity. So, to keep their minds off the immutable weather, the blonde-haired boy had suggested a game of Island War, and everyone had agreed.

Since he had decided on the morning's game, Tidus, of course, got to set the rules and play General.

"This is no game!" Tidus barked, or at least tried to with his early-teen vocal cords. Riku snickered at this. "I expect everyone to pay attention, even _you_ Cadet Riku!"

Riku lifted his head to grin up at General Tidus, raising one hand in a mock salute. "Yes, _Sir_." Either Tidus didn't catch the sarcasm, or he didn't care, because the boy went back to marching, satisfied with Riku's response. 

Riku had been the only one of the "platoon" who hadn't been paying attention; rather, his eyes had been focused on more important things, like say... Sora's hips. The boy had nice hips when they weren't being layered over with his gaudy belts and chains, and right now, they weren't. 

Actually the whole group had stripped out of their accessories and placed them in a huge stack in the middle of the gathering, as per Tidus' instructions, who had said that jewelry and the like were too noisy and distracting for serious games like War. Riku actually had to agree, though he had a feeling he was going to be distracted more by Sora now than he would have been before.

Urk... Stupid hormones. They did strange things at strange times, and right now they were telling Riku that Sora's boyish hips were awfully cute in his red jumpsuit. Which was why Riku found himself staring at them. Which was why Tidus had noticed and had confronted him, probably to warn him before Sora himself noticed.

See, Tidus knew about Riku's growing love for his best friend --- love that two best friends (especially when they were both _boys_) shouldn't have --- and when he wasn't teasing Riku about it, Tidus was trying to help him hide it from Sora until the time was right. Good 'ole Tidus.

Riku inwardly sighed, shifting slightly in the sand and draping one ungloved hand over his knee. It was weird. The material of his pants. He rarely got to touch it with his bare hands... It felt almost like rubber....

He had to do something about that.

"Two teams, as always," General Tidus was saying, kicking up sand with his sandals as he marched to and fro down the line of soldiers. "You can only carry one coconut at a time, but you may replenish that ammo whenever you need to. Do not aim for heads or crotches."

Here Selphie giggled, and Tidus shot her a warning glare before he continued.

"The whole island is the battlefield. However," he said, coming to a stop in the middle of the line, jutting his chin out. "There's a new rule this time. No getting wet."

There were a few muffled groans of protest, mostly coming from Wakka and Sora's side.

"You heard me," Tidus sternly said. "No getting wet. If you step in the waves, get thrown into a pool of water, or run under a waterfall, you're dead. And one last reminder... No weapons! If you're hit by a coconut, you have two seconds to fall and announce your death, during which time you can counterattack. You must remain there until War is over. War is over when all the members of one team are killed or captured. Alright. Are we ready to pick teams?"

Sora shot to his feet, one fist in the air and his blue eyes wide with hope. "Oooh! I wanna be a platoon leader! Me! Me!" he cried, his hips swaying as he waved his hand maniacally around. "Come oooon, Tidus!"

Riku raised both eyebrows at Sora, hiding an amused smile as he watched the boy practically hop up and down. He not only had cute hips, but his butt too...

Tidus, unfortunately, noticed the silver-haired boy's ogling. "Riku, get up. You're the opposing platoon leader."

"Riku always gets to be leader!" Selphie whined, vocalizing Sora's thoughts before he could.

The boy lowered his arm in defeat, blue eyes narrowing as his lower lip stuck out in a cute pout. Hiding another smile upon seeing Sora's adorable (almost irresistible) moping, Riku pushed himself to his feet and crossed the short distance to stand next to Tidus.

"Alright. My team's the Crabs, Riku's is the Seagulls. I get first pick," Tidus announced, pointing a finger at the remaining four cadets. "Kairi and Wakka! That leaves Selphie and Sora on Riku's side. You have ten minutes before War commences, so get started!"

The six children exchanged quick glances and words of challenge before they scattered, Tidus and his comrades pattering across the warm sand towards the pier to discuss plans. Warm sand indeed. Everything about today was hot already. And, judging from the annoyingly-blue sky that only had a few sparse puffs of cloud, there wouldn't be a break from the heat. Even more vexing was that Tidus had added that stupid no-getting-wet rule, which meant, basically, no cooling down. Suffering until the end of the game.

Blargh!

"Why seagulls?" Sora grumbled as he, Riku and Selphie were passing under the bridge connecting the paopu isle to the rest of the island. 

He kicked angrily at the sand before turning his blue eyes to stare at Riku, who was already staring at him as he daydreamed about Sora's hips and cool weather. He blinked upon being caught staring and turned his head to glance ahead, hoping he looked casual about it. Sora brushed the incident aside, but not before a faint veil of red fell over his cheeks as he continued. 

"I-I mean, seagulls are stupid. Nobody likes them! Why can't we be the sharks.. Or barracudas... or something cool at least."

"Why something natatory at all?" Riku laughed, glancing back at Sora as he reached a hand out to muss the other boy's hair. 

His bare fingers slipped through the spikes and he inwardly awed at their softness. Oh what he would give just to be able to run his hands through that hair all morning...! If only Sora didn't like Kairi, though. If only Sora liked him back. If only Kairi wasn't there to interrupt their little adventures every time the two boys were alone. If only...

"Natatory?" Sora innocently asked, his boyish voice breaking through Riku's reverie.

"Er.. That is..." Riku faltered, mentally chiding himself for drifting off into _LaLa_ land. "Why does our team have to be named after something marine-related?" As they passed through the doorway leading into the cove, he added, "We could be the raptors or dragons."

Sora hesitated before stepping through, turning his head to give Riku a bright smile. The silver-haired boy took in the smile, memorizing the details of it; the curving of his lips, his adorable little cheeks, the way his eyes lit up... 

But ahead of them, Selphie's cutesy voice ruined the moment as she called back:

"But dragons stink!"

~~~

Thirty minutes. At least, around there. It couldn't have been less than that.

It had been approximately thirty minutes since the game of War had commenced and Riku's team had split apart to get into their positions, bidding each other a "Don't get killed or you'll screw up the plan!" before they left. From Riku's position perched precariously under the broken bridge, the heat was almost unbearable, like sweltering knives ripping into his skin as he impatiently waited for his enemy to pass over him. The water lapping against the wooden posts of the bridge seemed to taunt him, flirt with him, begging him to drop down and take a lap or two to cool off. But then, according to the rules, he would be dead. 

What, was the water a metaphor for molten lava in War or something? Why had Tidus made up that stupid rule?

Ah, in any case, it was just another chance for Riku to trap his enemy. If they couldn't get wet, that means they couldn't take the route under the bridge, and would have to go over it if they wanted to get to the other side of the island. That was why Riku was perched there, hidden under the planks in the mid-morning shadows cast over him, so he could pull his enemies into the water.

That was how most of these War games turned out. One team would go hunting with more of an offensive battle plan, while the other team would lay in hiding with either an ambush plan, or a stealthy approach. And after an hour of hiding or searching, the War would end in a suspenseful last battle. It always did end quickly, even after all that careful planning. 

Today Riku had formulated a mixture of defensive plans, but it all depended on whether or not Selphie would survive as bait. As per Riku's instructions, she had snuck over to the other side of the island to lure the other team to where Riku was (after all, she was small and quite quick and could easily outmaneuver them). 

But that had been relatively soon after War had begun, and Riku was getting uncomfortable in his position. Where the hell was she?

When Riku was beginning to think that he was thoroughly wet with sweat, he heard conspiring voices coming from the direction where the tower that overlooked the unfinished raft was. That was... unexpected. He had been preparing for the enemy to come in the opposite direction, by way of the door separating the Seashore and Cove, not through the small passageway below the Treehouse that led to Star Tree used as a tag post during races. This was only a slight hindrance in Riku's plans, however.

That's what he told himself, at least, until he actually saw his enemies at the foot of the broken bridge. 

Selphie was with them. 

For a moment Riku was concerned --- had she been taken as a prisoner of war? 

But then he realized that she was smiling as the four of them whispered to each other.

She had betrayed him! Switched sides!

That was worse than having her die on him! 

Actually, it shouldn't have come as much of a surprise that Selphie had been coaxed over to side with the enemy, considering she was easily charmed. If Riku wanted something from her, all he would have to do was offer her something meager in return. Like say a kiss on the cheek, or a seashell. Selphie was easily amused. Riku idly wondered what Tidus had offered her to betray Riku. 

A piggy-back ride?

But now he only had Sora to rely upon. 

Well. Sora was more than enough. 

Hmph. Riku would show them that he and Sora could still win, even with double the odds against them. Four to two. Feh!

Shit. But Sora didn't know about Selphie's betrayal. What if he decided to play hero or something and try to save her? Or what if she tried to trick him and he believed her?

Riku had to do something.

But before he could, he noticed something peculiar. Wakka and Tidus were carrying some thick wooden sticks, while Kairi and Selphie were carrying cloth pouches with one coconut each, and they were climbing down the stairs to the small beach under the broken bridge.

Shit. Shitshitshit!

If they came any closer, they would see Riku's hiding spot!

And then it clicked. Selphie! Selphie knew his plan! She must have told them what it was, and where to find both him and Sora, and they were now planning to pick Riku off first!

But how were they _doing_ it?

Biting back the bitter anger of betrayal, Riku watched as Selphie casually pointed in his direction, and Tidus looked up to study the broken bridge. The blonde boy muttered something to his team mates before he turned his wooden sticks vertical and grinned in Riku's general direction.

That was when Riku realized what the sticks were. They were stilts! So Tidus and the others could walk _over_ the water without worry of getting wet.

That was when Riku also realized that he had been set up --- that Tidus had come up with that stupid no-getting-wet rule to force Riku into thinking inside the box, which meant that he knew that Riku would think that Tidus would have to cross over the broken bridge. Since Tidus knew Riku's plan ahead of time, he can constructed a clever trap to manipulate Riku into exactly where he wanted him.

Smart little bastard. Riku would have to give him credit later for tricking him like that, but not before he got himself out of this mess. Somehow.

Tidus and Wakka were now adjusting their balance on their stilts as Kairi and Selphie handed them their coconut ammo pouches to sling around their shoulders. When that was done, as Tidus and Wakka began to wade into the shallow water, the two girls ran back up the stairs and disappeared from sight--probably to go get coconuts for themselves. After all, the rule said that a soldier could only carry one coconut at a time.

Riku, from his position under the bridge, didn't even have a coconut. He couldn't even take one of his enemies out.

Hm...

Just as the two stilt clowns were stopping directly in front of Riku's hiding spot, the girls came running back, both with a coconut in tow, giggling and looking pleased with themselves as they ran onto the bridge and positioned themselves close to Riku.

He was surrounded now. Great.

"Come out, Seagull Commander!" Tidus called, using Riku's team name. Pfft. Seagulls. Maybe Sora was right about that whole Island-War theme. "We know you're there because we saw your silver hair a mile away!"

Wait, what? They could see him that obviously? Well, crap.

But there was no way he was going down without a fight. Riku _never_ lost.

The silver-haired boy slid down from his perch into the open, standing on one of the crossing beams holding the bridge together as he stared at Tidus and Wakka a few feet below him, who were having a bit of a difficult time keeping their balance in the soft, wet ocean sand. The boys certainly looked like crabs on their stilts, clumsily swaying to and fro like scuttling crustaceans. 

A slow smirk crossed Riku's face.

Maybe it was time for Team Crab to see the benefits of being a seagull.

As Wakka and Tidus launched their coconuts at him, he leapt up and grabbed a beam, bringing his legs up and letting their attacks pass harmlessly under him before he dropped back onto his beam, grinning proudly out at the boys. 

"Crap! Selphie, give me your coconut and go get some more ammo!" Tidus cried, struggling to keep his balance as he glared at Riku. "Kairi, don't just stand there!"

Selphie whistled and tossed her ammo down to Tidus, who carefully caught it and managed to stay standing on his stilts. 

But before the girl could run to get more, a coconut hit her from behind and sent her staggering forward, dangerously close to the edge. She cried out in surprise and spun around, as did everyone else, to find _Sora_ standing there at the foot of the bridge, casually waving.

"Didn't forget about me, did you?" he grinned.

Selphie whined and slumped to the wooden planks of the bridge, having gotten hit by Sora's coconut.

"Selphie's down!" Kairi cried, fear creeping into her voice. She seemed to know her situation wasn't too great, considering that Sora was one of the more talented people at War. Her death in this game was inevitable, even with Sora unarmed.

She squeezed her eyes shut and gave a weak whimper as she launched her coconut at him to take him out, as though afraid of missing him, but afraid of hurting him at the same time. 

Sora, of course, easily ducked it and stepped onto the bridge, trapping Kairi between him and Riku's position down below.

However, that didn't stay that way for long. 

Taking Sora's appearance and everyone's distracted attention as his chance, Riku vaulted from his beam and landed on Wakka, who cursed as he was thrown off-balance. But they remained standing because, as Riku had hoped, while the two boys had been standing there so long, their stilts had sunken into the sand deep enough to create a suction that held them in place. Now the whole balance problem lay with the boys' legs and feet, not the stilts themselves.

"Wakka's under attack!" Tidus cried and reached forward to help his red-haired comrade out.

Riku used this to his advantage as well --- he _still_ wasn't planning on losing, after all --- and used all of his strength to push away from Wakka and cling to Tidus instead. As planned, the oldest boy finally lost his balance as Riku shoved him, and he fell off his stilts into the shallow water below, leaving Tidus to contend with Riku alone.

Meanwhile, back on the bridge, Sora lunged forward and gently grabbed hold of Kairi's arm, pushing her over the edge. Kairi shot the boy a disbelieving glare, as if she expected him to show her some mercy because they were close friends, but then gravity took hold of her and she screamed on the way down. 

Sora merely waved as she hit the water below. But then he saw Tidus and Riku fighting for control on the stilts.

"Get off me, you crazy bastard!" Tidus cried, reaching out to pull Riku's hair, who cried out as it was yanked and reached for Tidus' golden locks in response.

"Fuck, Tidus! You don't have to cheat because you're losing!"

It was just the three of them left now, but from the looks of it, Sora would be the only one surviving this round of War. The boy glanced around him, frowning, searching for a solution. He had to save Riku somehow.

"Arggh! Let go, let go!" Tidus screamed. "I'll drop us both into the water!"

But Sora was already climbing down into the beams of the bridge. Just as Sora was at Riku's height, Tidus' resolve broke and he leaned back to fall into the water, taking Riku with him. 

Sora lunged forward, one hand holding onto a beam for support as his other hand grabbed for Riku's arm as they fell past him like a tall tree crashing to the ground. His gloved hand wrapped around the flailing limb and he held onto it, planting his feet firmly against the beam and hoping his strength could hold Riku.

Tidus dropped into the shallow water next to Wakka and Kairi, who were all sopping wet and staring up at Riku and Sora with wide eyes.

The silver-haired boy brought his other arm up and grasped Sora's hand, who slowly pulled him to the beam, relieved that Riku was alright. Their eyes met as the elder boy hoisted himself onto the beam and for a moment they were all that mattered to each other. Riku had fought bravely to win, Sora had been there to save him, and they had both come out of it alive.

"We won," Riku said, a little out of breath from his escapade with Tidus and almost falling to his 'death.' Sora gave him an adorable toothy grin in response and pulled him into a tight hug, and they both broke into laughter.

Below them, Kairi had begun wading out of the water, looking miserable, while Tidus complained to Wakka about how Riku always won. Selphie called down to them, saying something about how pathetic they were that the four of them couldn't even defeat Riku. 

Sora and Riku exchanged glances again and grinned. But then Sora tilted his head, noticing something.

"Hey, Riku, why are you all wet?" Sora asked, momentarily pulling Riku away from his giddy victory. The boy reached out and brushed his ungloved hand through Riku's damp silver hair. "I was afraid I was going to drop you back there, not because you were too heavy, but because you were all slippery."

Raising both eyebrows, Riku stared at his best friend. "Well, it was really hot during those thirty minutes waiting under that bridge. What? You don't like me wet with my clothes clinging to me?"

Sora promptly blushed. "Stupid."

"I know," Riku laughed, mussing Sora's hair as he grinned. "But you know you wouldn't last without me."

~~~

_One... two... **three**!_

He lugged the log up out from the underbrush and it flew into his arms from the momentum, almost knocking him backwards into the small pool of water by the secret place. 

Riku silently laughed to himself, thinking that actually that wouldn't have been such a bad thing. He could lounge around in the cool water, letting the spray of the waterfall tickle his face as the cold enveloped him in its weightless embrace. It sounded really good right now, but alas, he was busy. Busy gathering last-minute construction material for his raft, that is.

He'd have time to swim later. Hmm... And maybe Sora would join him.

The afternoon was just as hot as the morning had been, but after Riku and Sora had won Island War, Kairi had gotten pissy and given the two boys a vocal list of materials to gather for finishing the raft. 

It was almost like building the raft had been _her_ idea. Actually, when Riku had mentioned building a raft all those weeks ago, he had intended for only him and Sora on going, _not_ Kairi as well.

Oh well. If Kairi was going, then that meant Sora was guaranteed to follow. 

Kairi. Grr.

But the day was way too hot to be doing this sort of manual labor. Riku wouldn't complain though, because he was Riku, and nothing perturbed him (except for perhaps some of Selphie's antics). Sora on the other hand was probably lazing around somewhere, trying to keep cool. 

Smiling to himself at the mental image, Riku shifted the log in his arms and turned towards shore, immediately spotting a figure with spiky brown hair laying there, basking in the sun with his face turned towards the sky. 

Sora. As predicted. The boy was probably sleeping and having dreams about chocolate milk shakes. He looked adorable laying there in the sand, arms behind his head and the sun lighting up his tan face and almost making his red jumper glow. He could even see the glint of the boy's crown necklace from this distance, and it made him smile. 

Riku was just taking a step towards him when he saw that Kairi had gotten to the boy first, and now Sora was sitting up, staring at her as she leaned over him with her hands clasped behind her back.

Kairi. The rift between the two boys.

Unbeknownst to her, she was always there to ruin Riku's plans with Sora. 

That had started way back when she had appeared so suddenly on the islands, and back then, it had been just Riku and Sora, always competing over the littlest things... Sora had looked up to Riku as a role-model, and Riku had reveled in the attention he had received. It had been a perfect life. 

But when Kairi had come along, Sora's eyes had filled with a new sort of fascination; Riku was no longer the center of Sora's attention, and Kairi was just another competition between them, with her as the prize to be won.

However, Riku didn't want _her_. He wanted something else.

He needed attention to survive. He _thrived_ on the feeling of importance. If Kairi were suddenly to return her feelings for Sora, what would become of Riku? Sora wouldn't need his rivalry anymore. Sora wouldn't need _him_. 

Riku sighed and trudged towards the beach, his happiness fading away just like it always did when he thought of the possibilities of Kairi and Sora's relationship.

He heaved the log over the ledge and it dropped next to a daydreaming Selphie in the sand, startling her out of her own reverie, no doubt romantic. To Selphie, everything was romantic. 

She sometimes even teased Riku about Kairi and Sora, asking which one he had a crush on. It was a joke of course, but how funny it was that Selphie was actually that perceptive to notice Riku's staring at Sora. Tidus had noticed. Actually, Tidus _knew_. He was the only one who did know.

"Hey, that wasn't very nice, Riku!" she huffed in irritation, her face turning a fine shade of pink nevertheless. Leaping to her feet, she shook her brown locks and cried, "You got me all sandy!"

"You were _already_ sandy," he managed to laugh, dropping next to her and picking up his log. Teasing Selphie was always fun, but right now he had more important things --- like separating Kairi and Sora. "I'll see you later. Gotta deliver this first."

Selphie huffed again, but not without a smile as she got to her feet and ran to the dock where she usually spent most of her day. With that done, he tucked the log under one arm and headed over to Kairi and Sora, who were staring out into the ocean and talking now. 

They looked like a couple. It was so... sickening.

Really, something needed to be done about this.

Riku had actually formulated a plan, ever since he had admitted to himself that he loved Sora in _that way_. 

The first step was winning Kairi's heart. It sounded stupid, right? But it was supposed to seem natural. Once she was infatuated with Riku, Sora would be discouraged with Kairi and return his full attention to Riku, and then things would be back the way they had been before Kairi had shown up.

See? It worked out perfectly in the end. That was the plan. 

And Riku had been working on it for _years_. 

The situation had only gotten worse with time, unfortunately; Kairi was spending more and more time with Sora alone whilst Riku was being left out more and more frequently. 

And to top it off, Kairi didn't seem too thrilled about Riku at all --- a major fluke in that plan of his. If Kairi didn't like him, then the rest of his plan flopped.

As for Riku's feelings for Kairi...

She was an interesting gal, no doubt, but Riku didn't harbor much feeling for her. She was a good friend most of the time, but to him, she was an obstacle in his quest for Sora's returning affection. 

Time was definitely running short, especially with their big adventure a mere two days away. He was beginning to think that a new strategy needed to be set --- a Plan B, perhaps. 

Maybe this whole Plan A: "beat Sora to Kairi first so he pays attention to you" plan was doomed to failure from the start. 

In any case, something needed to be done quickly so that Sora wasn't lost to Kairi forever. 

Riku didn't know _what_ he would do if they ran off together and left him to wallow in solitude.

"I'd like to see it some day..." Sora was saying from his spot in the sand. "Along with any other worlds out there! I want to see 'em all!"

Riku smiled, feeling his spirits soar. Just two more days and the three of them would be on the open sea, searching for those worlds. It was just like Sora to say something like that, and it reassured Riku that Sora was saying it even to Kairi because sometimes Riku doubted that Kairi believed they would find _anything _--- that his dreams were worthless, just some _dream_ and nothing more. 

Or perhaps she only pretended to doubt Riku, so that she could have Sora for herself. But Sora's dedication and constant babbling about other worlds let Riku know that he still supported his ideals, which was a small sign of hope that the boy still wanted and needed Riku's rivalry and friendship. His love.

"So what are we waiting for?" Kairi said cheerfully, turning to face Sora with a smile.

But now was time for Riku to continue with Plan A, which was the only thing he _could_ do before he came up with an alternate solution. 

Well, other than confessing his love to Sora outright, but Riku would never do that. No, it wasn't Riku's style, and therefore Sora wouldn't take him seriously if he ever did. The boy would probably even be disgusted and then definitely run off with Kairi. 

In any case, if Riku ever did admit his love publicly, Selphie would probably go into "uber-conspiracy" mode and make a huge soap opera deal out of it. 

Riku approached his two friends from behind and took a calming breath. According to his plan, he needed impress them both with his charms, and just slightly make them feel guilty for excluding him in their conversation while _he_ had been working.

"Hey!" he called, and his friends turned at his voice. Kairi's happy expression fell when she saw him, but Sora immediately flashed him an adorable smile. "Aren't you guys forgetting about me?" he asked, placing a gloved hand onto his hip. They probably didn't know that was _actually_ one of his greatest fears: being left out. _Being alone_. "So, I guess I'm the only one working on the raft," he said, managing a sheepish grin as he crossed the sand towards Sora.

He tossed the log at the boy, who caught it and fell backwards into the sand with a small cry of surprise. Stopping in front of Kairi, Riku leaned forward and placed his gloved hands on his hips, his brows raising as his eyes narrowed mischievously. "And you're just as lazy as he is."

Kairi rubbed the back of her head with one hand, giggling. "Hee hee. So you noticed." But then she spread her arms wide, innocence gone, and said, "Okay, we'll finish it together." 

Right. As if she would lift a finger to help them, other than to point at one of his faults or praise Sora's skills. She was like that.

But he hid a satisfied smile (yes! he most certainly had charmed them!) and casually dropped onto the ground next to Sora and rested an arm on his knee, just as Kairi pointed at them and said, "I'll race you!"

"Huh?" Sora uttered innocently. That boy had a talent for acting adorable. It was as if he had been placed on Destiny Islands for the sole purpose of tempting Riku. 

Riku played off his stare as usual though, pretending to look and sound exasperated.

"What? Are you kidding?"

Kairi giggled again, sounding ominously innocent, and said, "Ready? GO!"

Another competition. It seemed their days were packed full of them, but this didn't bother Riku nor Sora at all. It hardly fazed them. The two boys exchanged quick looks before they simultaneously leapt to their feet and broke off into sprints, Kairi already far behind them. As they ran, Riku cast a satisfied grin over at Sora, whose attention was instead focused on the finish line ahead.

Two more days and they would be free. Their raft would be done and they would have all the time in the world to explore new worlds. With each other. 

Now, if only Riku could get Sora to understand his feelings... without making a fool of himself.

Then again, if only Kairi wasn't going with them. It would be a lot easier then, because then Riku could slyly flirt all the time. Hah! He could imagine Sora's startled reaction and blush.

Trying to burn the image into his memory, Riku slid to a stop in the warm sand near the raft, managing a triumphant smile as Sora came jogging up after him, defeat written clearly on his face.

"Man, not again..." the boy whined. He dropped onto the edge of the unfinished raft and gave a deep sigh.

Riku flopped down next to him just as Kairi caught up, the smile fading from her face when she saw the two of them sitting there. Together. Stopping in front of them, she scowled, putting on a mother-hen-ish facade.

"Sora, didn't I just get after you about being lazy? And now _you_, Riku!"

The silver-haired boy shrugged nonchalantly, knowing she didn't really care what Riku did, as long as it wasn't with _her_ Sora. "I already got my stuff," he said casually. "Sora left the log back on the beach though. Stupid."

Sora frowned, lightly punching Riku in the arm. "I'm not stupid! And since you're done, you can help me!"

Riku raised an eyebrow at that, a sly grin crossing his lips. "Aha... Sure. The only thing I'm going to help you with today is shaping up that pudgy belly of yours," he calmly replied. "How do you expect to attract girls when you still have your baby fat?"

A furious blush ran over Sora's cheeks at Riku's words. "I'm attractive!" he retorted, raising his eyebrows as he turned to get Kairi's support. "Aren't I, Kairi?"

She giggled, patting him on the head. "Puppy-ish cute, Sora."

His shoulders sank and he turned his gaze to the sand. "Oh..."

Riku scooted closer to the boy and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, leaning his face close to Sora's. "Don't worry," he whispered softly, brushing a thumb over the boy's cheek, "I think you're sexy."

"Ugh!" Sora gently pushed him away, that grin back on his face. His tone was forced though, and Riku wondered if it was because Sora was really disgusted and didn't want to hurt Riku's feelings, even if it was just a joke. "Riku, that's not funny!"

"Do you think I'm sexy?" the silver-haired boy asked, putting on a face of false innocence. Testing time. Was Sora really disgusted with him? He got to his feet and slowly spun in a circle, giving them a short wink as he modeled for them.

"Oh yes," Sora replied dryly. "Almost as sexy as Wakka."

Kairi suddenly burst into laughter, Sora not far behind her.

"Well, well. I always knew you had a thing for red-heads, Sora," Riku teased, but not putting any emotion into it. His good mood had died as soon as he had suspected Sora's discomfort. And now this. Sora's comment practically confirmed his fears. 

But… there was always a chance that Riku was reading his best friend wrong. Sora _had_ been acting rather blushy lately.

"Nah, not really," Sora said as he managed to calm his laugh, his blue eyes gleaming with tears from laughing so much. "It just seemed funny at the time. I like someone else."

Kairi's interest immediately perked up. "Ooo... Who is it? Are you going to miss her when we leave on the raft?"

"I'm not telling!" Sora exclaimed, suddenly embarrassed as Kairi leaned towards him for more information. Pfft. She was no doubt hoping he liked _her_. But Sora turned to Riku, cheeks stained with a light hue of pink as he asked, "W-What about you, Riku? Don't you like someone?"

"How can you be so sure?" Riku asked, managing a small smile. Did Sora actually care, or was he only asking to escape Kairi's questioning gaze? And there was that blush of Sora's again. It _was_ happening a lot lately.

"My mom told me that all teenage boys direct their lust toward one secret person that they remember for the rest of their lives. She says it's because of the hormones. And you're almost sixteen, so speak up!" 

_His mom is always so knowing,_ Riku mused, and wondered if Sora was going to grow up with that almost mind-reading trait. Well, judging from how Sora didn't already know Riku's feelings, Riku was safe for now. "Yeah, I like someone..." he admitted slowly, with a light smile. "But you're getting only one hint: brown hair."

"Brown hair? But that could be anyone from Selphie to that three-year-old at the market!" Sora said, obviously disappointed at the vague hint.

"Or me," Kairi pitched in with a smile. "Or your mom, Sora."

Both of the boys cringed and gave her disbelieving looks.

"I can't believe you said that!" Sora laughed, rubbing at his forehead. "That is... thoroughly disturbing. Ugh. Moving on... What about you Kairi?"

"Oh, me...?" She hesitated, turning her face to stare out into the sea. "Girls don't talk about their love lives with boys. Unless they're gay. Or so Selphie told me. So neither of you are hearing anything from me."

Riku cast a glance at Sora, who was suddenly frowning. Blinking at the look, Riku wondered why Sora's mood had changed so suddenly like that.

Was Sora upset that Kairi wouldn't answer his question, or was it because she had said something he hadn't liked?

"Anyway!" Kairi spun on Sora and narrowed her eyes, who glanced up to meet her gaze, his dark mood gone. "You need to gather the parts of the raft now! And don't even think about changing the subject again!"

As he watched the two of them, a smile slowly crossed over Riku's face.

Well, he'd get Sora to understand _somehow_. 

The boy didn't have to like him back in return, though that would be great, but Riku just needed him to _understand_... Keeping it to himself was torture. 

Once he had even considered asking _Tidus_ for advice, or perhaps telling Selphie outright about his problem... But, knowing them, they'd spread the word and Sora would find out the wrong way.

Inwardly sighing, Riku waved Sora goodbye (who pleadingly looked up at him to save him from Kairi), smiled, and headed off to his favorite spot to escape the sweltering heat by lounging under the shade of the paopu tree. 

~~~

The sunset had dyed the ocean hues of fire, and the wind had finally picked up to cool the islands down after a long day. Kairi, Sora and Riku were lounging around the paopu tree, watching the sun sink over the horizon, discussing their futures. Sora had mentioned something about Kairi's world, bringing Riku's thoughts to other worlds again, wondering where she had come from and how.

Riku wanted desperately to leave these islands.

"Could be," he said in response to Sora's comment. "We'll never find out by staying here."

Genuinely interested, Sora leaned forward to look over Kairi's shoulder at the silver-haired boy, his voice light with curiosity. "But how far could a raft take us?"

So, Kairi's doubt was beginning to affect Sora too. Pretty soon she'd be feeding Sora affection from her hands, both of them ignoring Riku or forgetting him for good. 

Still, Riku couldn't lie to Sora. Even _he_ actually had doubts about the raft idea. There had to be another way to get off these forsaken islands!

"Who knows?" Riku replied, lifting a hand casually as he spoke. He had to sound like the leader. Like he knew. "If we have to, we'll think of something else."

"So, suppose you _get_ to another world," Kairi began, and then paused to giggle, her legs swinging back and forth as she sat carefully balanced next to Sora on the paopu fruit tree. She continued with a hint of cynicism. "What would you do there?"

Riku noticed the "you" in her sentence rather than the "we" that should have been there. Her question... It caught him off guard. It sounded like she was testing him or something, trying to throw off his suspicion of her under a guise of innocent giggling. Unsure of how to respond, he used the first thing that came to mind.

"Well, I haven't really thought about it."

Lame! Silently he cursed at himself. Whatever Kairi was trying, she probably had gotten the right response out of him. For some reason, Riku had a feeling she was trying to ruin his dreams, rebuke them as foolish, or try to make Sora see that Riku's plans had no future. And so far, he had acted against his plan... He was speaking too honestly. There was no way Kairi or Sora were impressed with him now.

Shifting his weight onto his back as he leaned against the tree, he quickly added, "I've always wondered why we're _here_, on this island. If there are any other worlds out there, why did we end up on this one?" 

_This prison surrounded by water,_ he thought silently, crossing his arms.

Instead he continued with, "And suppose there _are_ other worlds... Then ours is just a little piece of something much greater. So we could have just as easily ended up somewhere else," he paused, looking up at Sora with hopeful green eyes, "right?"

Sora tore his gaze away (had he been staring at Riku?!) and turned, falling into a reclining position against the tree, his arms behind his head. "I don't know."

He didn't seem to agree. Shit. 

"Exactly," Riku said, a bit disappointed in Sora's reaction, even if it was truthful. He had been hoping for a thoughtful response at least, not some nonchalant truth. Riku pushed himself away from the tree, his arms falling to his sides. "That's why we need to go out there and find out." He took a few steps towards the edge of the small island to look out into the water, his voice turning solemn as though he was muttering to himself. "Just sitting here won't change a thing. It's the same old stuff."

And it was. Island War some days, grueling training other days, playtime scenarios with knights and princesses... It was fun, yes, and Riku enjoyed winning, but he was getting too old for it. As Sora had said earlier that day, Riku was almost sixteen. What was he going to do with his life? Become a fisherman like so many others? Or how about a businessman for some high-tech corporation on one of the main islands like his father? Right. 

Behind him, Sora watched him with an unreadable expression in his deep blue eyes as Kairi shook the hair out of her face, seemingly unfazed by Riku's statements.

"So let's go," Riku finished quietly.

"You've been thinking a lot lately, haven't you?" Kairi spoke up, sounding curious. 

Was she trying to reprimand him again? Never mind that, Riku's plan was still in motion. He had to keep trying. Even if Riku couldn't lie to Sora about his feelings, he could always lie to Kairi.

"Thanks to you," he replied as he turned to face her. 

This was an obvious lie --- Riku had dreamt of visiting other worlds way before Kairi had ever shown up. But Kairi didn't know that, and this suited his purposes. 

However, he noticed that Sora's eyes narrowed and his mouth opened as though he wanted to cut in; Sora had seen through the lie, but the boy hesitated as Riku spoke again. 

"If you hadn't come here, I probably would have never thought up any of this."

The air fell silent and Sora abruptly turned his gaze back to glare into the sunset. 

Kairi meanwhile was letting Riku's words sink in. So far so good...

"Kairi, thanks," he said finally with a hint of a smile.

She giggled in response, pretending to accept the compliment. "You're welcome."

As soon as her words faded away and she paused to give Riku a friendly smile, Sora sat up and shattered the romantic mood.

"Well," the brown-haired boy said with an obviously fake yawn, "let's go home. I'm beat from running around all day. And I think Tidus bruised my ribs..."

Riku glanced up at the other boy, noting the distant tone in his usually cheery voice. It sounded almost mechanical. Had Riku said something that made Sora angry?

Oh, the lie. Sora had seemed like he had wanted to say something when Riku had spoken directly to Kairi... Was Sora acting jealous? But why would he be? It was almost as though Sora was acting jealous that Riku was giving Kairi credit for the whole "other worlds" idea.

The silver-haired boy stifled a sigh. The wrong message was being sent.

Riku didn't like _Kairi_... but that's obviously what Sora thought. Which he was supposed to think, of course, according to Riku's plan. But with Kairi not really returning Riku's fake affections, the plan wasn't working anyway. And sometimes, it seemed like Sora wasn't acting jealous of Riku, but of _Kairi_, which was totally strange.

There was no way Sora would be jealous of Kairi because Riku was giving _her_ attention. That made it seem like _Sora_ wanted _Riku's_ attention.

Was it possible that Sora was hiding under his own façade?

"Yeah, let's go," Kairi agreed, sliding off the tree onto the ground. She exchanged a look with Sora before she headed towards the bridge.

Maybe it was time to set Plan B into motion. Maybe it was time for Riku to try to express his feelings to Sora, before this whole thing turned into a huge mess... 

But how to **do** it?

Taking a look around, Riku spotted the answer. 

How obvious! 

As Sora dropped onto the ground to follow Kairi, his chain jingling as he began walking, Riku quickly climbed the tree and reached for the ripest paopu fruit from its top. He jerked it and its stem broke with a soft noise, and he hugged the fruit to himself as he slid carefully back onto land. 

Well, he might as well try. 

If Sora didn't get this hint, then Riku didn't know _what_ to do.

"Sora," he called as he caught up to the boy. 

His heart was suddenly thundering in his chest, and he forced back a blush as Sora turned. 

This was the moment of truth. Sora _had_ to understand…

Riku tossed the fruit at him and the boy caught it, staring down at the yellow star with a confused look.

"You wanted one, didn't you?" Riku said, silently hoping his message would get across. That Sora would understand that he liked _him_, not Kairi. That the paopu was for _him_, not her, that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with _him_, not her.

"A paopu fruit..." the boy asked, rather than said, his brow furrowing as he stared at the smooth yellow skin of the fruit.

Riku started walking again, explaining without mentioning names to emphasize his meaning, "If two people share one, their destinies become intertwined. They'll remain a part of each other no matter what." His voice involuntarily dropped at the last three words, momentarily revealing his true emotions. Of course, that would only happen in front of Sora.... In order to make up for his moment of weakness, which Sora _still_ did not seem to catch, Riku added with a laugh, "C'mon, I know you want to try it."

_With **me**,_ he silently added.

"What are you talking--" Sora began in a demanding tone, a tone that almost sounded like disgust.

No!

Breaking into a laugh and interrupting Sora before the boy could continue, Riku ran ahead. 

It probably sounded like Riku was teasing him, and that his laugh was a casual laugh. But it was actually riddled with an emotion Riku rarely expressed. 

Fear. 

He was afraid that Sora would never understand, that Sora would _hate_ him for his true feelings…. Or that Sora would be so confused because of Riku's confession that he would approach _Kairi_ with his feelings.

The paopu fruit was supposed to be an ultimate symbol of love, but it hadn't worked. How _else_ could he explain his feelings? What better way was there than a paopu fruit? 

There _wasn't_ any, aside from the blatant truth.

And much to Riku's dismay, Sora casually tossed the fruit off the bridge into the water and took off running after him towards the docks. 

Sora had discarded it. Like some dirty sock. 

He had thrown it away... a symbol of his love!

The rejection was an arrow through his heart, but he could only shake his head and sigh.

Another wasted effort.

________________________________________________________________________________

**_Everything_** in this fanfic has a meaning, even these first six introductory chapters. These first six chapters are to introduce you to Riku and Sora's friendship and growing relationship, and to make you comfortable with them so that by the time you reach the **real** plot in the story, their relationship is already familiar to you.

Because of this, the plot in these first chapters is kind of fluffy and cute, and basically follows KH's plot, with a few changes. **However, **don't expect that to last.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. ^^ If you're new to Stygian Solace, make sure you review as you read, as I work really hard on this fanfic (I have plot! I have plot!) and feedback is very precious to me. 


	2. Ch 2: The Sky's Feelings v 3

_Author's Notes:_

Ah, the second chapter. Well, here's a heads up for new readers. Stygian Solace was, I think, the first (from my knowledge, and I DO read a lot) KH fanfic to have a... er.. "strict" father, so this, like many of my ideas, is _not_ taken from any other fanfic. After all, Stygian Solace is almost as old as KH itself, and was one of the first successful KH fanfics, yaoi or not, posted at ff.net.

This chapter has more to do with _Sora's_ side of the story, and how _he_ feels about Riku. 

_A look ahead:_

Raging parents, raging hormones. Conflicting names. And Exhibit A: wet bishounen!

_______________________________________________________________________________________ 

**_Chapter 2: The Sky's Feelings_**_ v. 3.0_ (redone November 2003)

  
  


Narrow jade eyes bore into each other like rusty daggers, the hatred between father and son so strong, so acrid that any outsider to Riku's family would be appalled by their behavior and demeanor around each other. But for Riku, this "love" he received from his father was familiar. Almost routine. Did he cower when the hand cracked across his face? Did he cry when he was slammed against the wall and called vile, derisive names? Did he scream when the fingers wrapped around his throat, jerked at his silver hair, or twisted his arm into unnatural positions?

No. Riku did none of those things.

Instead, when his mouth filled with the bitter, metallic taste of blood, he spat it back into the man's face and leered afterward, crimson staining his teeth and lips. He simply laughed when his father hissed the word _fag_ and threw him to the ground, screaming that his son should bring home proper girls instead of dreaming wet dreams about his best _male_ friend. Screaming that his son had no future. Screaming that no one loved him for what he was. Not even Kairi. Or Sora.

That's right. Sora and _Kairi_ had each other, didn't they? Riku was the odd one out. He was just... _there_.

When his father took a break from screaming, his mother would whimper and sob and blubber and wonder what she had done wrong when she had raised him and then would ask him why he did the things he did, when in reality, he had done _nothing_. They expected him to bow before them and grovel at their feet like some filthy dog when they did practically nothing for him. He cooked for himself, he fixed things around the house, he took care of himself when he was ill (because it would certainly soil their hands if they ever helped _him_), and he even had to sneak fictional books into the house to read, for his father only wanted him to study physics and law. They reprimanded him for having grand dreams and they slapped him when he said he didn't want to follow in their footsteps.

When they had first found out about Riku's infatuation with Sora, they had lost their minds. As if their son wasn't _horrible_ enough already. Now he was _gay_. 

And every day since then had been almost the same. They would come home in the morning from work or somewhere of the like as he was waking up, or eating breakfast or something normal, and they would immediately find something to harp at him about. Most days he got off clean without punishment. Then they would leave together again for a brunch or something banal like that (they supposedly had friends, but Riku never saw them), and Riku would leave for the play islands to spend time away from home in case his parents returned early. 

His friends always helped him forget his problems --- Tidus with his daily challenges, Selphie and Kairi with their girlish fantasies, Wakka with his Blitzball obsession, and Sora…

Just being able to see Sora always brightened his mood. 

But when Riku returned home to eat or sleep, he again would be met with furious parents. At night he rarely got off without punishment. This was why he spent many nights over at Sora's house… To escape.

Tonight was no different, and Riku had already been in an especially sour mood because of Sora rejecting his paopu fruit. 

He took his undeserved punishment quietly, accepting the names his father spat at him, welcoming the pain that accompanied them. 

It would be all over soon anyway. So soon. Just two more days. Just two more days until he and Sora would be on that raft and away from the islands….

If only it would come more quickly.

~~~

Sora had been thinking about paopu fruits and his two best friends, dreamily listening to the shrill cry of cicada outside, when he heard the shuffling of shrubs just below his bedroom window. 

He was _supposed_ to be sleeping, but like many nights recently, he just couldn't close his eyes.

What he saw when he did filled him with a lot of weird emotions.

He saw _Riku_ when he closed his eyes. 

Riku grinning at him, Riku teasing him, Riku peacefully sleeping, Riku looking frustrated, Riku laughing uncontrollably…

Sora knew what he felt. Sora knew why he sometimes woke up in an embarrassing state and had to use the restroom soon afterwards… 

He wasn't sure when it had happened, but he _had_ fallen in love with his best friend. His best friend who, as far as he knew, was only interested in Kairi.

Today had been an interesting day, that was for sure. A lot of things had happened that had confused Sora… But the one thing that stood out the most was Riku and the paopu fruit.

What the hell had _that_ meant?

Sora had almost taken it the wrong way, that Riku was teasing Sora about Kairi --- _that_ was rather upsetting. But when Sora had gotten home, he had realized that maybe, just _maybe_ Riku had meant something else. That maybe Riku had given the fruit to him as a _sign_.

It was a little too hopeful, but it had been enough for Sora to row back to the play island, find the discarded paopu fruit, and take it home with him to cherish. After all, _Riku_ had given it to him. No matter what the intention behind the gift had been, Sora was keen on keeping it for himself. 

As much as he _really_ liked Kairi, what he felt for Riku was something much more than just _like_. 

This was why, when Sora heard the bushes outside his window shuffle and indicated that someone was there, he sat up in bed and panicked. 

There were only two possibilities of whom was sneaking around outside his bedroom window: some kidnapper, or Riku. 

And right now Sora would have preferred the kidnapper because he was only wearing his navy-colored boxers, and the prospect of Riku seeing him in this kind of state of undress (especially after today, with Riku teasing his pudgy belly).... 

Urk, how embarrassing! 

Cheeks flushing, Sora cast a glance around his room to search for a shirt nearby, his brown hair lightly bouncing at the movement. His blue eyes widened when he realized that his mother had picked up his laundry today, and that the only things littering the floor were magazines, action figures, and his red jumpsuit --- no time to put that on! 

He launched out of bed and scrambled to his closet to find a top, snatching the first one he saw --- some really old, really small black dragon shirt that he had only kept because _Riku_ had given it to him for a past birthday. He pulled it over his head, struggling with it and wincing at how small it was, hoping he wouldn't end up tearing it. To his surprise, once he got his arms in, the rest of the shirt fit quite nicely, even if it did expose his tummy now. 

Crap. Tummy. 

But there was no time to find another shirt, for the first rock had tapped against the shutter of his open window. 

Making sure the paopu fruit was carefully hidden beneath his bed, Sora scrambling back on top of his mattress and peeked his head out into the warm night air, turning his blue eyes down to stare into the shrubbery. 

There Riku stood, pale face turned upward and his bright green eyes filled with uncertainty. 

The moon was behind him, casting his back and the top of his head in a silvery light, and even at such a distance, Sora could see the shallow bruise on his cheek.

Shit. His parents had done it again. 

Riku didn't even have to ask --- Sora saw the pleading look in his friend's eyes and he quickly nodded, silently telling the silver-haired boy that he could come up. 

Relief filled Riku's face and he smiled, already grabbing at the tropical vine-covered trellis to climb up to the window.

As Sora leapt off his bed and skidded to a stop in front of his door to lock it, he wondered _why_ he was suddenly blushing. When he turned back around, Riku was already hoisting himself over the windowsill and lifting his head to glance at Sora. 

Riku's eyebrows rose upon seeing Sora's clothes, and Sora remembered just why he was embarrassed. The blush deepened, but Riku didn't seem to mind as he stepped off the sill onto the bed, eyeing Sora's shirt.

"You still wear that?" he asked quietly, sounding almost amused as he stared at his friend.

"I-I haven't touched it in a long time..." Sora admitted as he lowered his gaze and nervously raked his fingers through his spiky hair, silently chiding himself for being so stupid. "I look stupid, I know... I couldn't find anything else to we--"

"I think it fits nicely," Riku interrupted, and Sora's head snapped up and his startled blue eyes locked with Riku's intent green ones. But Riku didn't stop there. "You look cute. I mean it."

He wasn't joking. There was no sign of sarcasm or ridicule on the older boy's face. Sora didn't know whether to feel complimented or uncomfortable.

"I-I thought you were going to make fun of me again," Sora stammered, falling into a sudden laugh as Riku smirked at him.

"I might have, on any other day," was Riku's reply, that smirk faltering as he narrowed his eyes and stared at the floor. "Is your mom already asleep?"

Sora crossed his toy-strewn floor to stand before Riku. The silver-haired boy was sitting on Sora's bed and had brought his knees up to his chin, feet on the bed, and had his arms wrapped around his legs; the distant look in his eyes gave him the aura of a lost child almost. 

Like he was about to cry. 

But Riku _never_ cried. It was unheard of. 

Beginning to reach out to pet his friend, or comfort him at least, Sora caught himself and instead moved to sit next to Riku on the bed.

"Yeah. She's asleep," Sora replied, intently studying Riku. "You know her. She could sleep through a tsunami."

This elicited a small smile from Riku. "Yeah. She could."

"Do you want to spend the night? I can try to wake her up," Sora suggested, rising back to his feet and moving as though he was heading towards the door. "She could bring in some extra blankets, or--"

"No!"

Riku's hand shot out and wrapped around Sora's arm, causing the boy to freeze in mid-step, his brow raising in surprise as he turned back to face his silver-haired friend. Riku's eyes were dark with some emotion Sora didn't recognize, but when he saw the startled look on Sora's face, those green eyes softened again and he relaxed, dropping his hand.

"I mean... You'll let me stay, won't you? We don't need to wake her up..."

"Riku, you're always over here anyway," Sora replied quietly, reassuringly. "We're like brothers."

When Sora saw the angry look that crossed Riku's face upon hearing his words, he supposed that maybe he shouldn't have said that last part.

"Brothers, huh?" Riku murmured, peeking up at Sora through his silver bangs. "What about Kairi then?"

Sora's blue eyes narrowed. "Kairi? What does she have to do with this?" he nearly demanded, upset that Riku just _had_ to bring her up, now of all times. "If that's why you came over...."

"No." Riku shook his head as he lifted his chin, his pretty lips forming a dark frown. "No, that's not why I came. You _know_ why I'm here. I can't stand another minute in that house. I'm not going back when _they're_ there. _Never_."

Eyes softening in concern, Sora moved back to stand in front of Riku, slightly stooping so that he was level with Riku. "What happened this time?"

"The usual. Blamed random crap on me, and when I refused to acknowledge it, my father did things his way."

"That can't be all. What _really_ happened?" Sora asked, his voice tight with anger. "Tell me, Riku --- I'm your best friend!"

"That's why I _can't_ tell you!" Riku suddenly cried, his face twisting with distress as his green eyes grew wet. Then, as though just realizing what he had done, the silver-haired boy buried his face in his hands and cursed before mumbling, "Sora... I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."

"It's alright," Sora sighed in response to his friend's muffled voice, his eyes solemnly lowering in understanding. 

Sora did understand. At least, he thought he knew most of it. Riku couldn't report his father's harsh "punishment." Well, Riku _wouldn't_. He abhorred his father's behavior, but he respected him and the high prestige he held in the Islands' society; the man was well-loved and reflected that esteem onto his family. Riku wouldn't, _couldn't_ ruin that reputation, because then his parents would suffer. 

And besides, who would believe Riku? Who would believe that such a seemingly perfect family could hide such an atrocious secret? Even if someone of importance knew the secret, his father had all the ties and "friends in high places" that could silence the problem. 

So Riku needlessly suffered alone at home, which was why he could rarely be found there. Sora generally snuck in as much as possible to visit his friend in the mornings, when Riku actually chose to sleep at home. To wake him up was Sora's excuse, but the truth was that Sora went to provide Riku with a friendly face, to give him the love and support he needed. 

Which is what Sora needed to do _here_ as well. 

Riku put on a facade of _cool, calm and in control_ when actually, inside, he needed the attention his friends gave him to disprove the word of his parents, to confirm that his life had meaning, that someone (if anyone) loved him.

Well, _Sora_ loved him. Always had, and always would.

Not caring about friendly boundaries any more, Sora reached forward and slid his bare fingers into Riku's hair, hoping it provided some form of comfort for the distraught boy. 

Much to his surprise, even though Riku didn't raise his head, he reached back, his arms blindly wrapping around Sora's waist and drawing him closer. When Sora was practically leaning over him, the older boy buried his face in Sora's stomach and clutched at the old tight shirt, letting Sora gently pet him.

It felt nice soothing Riku like that, having Riku depend on him a little, seeing some of the weakness that he carried with him. Sora had begun to think that Riku had no imperfections, aside from the obvious, but now _this_... 

Riku could take his love. _All_ of it, if he needed it. 

His friend still wasn't crying though. Riku never cried. 

Mmm... Then there were the physical aspects of it. Riku not only smelt nice, but his hair was unbelievably soft. Sora had never expected Riku to be the clingy type, but here they were...

"I can try to find a sleeping bag," Sora quietly suggested after what seemed like an hour of silence, "or do you want to see if we both can still fit on the bed?"

Riku took a few last seconds to nuzzle his nose into Sora's belly before he pulled away, still averting his eyes as he muttered, "Bed. But I need something to sleep in."

Forcing back a blush at Riku's strange cuddling, Sora hesitated a moment, his eyebrows drawing together as he pondered. "I dunno if you'll fit in any of my stuff."

Riku's eyes promptly narrowed. "You calling me fat?"

Sniggering, Sora playfully shoved Riku. "I wouldn't call it _fat_, Riku. Are you blind? Do you realize how much muscle you have now? Or how much taller you are than me?"

"I try to train you every day," Riku laughed, shoving back against Sora. "It's not my fault you're a runt." 

"First I'm pudgy, and now I'm a runt?" Sora said, a bit vindictive as he pushed his friend a little more forcefully. "Jeez, Riku, at least I don't have a girly waist!"

"But you have girly _hips_," Riku retorted, roughly shoving Sora backwards. "_And_ you're weak."

"Groar!"

Sora pounced on his friend and they both fell onto the bed, causing it to rock noisily against the wall, the brown-haired boy giggling playfully as his fingers attacked Riku's stomach with insane tickling. The stomach --- one of Riku's secret sensitive spots. Sora had discovered it one day a long time ago when they had been drawing on each other with paint to prepare for a rather long game of war. To think that someone like _Riku_ had such a weak spot. 

As Riku thrashed around, his silver hair whipping here and there and his feet trying desperately to push Sora back, he stifled a howl of laughter and squirmed around Sora's hands.

"Invincible Riku's weakness is his tummy!" Sora jeered as he giggled.

But as if by some silent signal, both boys collapsed into a heap on the bed, long limbs tangled and chests heaving for breath as they tried to control their laughter. 

After a moment with only the sound of ragged breathing in the silent air, Riku absently blew the silver hair out of his eyes, and as a final retaliation, Sora weakly shoved his friend's leg off the bed.

"Need to get dressed..." Sora off-handedly murmured.

"Too comfortable to move," was Riku's tired response.

"You can't sleep in that."

"Why not...?"

"Dun wanna rub against it all night. And takes up too much space anyway..."

"So you want me to sleep naked?"

"No nekkie... I find clothes for Riku."

"Er... I thought they wouldn't fit me?"

"...mmm..."

"Sora?"

"Hmm...?"

"Sora."

"Nighty, Ri-ku..."

"H-Hey! Sora, you can't fall asleep! I don't want to sleep in this...!"

"...poo..."

"Gah! Don't cling to me like that! Sora...! Soooora!"

~~~

"Hah! Don't tell me you're giving up already!"

"Argh! Get him!"

One palm resting casually on his hip, chin held high and his wooden sword clutched in his other gloved hand, Riku watched in amusement as Tidus charged at him, staff swinging wildly. Behind him was teeny Selphie with her jump rope and clumsy Wakka with his blitzball. All three of them looked determined to defeat him.

They were so desperate, actually, that all three of them were attacking at once.

The day was much like the previous day, though the clouds had gathered a bit more and the heat had somewhat subsided. It was still a few hours before noon, but the occupants of the play island were already bustling about. Or, in the case right now, they were already trying to kick Riku's ass. Actually, the fight had been going on for a few minutes now, and Selphie and Wakka were practically stumbling through their attacks because Riku had worn them down so much in such a short period of time. 

He was actually going easy on them, mostly because he had had a great morning so far, and was in a generous mood. 

Waking up in Sora's bed with the boy draped completely over him was, Riku had decided, something he could wake up _everyday_ to for the rest of his life. It had happened that morning, and, granted, Sora had been embarrassed about it afterward and tried to play it off by complaining he was hungry (as always), but Riku didn't care. 

He had loved it.

How could he not? Sora was just too undeniably adorable and innocent, especially when he slept.

The morning had continued with Sora's mother whipping up a quick breakfast before sending Sora and Riku off to the play island so she could go to work. She hadn't even hesitated when she saw that Riku sometime during the night had snuck in and slept with her son. 

Sora's mother was a curious person like that… Sometimes Riku had a feeling that she _knew_ about Riku's infatuation with Sora.

When they had gotten to the island, Kairi and Selphie had already been swimming around with Wakka. Tidus had made a late entrance some forty minutes after Riku and Sora had shown up. At that time, Kairi had taken it upon herself to list provisions for their trip on the raft, which they would be leaving on early tomorrow morning.

Was it really only one more day?

Riku felt himself smiling at the knowledge.

Anyway, Riku had finished gathering his share of the provisions rather early and had dropped them off with Kairi before returning to the beach, only to find the other three occupants of the play island conspiring against him. They had challenged him to a fight, and he had accepted, knowing full well that all three of them would end up working together against him.

Well, so much for their strategy.

As Sora was scavenging under rocks and through bushes for the items on his list for Kairi, Riku was ducking Wakka's blitzball and evading Selphie's jump rope handle. As the silver-haired boy gracefully swung his sword to meet Tidus' staff, he idly wondered whether he would have lost the fight if Sora had teamed up with the other children to defeat him. Sora's skill was improving daily, but was he good enough to best Riku yet?

Riku smirked to himself.

Sora? Defeat him? Well, if the day ever came, Riku would have to do something special for the boy. Granted, Sora was rather skilled at racing and sometimes beat him, but never in fighting.

A blitzball whizzing past his head brought him out of his thoughts.

Oh yes. He was in the middle of a fight, wasn't he? Well, it had been going on too long. It was time to end it.

He leapt back as Selphie's jump rope came zipping towards his eyes, and before it could escape, Riku reached out and snatched the end of it, jerking it out of the girl's hands. She cried out and stumbled forward and Riku gently pushed her, throwing her even more off-balance. With a long whine about always losing, she slumped into the sand.

Tidus suddenly vaulted over her and flew towards Riku, his staff arched high above him to strike the silver-haired boy down. It was so like Tidus to take a dramatic approach. With a small grin, Riku shot the end of the jump rope towards his attacker as Tidus landed in the sand in front of him, staff already coming down...

The rope curled around the staff and hooked, and Riku used it to pull the unsuspecting Tidus towards him. With a knee to his unprotected gut, Tidus was down, and Riku only had one more enemy to contend to.

As soon as the blitzball came flying towards him again, Riku swung his wooden sword, timing the strike so that it hit the ball and sent it hurtling straight back at Wakka, who saw the counterattack too late to stop it. The blitzball struck his head and bounced off, and Wakka comically fell head-over-heels into the warm sand behind him.

Hmm... That had been a bit too easy.

Too bad Sora was busy gathering things for the journey tomorrow. Riku, now that he was warmed up, was in the mood for a good challenging fight, and the other three fighting kids were out of commission. 

With a long sigh, Riku said, "You guys seriously need more practice."

Dropping Selphie's jump rope next to her, Riku left them there, swinging his sword over one shoulder and placing his free hand on his hip as he walked away. 

Sora had disappeared sometime during the course of the fight, which made Riku assume the boy was on the other side of the island looking for the items on his list. With nothing else to do, Riku headed in that direction, coming to a decision that he'd take a nap on the tower to pass time.

Really, there was nothing else to do. No wonder Kairi made a sport of collecting seashells.

As Riku passed through the door leading towards the cove, he could only think one thing.

Thank goodness they were leaving tomorrow.

~~~  
After counting the seagulls flying overhead, Riku's eyes had finally begun to slide close when he heard someone scrambling around in the bushes below the tower he was laying in. He considered ignoring the noise, but when he felt the vibrations of that someone climbing his tower, Riku decided to find out who it was. Sitting up, he turned to lean over and take a peek at the person climbing the ladder.

Two blue eyes blinked up at him, no more than three inches away.

Promptly pulling back, Riku turned his face to hide his sudden blush. If he hadn't, he might have seen Sora's own cheeks turn a nice roseate color as well.

Sora's lips had been so close to his...! Riku had actually _felt_ the boy's breath on his cheeks!

"I didn't know you were up here, Riku," Sora said, his voice slightly shaking.

The statement was obviously a topic changer, though there had been no previous topic. Small talk. Sora needed to talk to ease the sudden tension between them.

"I was trying to take a nap when I heard some beast making a racket in the bushes down below," was Riku's reply, lifting his face and turning back to face Sora, hoping his blush wasn't as bad as he thought it was. 

"Ah. Haha. I didn't know I was being that loud," Sora laughed, rubbing the back of his head and managing a sheepish grin. "Sorry about that."

"So you're still gathering stuff for Kairi?" Riku asked as he sat back, allowing Sora room to climb into the tower next to him. 

The boy did so, his crown chain noisily jingling as he shifted his hips to get comfortable. "Yeah. I'm almost done though... Just need to find two more mushrooms and gather some coconuts. Oh. And the fish."

"Fish? Can I go with you?" Riku asked, thinking that going fishing would keep him entertained for a while. And fishing with Sora was always fun, as Sora preferred to use his hands rather than a fishing pole like any sane person.

"Sure. But I'm doing it later tonight before I go home for supper."

Riku grinned. "Dinner or supper?"

He loved to tease Sora, who had about five meals everyday, starting with breakfast, brunch, lunch, moving on to dinner, supper and ending with dessert. It was amazing that Sora's pudgy belly wasn't getting bigger, rather than smaller with all of the food he ate. 

Then again, Sora's mother was pretty firm about Sora eating healthily, which meant small, but many courses in her definition. Plus, Sora did all that running around and fighting all day, so even though he ate so much, the calories were burned off anyway. It also excused his bouncy behavior most of the time.

"Supper, Riku. Stop teasing me," Sora said, lightly smiling. But then his blue eyes widened as he remembered something. "Ah! I saw you fighting Selphie, Tidus and Wakka!"

"And?" Riku asked, sensing more to Sora's statement.

"And I heard you kicked their butts!" Sora finished, beaming. 

"Of course I did," Riku inserted matter-of-factly. 

"Tidus told me about it," the boy continued, but he hesitated for a moment, as though recalling something Tidus had said that had bothered him. "He said that Kairi would always have you to protect her." 

Huh. That was a strange statement, coming from Tidus, who _knew_ that Riku liked Sora.

Riku waited quietly, watching the changing of expressions across Sora's face. 

Finally, Sora's forehead wrinkled as he looked to Riku, asking, "Do you think I could beat them?"

Riku reached out to ruffle Sora's brown hair, reassuring the boy with a smirk. "When you beat all three of them at once, you might stand a chance against me, Sora."

Sora bristled defensively, his eyebrows drawing together. "I can beat you!"

"Yeah, like at what?" Riku teased, pinching Sora's cheek.

The boy brushed the offending hand aside and frowned. "Racing!"

"Then we'll race later, like say after you collect all the coconuts. Okay?"

"You're on!"

~~~

As soon as Sora had left to browse the island for coconuts and mushrooms, Riku had given up on his nap. He figured every time he would close his eyes, he would see Sora's lips hovering in front of him. How could anyone concentrate on sleeping like that? So, to take his mind off his hormones, Riku had retreated from the tower and decided to focus on other important things, like the raft.

Hm... Wasn't it unlucky to travel on an unnamed vessel? The raft didn't have a name yet.

When Sora came jogging up to Riku, announcing he was finished with the coconuts, Riku had already come up with the perfect name for their raft: _Highwind_.

But, of course, when Riku asked for Sora's opinion, the boy came up with an alternate name for it in about a split second. 

So, to sort out their differences, it was time for that promised race of theirs. However, it was also an ideal time to test Sora's feelings, and Riku thought he had the perfect way to do it: bring up the paopu, of course. 

Yes, he was still bitter about the boy taking his hint the wrong way last night, and yes, he was still hurt by the way Sora had so casually tossed his token of love off the bridge and into the sand. 

Today Riku was taking a different approach and had decided to stick with his original Plan A: Exploiting Kairi to get to Sora. If he tied Kairi into the deal, Sora would most definitely get defensive.

"Deal? The winner gets to share a paopu with Kairi," Riku said nonchalantly, not even bothering to look at the expression on Sora's face. Somehow he didn't want to. He was almost afraid of the look that would spread across that adorable face of his.

"Wha... Wait a minute...."

He sounded so helpless, so confused. 

Keeping his eyes focused on only Kairi, who was now standing in the doorway with an innocently sweet smile on her pretty face, Riku frowned. She had followed Sora, and, upon hearing that they were going to race, she had made herself referee. The two boys had been keeping their voices low so that Kairi couldn't hear them. Riku almost felt guilty for bringing Sora's feelings for Kairi into this, but he forced the remorse aside by remembering the discarded paopu fruit. 

He _had_ to do this. 

_You should have taken the hint last night when I gave you the fruit, Sora,_ Riku thought reproachfully. Narrowing his eyes, he bitterly added, _Which, by the way, you so casually tossed into the ocean, along with my feelings. I have no choice but to stick with Plan A. Even if it betrays my true feelings._

Then again, why _had_ Sora thrown it away? He could have kept it for Kairi if he liked the girl so much more than Riku.

Kairi's voice broke him away from his thoughts. Hand raised, she cheerfully called, "Okay! On my count..."

Riku watched Sora quickly position himself to race, the boy's face and body locked with determination. Determined to win against Riku? Determined to be the one to share the fruit with Kairi...? 

Or determined for some reason Riku kept overlooking...? 

Riku had about two seconds to wonder before Kairi's hand came down, and the race was on. The two boys broke off into sprints at the same time, but something seemed to have settled in Sora's fighting spirit today, and he quickly cut ahead of Riku. 

A little over a minute later, a disgruntled Riku leapt back onto the ledge of the starting point and almost crashed into a gleeful Sora, who was throwing his fist into the air in victory.

"Yes!" 

The boy laughed and did a little spin and dance to show his pride. At any other time Riku would have been laughing as well and maybe even joining in on Sora's victory dance, but not now. 

Riku didn't even have the heart to stare at the boy's butt like he should have been.

This was bad. 

Yes, Sora was exceptional at racing, but Riku had the distinct feeling that Sora was beginning to surpass him. When had been the last time Sora had been so determined to win against Riku in _anything_? He couldn't remember, and Riku had a feeling he'd be seeing less and less of Sora's cute pouty face. No more jutty bottom lip, no more furrowed forehead or disappointed blue eyes. Sora could now run off with Kairi and share his paopu fruit with her and leave Riku behind with the seagulls and crabs.

At least...

At least he could have one more pout, right?

Forcing himself to look smug, he turned to Sora and said as bluntly as he could, "Man, lighten up. It's just a name after all."

Sora shot him a dirty look of contempt, and already Riku felt better.

Yup. His Sora was adorable.

But then Kairi came walking up, her face bright with her usual happiness. "So what's the raft going to be called?"

"_Excalibur_, since Sora won," Riku said with a sigh. A

ctually, Sora hadn't picked that bad of a name, which was to be expected, since both of them had similar tastes in things. Except when it came to love, obviously... since Sora was so attracted to Kairi, as opposed to Riku who was attracted to Sora.

The boy himself gave Kairi a small smile as she giggled and said, "_Excalibur_ then! I'll see you two later. I'm going to go find Selphie --- she wanted to tell me something. You two behave and watch _Excalibur_."

With a casual wave, she skipped off to the door and left, leaving the two boys behind. As soon as she was gone, Sora's smile fell and he turned to Riku, his brow furrowed. It was so like Sora to put on a happy facade around Kairi, only to come to Riku with the real problem irking him.

"The paopu thing...." he began curiously, but for some reason he didn't finish it.

Riku frowned yet again. 

So Sora was angry that Riku was trying to beat him to Kairi? Or was Sora concerned about Riku's joke for some other reason? He couldn't tell anymore... Sora was slowly becoming as unreadable as a closed book.

"What's that?" Riku asked, turning to Sora and faking confusion. "Oh, the paopu thing. It was just a joke." _Yes, a joke! Don't let Sora share the paopu with Kairi!_ He paused there and continued with a short laugh, grinning, "You should have seen your face."

Sora glanced away, looking crestfallen. This reaction confused Riku even more. Did Sora really like Kairi that much...?

"Are you upset or something?" he asked lightly, this time his concern real. "It was just a joke."

The boy quickly shook his head and turned towards the broken bridge, slowly trudging in its direction. The way his shoulders slumped, the disappointed look on his face... What was wrong with Sora? 

Well, he might as well take advantage of the situation.

"So, how about another lap then, Sora?" he called cheerfully, flashing Sora a large grin that he hoped would ease the boy's mind of... well, whatever was troubling him. 

The grin was fake of course, but Sora didn't have to know about Riku's fears yet.

The brown-haired boy paused and turned, a single eyebrow raising in question. 

Something strange was present in those soft blue eyes that Riku didn't recognize. After a moment of staring quietly at each other, Sora finally matched Riku's grin, unable to resist another challenge. 

"I'm going to leave you in the dust!"

"Oh really?" Riku's grin fell into an impish smirk at Sora's proud statement. "Then how about we change the rules this time?"

"Anything goes?" the younger boy asked, echoing Riku's thoughts. It was proof that some things hadn't changed between them yet. Both of them loved a good challenge.

"Exactly."

With a shake of his head and a light laugh, Sora practically bounced back over to Riku and the starting point. "Alright then... on the count of three...!"

Good. Already the morose mood had lifted and they were back on friendly terms, not that they had been angry with each other in the first place. 

It was just... **_Something_** was obviously nagging at Sora's mind, but the boy didn't seem to want to share it with Riku.

This was familiar. 

Actually, it was kind of like their short argument last night that had stemmed from Sora suspecting something was bothering Riku, who wouldn't tell him. 

Well, how do you tell your beloved that you can't tell him the problem because the problem is that you love him and fear telling him? 

Yes, this situation was much the same as last night, only Sora probably wasn't hiding his love for Riku like Riku had been hiding his love for Sora last night.

Er… right?

To take his mind off it, Riku began the count. 

"One..."

Sora exchanged a quick glance with him, grinning as he said, "Two..."

But before Riku could even begin the last count, Sora suddenly took off ahead of Riku.

"H-hey!!" Riku cried. 

Not to be outdone twice in a row, he sprinted after his friend, only a step behind him. Really, when he wanted to, Sora could play downright dirty. But Riku could too. Just as Sora was touching foot on the broken bridge and preparing to leap over the frail planks, Riku lunged forward and grabbed hold of the boy's hood, yanking him backwards. 

"_Anything goes_ does _not_ mean starting before the count!" Riku exclaimed as Sora was jerked into his arms. 

Into _his arms_.

Sora didn't even seem to hear what Riku had said. No, the younger boy immediately blushed as his back hit Riku's chest and the older boy held him tight to keep from escaping.

"Are you listening to me, Sora? Hey, Sora!"

Sora blinked upon hearing his name, and then something seemed to come over him. As if to cover up his embarrassment, he retaliated, his arms suddenly flailing out as he cried, "Hey! That was cheating!"

Ducking Sora's arms, Riku fell into a bout of laughter, replying, "You said anything goes, and you were the one who chea--Whoa... Watch where you're swinging those fists, Sora. _Whoa!!_"

Riku didn't see Sora's arms the second time and was knocked off-balance. Teetering on the edge of the bridge, he threw his arms out to grab hold of something, _anything_. 

Unfortunately, that anything happened to be Sora, who was also fighting to keep his balance. 

Unable to defy gravity, they both went tumbling over the edge of the bridge into the shallow waters below. Riku landed hard, just barely grasping the concept that he had actually fallen when Sora suddenly landed on top of him and he fell backwards, momentarily submerging.

"Gah! Get off...!" Riku cried as he resurfaced, trying to push the younger boy off him but laughing despite himself.

"I'm try---" Sora began as his friend shoved him, but he fell backwards into the water, making a small splash. He sat up, now soaked. "Perfect," he mumbled, glaring at Riku, who was equally wet. The glare didn't seem very threatening, not with Sora looking like a miserable puppy there with his brown hair clinging to the sides of his face. Actually, there seemed to be a hint of amusement in Sora's eyes.

"It's _your_ fault," Riku retorted playfully, crossing his arms over his chest. He winced at the sudden coldness that spread throughout his body and wisely thought twice about taking the defensive stance. Instead he lowered his arms back into the water, shivering and unsure of what to do. 

Here he was, alone with Sora again, given another chance to explain himself and whom his _real_ crush was, but his fear of rejection held him back. 

If only he could just _say_ it. Say it and get it over with.

Just say those three words and _kiss_ him or something.

The two of them stared at each other in silence for a few moments, Sora with that unreadable expression on his face again. Riku frowned, intently studying the boy's face to attempt to discern the look.

And very suddenly, Riku sneezed, and the spell between them broke.

There went another love confession moment.

"Aww.... Is lil Riku cold?" Sora suddenly teased, jabbing his friend in the ribs.

"Hey, stop poking me, you--" he paused, both of his gloved hands moving to cover his nose as he sneezed yet again.

Sora took the hint. "Jeez, you not only look miserable, but you sound like it too." 

Sighing, the younger boy climbed to his feet and brushed the wet sand off his bottom, carefully eyeing Riku, who had turned his jade eyes to intently watch him. A blush crept over Sora's cheeks and he immediately retracted his hands. 

Riku had been looking at him, and it hadn't been just _any_ look... Riku suddenly blanched, fearing that Sora had finally caught him in one of his _stares_. He had, hadn't he?

"H-hey, stop staring at me like that..." Sora mumbled, his cheeks a delicious, embarrassed red. 

It was then that Riku _knew_ that Sora knew, that Sora had suddenly pieced together all of the clues and now _knew_ Riku loved him.

But the younger boy continued innocently, almost rambling. "I'm just getting up to find a towel for you so you don't get a cold and die or something... You know, back when we were younger, we used to always play in the water! But now..." he hesitated, letting his sentence trail off. 

Riku looked down, another shiver coursing through him. 

So, even Sora missed those days...? Then maybe the boy _would_ understand Riku's feelings after all, if he ever got around to expressing them outright... If Sora wasn't already disgusted, and leaving Riku to actually _leave_.

"Anyway!" Sora suddenly exclaimed, interrupting Riku's thoughts. "I'll be right back with a towel or something for you! You go wait by the raft. It should be a lot warmer there at this time of day."

Riku stared after him in silence as the brown-haired boy sprinted through the water, heading in the direction of the sea shack. 

A part of him had a feeling Sora wasn't coming back… Sora _had_ to know Riku's feelings now... The way Riku had been staring at him, the way Sora had caught him staring, and had acted so shyly after that…

Slowly he rose to his feet, his body shuddering as the wind hit his wet clothes. He knew he should have been worried about his health --- they were leaving tomorrow on the raft, after all, and it would be extremely inconvenient if Riku fell ill. Would Kairi and Sora leave him behind if that did happen?

…would Sora leave with Kairi, now that Sora probably knew Riku's unnatural love for him?

He also knew he should have been worried about what their parents would do when they found out the three of them had left home tomorrow. Sora's mother would freak. His own parents would only freak because he had disobeyed them.

But all that came to his mind... All he could wonder about at that moment was...

When had Sora become so _concerned_ about him? Granted, both boys had always taken care of each other, but…

Sora wasn't supposed to be _that_ concerned about Riku's health or take care of him when he did get sick. Riku was supposed to be strong enough to take care of himself --- he had been doing it since he was little, since his parents didn't care about him. 

And... Sora had just suddenly taken off like that. If he really _was_ going to go get a towel to dry Riku off with, what for? Riku could get his own towel.

Agghh... this whole thing was so confusing!

Then again... Sora had shown similar concern last night when Riku had so unexpectedly shown up at his window. Sora had welcomed him then and cheered him up.

Maybe Sora really cared about Riku, more than Riku gave him credit for.

Walking towards the tiny beach, Riku sighed, drawing his arms around himself again to fight back the cold wind. 

In any case, everything would be back to normal as soon as Sora came back with a towel, or so Riku reassured himself. That boy's mere presence had the power to lift Riku's morose moods. 

Sora _would_ come back… Sora hadn't run away from him. Sora wasn't like that. Even if Sora was uncomfortable with the way Riku had been staring at him, it wouldn't have been enough to break their friendship.

He was just collapsing in front of the mushroom cave near the raft when he heard Sora's splashing through the water towards him. Riku didn't even have time to breathe a sigh of relief that Sora had actually come back.

The boy came vaulting over the small fence in the water and landed on the sand in front of Riku with practiced grace. 

In the boy's hands was a small bundle --- a towel, as promised, but it was wrapped around something oddly-shaped. This greatly interested Riku, but he inwardly hoped it wasn't a fish Sora had just caught, because then the towel would reek... 

Lamely hiding the package behind his back, Sora crossed the sand to Riku and fell into a kneel before the other boy, his cheeks reddening. 

There was that blush again.

This time it was a _very_ happy blush though.

Riku very suddenly wasn't sure what to think. Why was Sora so _happy_?

"Tidus let me have his towel..." he explained with a bright smile, his red cheeks only adding to his charm. "But he wants it back later." Riku said nothing; he just watched Sora carefully, intently, trying to understand what was making the boy act so differently. "A-Anyway..." Sora's voice shook as he watched Riku watching him like that, and he hesitated, nervously clearing his throat. "I brought something for you..." 

Slowly he extended his arms, the bundle resting in his hands. Riku took a moment to study the way Sora was bowing his head, his cheeks now a bright crimson, before he took the toweled bundle and mumbled a soft thanks.

But when he took it, he immediately recognized its hard, smooth, five-pointed shape. He didn't have to unwrap it to know what it was.

But... 

But _why_ would Sora give him one? 

He had thrown _Riku's_ away, after all... Sora didn't even like Riku in _that_ way, not in the way Riku liked _him_.... 

Did he?

He took a deep breath and held it, swallowing nervously as he began to unwrap the towel, fingers trembling. As he peeled one corner of the cloth away, he stole a quick glance at Sora to see his expression, but much to his surprise, Sora was busy undoing his belt and stripping it. Fighting back a blush of his own and quickly turning his attention back to the towel, Riku ignored the jingle of Sora's belt as it was tossed into the sand, and simply yanked the towel away from the object to kill the tension in the air.

A yellow star-shaped fruit rolled onto the sand. A paopu fruit.

He stared down at it, unsure of what to make of it. Even though he had known what it was, actually seeing it with the knowledge that Sora had given it to him filled him with apprehensive hope. 

Hiding the emotion in his voice, he quietly asked, "You actually believe the legend, Sora...?"

"I had a weird dream," Sora began as he jerked his shoes off and tossed them aside before reaching for his socks, not once looking up to face Riku. "You were standing there in the ocean, facing the horizon... I called your name and the tide began to recede," he explained softly, discarding his socks. Pulling off his gloves, he paused and finally looked up at Riku, managing a reassuring smile. "C'mon, take off your shoes. Your feet will swell up if you don't."

Riku slowly nodded and did as told, trying his best to keep his eyes averted as Sora began to take off his jacket as well. 

Sora... stripping in front of him. 

Forcing himself to think of other things, he asked, "What happened next?" 

When Sora didn't answer right away, Riku slowly raised his eyes, only to see Sora reaching for the zipper of his red jumper. The boy slid it open, all the way down to its end below his groin, and began to shrug the article of clothing off, his damp spiky hair bouncing lightly from the movement. 

Riku stared, wondering how Sora had mustered up enough nerve to so casually strip down to only his dark blue undershorts in front of Riku. Granted, they were best friends, but judging from Sora's gift of a paopu fruit, Riku wasn't the _only_ one with a crush on his best friend. 

As Sora tossed his red jumper into the pile of discarded clothes he had created, he continued, "Well, as the water was receding, I noticed a huge tidal wave forming before you, and as it came closer, you slowly turned around to face me and reached your hand out, like this...." he said, pausing to show Riku. "I ran for you and was just about to grab your hand to join you --- or maybe pull you to safety, I don't know --- when the wave crashed over us both."

Riku carefully set aside his shoes and stuffed his socks into them, wondering if he should remove his shirt too. One look from Sora told him yes, so he proceeded in taking it off, trying not to wonder if Sora was watching him.

"But the current was too strong..." Sora was saying. "I tried really hard, but I couldn't swim to reach your hand... And you were still standing there, against the current, smiling and waiting for me to grab your hand..." 

He paused there and Riku looked up to find him being stared at with those blue eyes. 

Carefully folding his shirt, Riku set it aside with his shoes, and a smile crossed Sora's face when he watched his friend scowl at his gloved hands. As soon as he tugged off his gloves, the silver-haired boy dropped those onto his pile and reached up with his bare hands to smooth his hair out. Only then did he realize _how_ intently Sora was watching him. 

It was the same stare _he_ usually gave _Sora_.

Had Riku been misreading all of Sora's reactions all along? Had Sora really liked _him_ all this time?

"What happened next?" he asked, trying not to feel uncomfortable. He reached for the towel to dry his wet hair, but he hesitated, seeing the paopu fruit there. 

The younger boy decided to finish the story. "I was too weak. The current carried me off, and when I surfaced, everything was normal... Kairi was at the shore, waving at me, but you were gone." Sora scooted in the sand to sit next to Riku, the sun radiating off the boy's tanned skin but casting a dark shadow across Riku's own pale body. "I remember how hurt I felt, knowing you were gone... And that I couldn't help or stop you." 

Cupping a hand around the paopu fruit, Sora lifted it from the sand and held it up, turning to Riku, their shoulders brushing together. Riku's eyes focused on the yellow star, almost scared to look away as though it would disappear. As though this was just a dream… But the warmth of Sora's body next to his reassured him, and he slowly raised his gaze to stare into Sora's blue eyes.

"I want to share the fruit with you, Riku, so we're always together, even if you disappear," the boy said, that bright smile of his lighting his face. "I want to be able to help you, even if I'm too weak." 

Riku's gaze fell upon the fruit again. 

For some reason, as he stared at the yellow star, he felt as though some heavy burden had been lifted from his heart, even though it happened to be racing in excitement at the moment. Riku already knew he liked Sora in that way, but to have Sora approach _him_ about it... This wasn't real. It couldn't be! He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what to think.

"It's the fruit you picked for me last night. After supper, after I had time to think about it, I went back and got it and had stashed it away under my bed before you showed up," Sora explained, and at this Riku lifted his green eyes to stare at Sora in surprise. 

Sora had kept his paopu fruit after all? 

"Anyway," Sora continued, carefree, "you have the right to refuse it. You don't have to say anything, or return my feelings... I just wanted you to know that, well... I really like you, Riku." He lowered the fruit and turned it over in his hands, blushing madly, not daring to look at Riku. "No... I mean, I think I _love_ you."

Riku suddenly tensed, his breath catching in his throat at Sora's words.

Was it true?

"You're probably disgusted..." Sora was saying, the boy's voice falling sadly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get in your way with Kairi. It probably looked like I was competing with you over her, but I was really jealous of her because you always seemed to like her so much, not me because I'm a boy like you, and, well, you know you're a boy... Agghh, I sound like an idiot! You can hate me now, and.... Riku?" 

Sora looked up, raising an eyebrow as Riku suddenly snatched the fruit from Sora's hands.

The whole situation was ironic. They both liked each other, but were too afraid to approach each other because they both thought that the other liked Kairi.... Not to mention Riku had been leading everyone into believing that he liked Kairi, so Kairi would like him back and pay no heed to Sora's love, and then Sora would turn his attention back to Riku. It had been a brilliant plan, but Riku had overlooked the most important factor.

Sora's real feelings.

"Why didn't you say so in the first place?" Riku playfully demanded, narrowing his eyes, but then he broke into a wide grin and laughed, like all his worries in the world had just been erased by Sora's innocent confession. "And here I was, thinking you were going to run off with Kairi and forget about me. Here I was, worried that you wouldn't understand _my_ feelings. I guess we're both stupid... or maybe I was just too scared."

"What are you sa...?" Sora began, his eyes lighting up with hope, but he fell silent as Riku pressed a finger to his lips.

"Shh... Eat." The silver-haired boy lifted the fruit in front of Sora and smirked, leaning forward to whisper, "I love you too."

Sora responded with a bright smile and he nodded, eagerly taking the fruit and gently biting into it. As he pulled away, some of the fruit's flesh tore away from the piece and slid down his chin, trailing juices along his throat. He chewed thoughtfully, a pleased smile on his face.

It was, admittedly, like a dream come true.

Sora _loved_ him. 

Everything was going to be alright between them.

Life was _perfect_ now.

"Is it good?" Riku asked, curious, reaching out to take the fruit again. Sora nodded again, taking another bite before giving the fruit to Riku, who immediately sank his teeth in. Juice spilled out, most of it making its way down Riku's chest as he pulled away from the fruit. As he chewed, he managed to mutter, "Jeez, this stuff gets everywhere..." He gestured down his torso, as the juice was beginning to drip over his stomach. "I hope this stuff doesn't stain..."

They both laughed and Riku lifted the fruit again, taking another bite, this time quickly leaning towards Sora pressing his mouth against the boy's as Sora was laughing. Sora took the piece, caught by surprise, a serious blush running over his cheeks this time as he shyly kissed Riku back.

Their first kiss.

It wasn't much, just a touch of lips and exchange of fruit…

But it was enough.

With a smile Riku pulled away, the taste of honey and a hint of salt lingering his mouth from the fruit and kiss. 

"Riku... Do you think it's okay for us to be doing this right now...?" Sora asked as he chewed, his mouth full.

"Why not?" Riku replied casually, leaning in again to peck at the boy's cheeks, who smiled in response. 

"Well, what if someone catches us?"

Raising an eyebrow, Riku grinned. "Catches us eating fruit, or doing something _else_?" he asked, his voice full of not-so-innocent suggestions.

Sora took Riku's hands in his and leaned forward, taking a large bite out of the paopu and then paused to chew, grinning widely. As Riku sank his teeth in for another bite, he heard Sora's teasing voice say, "Aww... Are Riku's hormones out of control?"

The silver-haired boy narrowed his eyes at Sora's joke, a nefarious smirk twitching at the corners of his mouth as he chewed the fruit. As soon as he swallowed, he dropped the paopu fruit onto the towel and pulled Sora closer to him, taking his lips in his and gave him a _real_ kiss.

A kiss that told both of them that this wasn't a mistake, that their love was _real_, that no matter _what_ happened between them, this **love** would remain forever…

No matter what.

_______________________________________________________________________________________ 

Woo hoo! The plot is moving right along~~! Now that they're together, this show can get on the road. XD 

Also, I'd like to point out that these early chapters actually have **a lot** of foreshadowing for the future chapters. Now, no one will probably pick up on the foreshadowing, or the symbolism, until much, much later… But I'd still like to make you aware that it **is** there, and staring right at you. ^^;

For those who are rereading the fanfic, you may or may not see it, depending on where you are in the future chapters. ^^; But I'd like to say that this story is much more deep that just some Riku/Sora get-together fanfic. 

When I say this fanfic is an epic, it's an **epic**. 

**Review button:** Feed me! Brawr!!


	3. Ch 3: A Child's Toy v 3

_Author's Notes:_

Moving the plot right along~~! ^^ It's more fluff, but it _has_ a purpose, people. Really, you'll be missing all of this fluff when you get to the later chapters. Enjoy it while it lasts. This is also the last of the innocent, cute chapters… The story starts growing dark after this.

_A look ahead:_

Fun in the sun. Wrestling in the sand. And those two belts on the back of Riku's pants.

_______________________________________________________________________________________ 

**_Chapter 3: A Child's Toy_**_ v. 3.0_ (redone November 2003)

  
  


It didn't make any sense.

_It really doesn't_, Riku thought as he bit back a howl of laughter. 

_How_ had he gotten himself into this situation? 

Sometime after he had successfully pinned Sora beneath him, their paopu sharing moment had turned from a sensual kissing session into a 'tickling for dominance' bout of wrestling. 

It really _didn't_ make any sense.

**One minute** Sora had been gasping as he desperately tried to keep up with Riku's deep kisses, and had let the older boy's curious hands slide over his bare stomach and around the waist of his undershorts with soft, teasing touches... 

But Riku had been insatiable, unsatisfied. He wanted to be as close to Sora as he could get, he wanted more from the brunette, his _body_ wanted more. 

Despite the fact that both of them were very much in the open where anyone could see them, and despite the fact that they had _just_ become a couple, Riku went all-out and forced Sora backwards onto the ground.

Fingers digging into the warm sand on either side of Sora's head, Riku had pressed as close to the boy as he could before initiating another greedy kiss. 

The two of them were obviously made for each other, the way their legs tangled together, their hips and chests melding together so perfectly. Sora was soft, like a girl, and Riku intended to take advantage of every inch of that tanned skin.

**But the next minute** Sora had decided that he didn't want to be the recessive one on bottom any more, and that perhaps it was Riku's turn to feel what Sora was feeling, even though he had certainly been enjoying Riku's loving touches.

After all, Sora had been the one to admit his love first, right? He should have first dibs. 

So, as Riku pulled away from the kiss, Sora had decided to make his move. Riku should have known better, he _really_ should have. When _wasn't_ Sora trying to compete with him? 

It was only right for Sora to turn their love into a competition as well.

Within moments Sora had Riku pinned against the sand in a comfortable straddle (well, comfortable from Sora's position), his hands planted firmly against Riku's chest.

"I'm not gonna lie to you, Riku," Sora had said, grinning rather crookedly and looking off-put with his mussed hair, flushed cheeks and rosy lips. "I loved every second of that."

"But...?" Riku had offered, getting the distinct feeling that Sora's sentence wasn't quite complete yet.

"But I want to be on top!" the boy had finished, his hands flying southward to attack Riku's stomach.

And that was where they were now, both of the boys writhing and rolling in the sand, furiously tickling each other with an unspoken agreement that whomever was the first one to give up would be the recessive one in their relationship. Riku absolutely refused to lose, even though he knew Sora knew all of his weak spots, even though he knew Sora would be just as determined as he was to win.

Ergh... But Sora was being so merciless towards his tummy! At this rate, Riku would lose...!

Too caught up in each other and love to notice or care, neither of the boys saw Tidus until he loudly cleared his throat. 

Sora was the first one to notice him standing there, blonde hair messy as usual, with a pink tinge spreading across his cheeks as he shifted from one foot to the next nervously. 

Sora slowly blinked from his view behind Riku's shoulder, the light of awareness returning to his eyes as he took in Tidus' appearance.

And all of a sudden, the two boys flew apart, both of them fighting back embarrassed, guilty blushes as they stared up at their blonde friend, who was trying hard not to collapse in a fit of laughter or run for his life. Perhaps both.

"I... ahh... Er...." he stammered, not sure what to say now that he most definitely had the attention of both embarrassed boys.

"Spit it out, blondie," Riku half-growled as he ran his hand through his silver hair in an attempt to compose himself, only to remember that his hands were covered in paopu fruit and sand. That added another notch to his anger meter, and he promptly narrowed his eyes at Tidus as though it was his fault.

"Um. I'm sorry I interrupted your... er... whatever... I swear if I had known, I wouldn't have come, but I... uh..."

By now Sora was glaring too, but looking less threatening next to Riku with his lower lip stuck out in a pout. Tidus got the hint and, breaking through his nervous stutter, he laughed, rubbing the back of his head.

"I just came to get my towel..." he admitted, carefully leaning down to get it. He paused, seeing a half-eaten paopu fruit laying on top of his precious towel. Drawing the conclusion of what had happened because the paopu fruit, he fell into a helpless ramble. "I'm really sorry! I know how much you two fancied each other. Goodness, I saw the looks you gave each other every frickin' day and forced myself not to intervene. I just didn't expect you two to actually be... _you know_... back here when you guys are usually just working on the raft or play fighting or swimming or something normal like that."

That said, he picked up the fruit, tossed it at them, and then snatched his towel and ran off, stumbling and nearly falling as he broke into hysterical laughter.

There was a moment of silence after the sound of Tidus' voice died away, and then Riku blatantly commented, "I didn't find anything funny about being interrupted."

"So Tidus knew I liked you, huh...?" Sora sighed as he flopped backwards into the warm sand and spread his limbs out, not caring that he hit Riku in the process.

The older boy raised his eyebrows, running a quick glance over his new boyfriend and taking in Sora's flushed skin with a satisfied smile. "Well, how long have you?"

"Eh?"

"How long have you liked me... like that?" Riku asked, laying next to Sora on his side, using an elbow to prop his head up as he watched the boy with curious green eyes.

"It's been a few weeks..." Sora admitted with a small, toothy grin that quickly fell as he continued to speak. "I was afraid to tell you. I mean, you're always watching Kairi, so I thought..."

That's right, Riku realized. His so-called "Plan A" had definitely worked, but with the opposite intention. His plan had revolved completely around what Kairi thought about him. He had totally left out Sora's feelings, and the possibility that Sora might already like Riku. He had been too busy trying to impress them that he hadn't noticed any signs that Sora liked _him_, when Tidus of all people had noticed them.

Then again, Tidus had deduced Riku's own crush on Sora, so maybe they weren't giving the blonde enough credit.

"Yeah..." Riku let out a short, derisive laugh as he scratched at his head. "I had this _brilliant_ plan to lure you to me, but it turns out it only confused you."

"Huh?" Sora blinked, settling his blue eyes on Riku, who was now busy tracing little shapes in the sand with his fingers.

"I mean.... I was jealous of Kairi," Riku sighed, for some reason feeling as though he had lost to Sora.

Technically, he had, for Sora had beaten him to the whole confession thing, but the more Riku thought about it... 

Had he, Riku, _really_ intended on _ever_ admitting his crush to Sora? 

His whole plan had focused on bringing Sora back to him and away from Kairi so they could go back to being goofy best friends. Nowhere in the plan had he convinced himself he was going to confess to Sora.

And this brought on another rather depressing thought. 

Since Sora had so selflessly confessed to selfish Riku, did that make Riku or _Sora_ the stronger of the two of them?

Sora. It was Sora. 

Sora, despite his fears about what Riku's reaction would be after his confession, had overcome those fears and had approached Riku first. Riku had taken the less-direct approach and had tried to _manipulate_ Sora into liking him again. 

Riku hadn't faced his fears; he had let them manipulate _him_.

"I was kinda jealous of her too..." Sora admitted, grinning lightly over at the older boy, who was having a hard time sifting through his confusing thoughts. "I was really scared that you were going to think I was stupid... Or that you were going to be disgusted with me. I'm really glad _that_ didn't happen."

Riku blinked over at the younger boy, managing a smile back, listening to him speak what he himself couldn't muster the courage to say. Sora kept his head resting against the sand, blue eyes wide and bright as he stared up at the seagulls floating overhead.

Sora loved staring up at the sky for some reason. When the boy wasn't adventuring or running errands for Kairi, he could usually be found lounging in the sand somewhere, watching the distant horizon, as though he was waiting for the day that the earth and sky would suddenly meld into one. Riku also liked watching the heavens, and it wasn't uncommon that he would join Sora on those dreamy warm days to stare out to sea and watch the dolphins in the distance. Riku preferred his paopu tree though, rather than sand. The stuff got everywhere.

But Sora wasn't done talking. He continued, using his hands to widely gesture as though he were reclining on a shrink's bed, not in the sand. 

"I mean, I thought you gave me the paopu fruit as a hint... To show that you cared for me." 

His brow furrowed suddenly as he turned his head to stare at Riku, who glanced up from his sand-drawing to blink at the boy. Sora's lower lip momentarily stuck out as he fell into thought, and when he shifted onto his back and returned his gaze to the sky, he continued again. 

"Then there were all those other times... Those hints... And your stares… Sometimes it seemed like you were flirting with _me_, not Kairi. You were, weren't you?" Here Sora paused, turning only his gaze to stare at Riku, who returned the look solemnly. "So why waste all of that time trying to impress Kairi too? It's not like she would hate us... Right?"

Hm... How _would_ Kairi act? Both of her best male friends, whom she thought both liked her, have ended up together, leaving her in the cold. Wouldn't she feel insulted?

"I don't know how she'll react when she finds out about us..." Riku admitted, managing a helpless grin. "But I confess that I was using her to bait you." 

Sora promptly blinked, tilting his head to watch Riku more closely, who caught the movement and took it to mean he needed to clarify what he meant. Sigh. He was probably going to regret it later, but... He had to tell Sora. 

"Er... Like I said, I was jealous of her," Riku began, raising a palm up in an innocent gesture. "Before she came, you and I got along just fine. We were inseparable. When she appeared out of nowhere, her friendship was no big deal. She was pretty cool. But then..." He paused, turning his green eyes to stare over at the raft, his mouth forming a frown. "But then you two started going on your own adventures, having your own conversations, and I felt left out. It felt like she was stealing you away from me. It was back then I realized I liked you in that way, and it felt right. But I couldn't let her take you away."

"So you started flirting with her?" Sora asked, his brow furrowing cutely as he blinked in confusion.

"Well, that was part of my plan," Riku admitted, feeling rather idiotic. "I thought you _liked_ her, so I thought that if I got with her first, you would be discouraged and would return your attention to me. And things would go back to normal."

Riku turned his head, smiling sheepishly and waiting for Sora's reaction. No doubt Sora would roll around in the sand and try to contain his laughter... No doubt he would tease Riku for being so stupid.

Well, Sora did grin, but that was the extent of his gloating. Instead, he sat up and sighed, his spiky brown hair bouncing from the movement, moist sand sticking to his juvenile back. That was when Riku noticed that he was nearly dry now, and mused that it must have been because of all of that foreplay in the sand.

"So... Riku..." Sora said, drawing the silver-haired boy's attention back to him. They exchanged looks before the brunette continued, that grin widening. "What would you have done if Kairi had actually fallen for your cheap flirts?"

Riku raised both of his eyebrows, not fully understanding. "What?"

"I mean... You obviously don't know her that well, then," Sora grinned, scooting closer to the other boy as he spoke. "I really can't imagine you dating Kairi for my sake. She would probably bore you with stories about seashells and the gossip Selphie tells her. You'd probably rather gouge your own eyes out with needles than date _her_," he laughed, shaking his head, and Riku's eyes visibly widened as Sora's words struck home. But the boy didn't stop there. "And she told me herself that, when she dated someone, she wouldn't let him touch her other than when they held hands. Believe me, Riku, I was discouraged a long time ago by Kairi. You didn't have to meddle. She's too... I don't know. Prim. Proper. Girly. We're just friends. The reason you're left out of some of our talks is because it's all girly stuff, and I know you'd rather not listen in. She'd rather collect seashells all day than go on an adventure with us."

Riku fought back the urge to scream suddenly and threw his hands over his mouth before he could. To Sora it must have seemed like a gesture of surprise or something, and maybe it was. After all, Riku had just learned the past three years he had spent trying to carry out with Plan A had been a complete waste of his time.

Why couldn't he be more like Sora? 

Riku, who had known about his love for Sora for three years, hadn't mustered the courage to admit it out loud, while Sora had know about his love for Riku for only a few weeks before he had confessed.

Those three years... wasted. He had probably made a fool out of himself so many times!

But wait a minute.

"Wait a minute," Riku said quietly, looking downtrodden as he lifted his head to give Sora a scrutinizing gaze. "So you only like me because Kairi wouldn't _touch_ you?"

This time Sora really did fall into a fit of laughter, falling into the sand clutching his stomach for extra effect. And before he even had a chance to calm down, he threw himself onto Riku so that he knocked the older boy completely onto the ground, clinging to him and giggling into his tousled silver hair. Riku merely let Sora latch onto him, patiently waiting for the boy's giggles to subside, and they did, segueing into soft, breathless sniggers before he finally stopped, resting his cheek on the older boy's clavicle with a wide smile, his eyes closed.

"I hope you're not planning on taking a nap on me," Riku muttered dryly. "I'd really like to know what was so funny."

"For one," Sora began as he lifted one finger, his eyes still closed, "I don't like you. I love you. And second of all, Kairi's stupid little rules have nothing to do with my favoring you over her. And if they did, I would have run to you a very long time ago." That said, he dropped his hand and snuggled into Riku's side, contentedly sighing as he slipped his dirty fingers into Riku's. "Mine."

"So when are we going to kick Tidus' ass for interrupting us?"

"Mm... Let him think we forgive him...." Sora said quietly, his voice almost fading into the lapping waves and the caw of seagulls. His brilliant blue eyes slid open to stare out into the surf as though contemplating something. "Did it really happen? The fruit, the kisses…?"

"Yeah. And I really liked it," Riku admitted softly, reaching a hand up to stroke Sora's head, burying his fingers into that mess of chocolate-colored spikes.

"This is sorta nice," Sora mused through a weak yawn as he nuzzled his head into Riku's hand. "We're not competing for anything... No one's here to watch..."

"Aa. It's nice," Riku agreed. And then he had a random thought. Running his thumb over Sora's cheek, he asked, "So when are you going to start wearing stuff to impress me?"

"Eh?" Sora raised his head to give the older boy a confused look. "Whaddya mean?"

"Well, I liked what you were wearing last night...."

"You mean that old shirt I could barely breathe in because it was so tight?" Sora asked, his forehead wrinkling.

"I thought it looked good on you."

"So I should crush my lungs every time I want to please you. Right. Gotcha."

"I'd dress for you if you wanted."

"Yeah, well, you'd probably end up ripping my clothes off anyway just to molest me."

"I'm not _that_ desperate," Riku laughed, leaning up a little to softly kiss Sora, who tilted his mouth away so that Riku instead got his throat. Mentally shrugging, the older boy began to kissle Sora's neck, pausing every so often to lick, breathe, and then nibble.

"We should get up and spend the day with everyone else," Sora mused absent-mindedly as Riku fell into a very concentrated suckle against the boy's skin. "Since we won't see them again for a while...."

Sora was silent for a moment after that, softly humming in pleasure at the attention Riku was giving him, completely forgetting about spending the day with anyone else except this sexy silver-haired beau of his. But wait. Why was Riku concentrating on only one spot?

"Hey! You better not be giving me a hickey!" he suddenly cried, pushing against Riku's forehead, who fell into an innocent grin.

"Too late."

"What the heck am I supposed to say if my mom sees it, _Riku_?!" Sora whined rubbing at his neck as though to make it disappear.

"That's only going to make it worse," Riku said, half-serious as he leered up at the boy. "I'll give you another one to match it if you'd like, and then you can say a vampire bit you."

"Riku, I'm _serious_!"

"Aww... Poor lil Sora has a love mark."

"Riku! You're such a... urgh!!"

"Hehe. C'mon, Sora. Gimme one too. Right _here_."

"**Riku**!!"

Riku fell into a loud laugh as Sora pounced on him, trying to seek revenge somehow, kicking up sand as they began to wrestle again, only this time there was no real meaning behind it. And that was when they both realized that, even though they had become an official couple almost an hour ago, they hadn't changed any. They were still goofy best friends, and, Riku mused, nothing Kairi did could change that fact.

And in the warm sand by their feet, with its yellow flesh torn away to reveal its furrowed brown seed, lay the half-eaten paopu fruit, forgotten.

~~~

Daylight had shifted and the sun was sinking lower towards the horizon, signaling the end of his final day on Destiny Islands. 

His last night on this prison of sand and water. 

Riku was actually in high spirits when returning to the play island from visiting his house on the mainland. His parents hadn't been home, as usual --- they had just left a note on his bedroom door telling him to cook himself dinner and not to worry if they didn't come home that night. Hah. As if he would worry.

With a sigh and shake of his head, he had replied to the note with, 

_I'm fine, not that you care._

_Going to go on an adventure tomorrow, so don't worry if I never come home._

_Not that you'd notice.... See ya!_

_--Riku_

He hadn't bothered cooking for himself, wanting rather to get out of the house as soon as possible, staying only a few extra minutes to pack a few things for his adventure the next day. 

A few hours ago, after he and Sora had finally gotten up from their playtime in the sand, they had messed around with Tidus and Wakka for a little while before Riku had retired to his paopu tree and Sora had gone off to find the rest of the mushrooms for Kairi. Riku had left Sora with Kairi before returning to the mainland, so it wouldn't surprise Riku if the two of them were still talking when he returned.

It was late-afternoon still, but Sora would be returning home soon for dinner, so Riku figured he could snag a meal by going with him.

Tying his boat to the dock next to Kairi's, he leapt onto the pier, pausing only to greet Selphie.

"Hey, shorty," he called, and Selphie glanced over her shoulder to frown at him.

But she said nothing and returned to gazing out at the horizon, much like he and Sora did when they were alone. 

Hm. But that was strange behavior for Selphie. 

Well, Sora would have to wait a few more minutes. Riku had to take care of this.

Riku dropped next to Selphie and swung his legs over the edge of the pier to imitate her. And then, with a friendly grin, he reached over to pat her head. 

"Hey. What's wrong? I haven't seen you so depressed since a year or so back when you thought Tidus had drown."

She lowered her head and twisted her hands together, her cute face forming a sad frown. "It's just.... You, Sora and Kairi are leaving me. It won't be fun here any more." Riku had a feeling that she wasn't done speaking, so he waited for her to continue before he asked any questions. "Tidus and Wakka don't understand me, and they won't listen to me. They think I'm stupid, and they hate it when I talk about romantic things...."

Riku smiled reassuringly, giving her hair a light flick. He liked her hair, and how it curved out like that. "Give Tidus another year and he'll be all over you," he said, knowing that the little girl held a certain amity for him in her heart. "And don't feel discouraged about them not listening, because **_I_** believe you."

Selphie's eyes lit up a little and she started swinging her legs. "Really? About the paopu fruit?"

"Yeah."

"Is that what you and Sora were doing over there at the cove?" Selphie asked, eyes wide and curious. "Sharing a paopu fruit?"

Riku blinked at her in surprise, but played it off by grinning as he asked, "How'd you know?"

"There was a fruit missing from the tree," Selphie explained, her voice raising a little as she turned her gaze back to the sea. "I knew it wasn't Tidus or Wakka, because they're afraid of the fruit and its powers. I think they're afraid I'm going to sneak it into their food one day. So, anyway, it had to be you, Sora or Kairi that picked the fruit." She paused, tilting her head to the side to stare at a fish zipping through the water below her. "But then when Tidus came back with his towel a few hours ago, he told the rest of us not to go bother you guys. So I figured you two were the ones with the fruit, and that he must have caught you in middle of something romantic. Right?"

Damn. So now Tidus _and_ Selphie knew. Riku would have to listen to her romantic ranting more in the future, when he got back from the adventure on the raft. He had a feeling he wasn't giving her much credit either, like he hadn't been with Tidus. With the way things were going, how long would it be before Wakka and Kairi knew about him and Sora?

"Yeah," Riku said, giving her a light smile. "It was us."

Selphie looked back at him and returned the smile. "At first I was a little surprised," she admitted, playing with her hair. "Hee. But the more I thought about it, I realized that it didn't matter if you were both boys, as long as you went together. And if any two of all the kids were meant for each other, it's you two."

This was one of the rare quiet, serious Selphie moments. For the past week she had spent her time on the pier, staring into nothing because she had obviously been dreading the day that her friends would leave. Usually she was a bright, bouncy bundle of energy, coming up with the strangest stories. She was, actually, one of the only things Riku would miss. Tidus too, and Wakka. But right now, what she had said...

Riku faintly blushed at her comment, realizing that she was being openly honest with him, not just trying to flatter him. So Selphie, the Queen of Romantics, thought that he and Sora were meant for each other? If that wasn't a good sign, he didn't _know_ what was.

"Thanks, Shorty," Riku said with a soft laugh. "It means a lot to me. I'll bring you back a present. How does that sound?"

"Yeah! Can you make it something super duper rare and pretty?!" Selphie squealed, leaning towards him with wide, imploring eyes, her bouncy nature suddenly returning. "Please, please, please?"

"Haha. Alright," he grinned, patting her head again. "I'll miss ya, Shorty."

Selphie slipped her arms around him and squashed herself to his chest, burying her face against his shirt and muffling her voice as she said, "You better take care of Sora! I won't forgive you if you let him do anything stupid!"

"Alright. You take care too, Shorty," he said. "And give Tidus a kiss for me."

And that was the last time he ever saw thirteen-year-old Selphie.

Sighing for what seemed the hundredth time that day, Riku made his way to the cove where the raft was, knowing he'd find Sora and Kairi there. He stopped at the ledge above the mushroom rock cave and looked out over the sand towards _Excalibur_, and sure enough, Sora was just finishing up handing over his mushrooms to Kairi. 

Proudly grinning, he noticed that Sora had placed one of Selphie's heart-shaped band-aids over the hickey on his neck, making it look more like he had gotten a cut or something during sparring, rather than what had really happened. 

Selphie usually insisted on carrying those band-aids around for whenever someone got hurt. Riku wondered what Sora had told her when asking for the band-aid, for Selphie would have no doubt asked what had happened to his neck.

"I think we're ready to call it a day," Kairi said, drawing Riku's attention back to the girl and Sora. She smiled lightly at the boy as she turned the mushrooms over in her hands.

"Yeah... I'm starved," he smiled back rather sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. He always got embarrassed when he talked about his rather large diet. And, predictably, he changed the subject, and Riku found himself frowning at what it changed to. "Do you think Riku's parents were home and that he's having dinner right now?"

"Doubtful," Kairi replied, her smile fading as she turned away to store the mushrooms with the rest of the provisions. She was quiet for a moment, but both Sora and Riku knew she wasn't finished talking. As soon as she finished packing the food away, she continued in a withdrawn voice, "I really hope Riku doesn't end up like his parents... Y'know, ignoring the ones close to him. He _has_ been distant lately. And he's always thinking to himself."

"Yeah..." came Sora's slow, unsteady response. "But I don't blame him at all. I think I understand why Riku wants to get away from here so badly... We're the only two he trusts."

Kairi lowered her head as though nodding and slowly sat down on the raft, only returning her gaze to Sora when the boy had looked away, blue eyes narrowing at the sky.

"Anyway," Sora continued as he studied the clouds, "what time is it?"

"Almost six," Kairi replied, her gaze also lifting, as though searching for what Sora found so fascinating about the sky. "Still an hour or so until it gets dark."

"Six?!" he suddenly cried, blue eyes fixing on Kairi and taking a moment to gape at her in disbelief, who merely blinked at him, not understanding. "I told my mom I'd be back right after five!!" he exclaimed as he turned away and began jogging towards the mushroom rock, raising one hand to bid her farewell. "I'll be back later! My mom's going to **kill** me!"

As soon as the boy finished speaking, he broke off into a quick run, swerving into the ocean, sending loud sounds of splashing floating up to Riku. Sora leapt over the small wooden barrier, not even noticing the silver-haired boy above him, and it took Riku about two seconds to struggle to his feet and clamber down the short cliff after the other boy, who was already running through the shallow water under the broken bridge where they had played Island War just yesterday.

Riku broke into a sprint, wondering, _Jeez! Since when did Sora learn to run so fast..?!_

It must have been from all those races they forced each other in to. And why wasn't Sora stopping? Surely he could hear Riku chasing after him!

The chase lasted a whole minute, ending as Sora leapt onto the dock and began untying his boat. As Riku approached, he noticed that Selphie was no longer there, probably already gone home for dinner too, as Tidus and Wakka were also missing. Recalling how she had been so supportive of his relationship with Sora, he smiled before turning his attention back to Sora, who was already climbing into his boat.

Ack.

"Sora! Stop!"

The brunette paused, one foot in and one foot out, and blinked over at him, immediately smiling upon seeing whom it was. "Riku? Oh. I thought Kairi was the one chasing me... I didn't want to talk to her."

"Since when does Kairi run as fast as I do?" Riku lightly demanded as he climbed onto the dock and stood next to Sora.

"You have a point," the boy admitted, a grin stretching across his adorable face. "I take it you want to come, then. To my house."

Raising an eyebrow in amusement, Riku grinned, "Already? What if your mom walked in on us?"

"N-No! I meant for dinner!" Sora laughed, faintly blushing and turning to climb into his boat to hide it. "I figured that if she sees you're with me, she'd cheer right up and not care that I'm late... And besides, since you're back here so early, I guessed that your parents weren't home and you didn't eat."

"Yup. I'd much rather eat your mom's cooking anyway," Riku replied as he jumped down into the water as Sora finally settled into his boat. His gloved hands gripped the side of the boat as he leaned dangerously close to Sora, who blinked at him. "Have room for me in there?"

Sora shook his head and laughed, that grin of his returning as he scooted forward in the boat so Riku could climb in behind him. So Riku did. The silver-haired boy rather liked the close proximity, as it was comforting, but both of the boys were silent during the short trip to the mainland, with Riku trying to force himself to relax and concentrate on rowing. With both of them rowing, the trip lasted only a few minutes, and Sora took the job of tying the boat to the post in front of his home, next to his mother's, and hopped onto the dock. Riku climbed out after him, stretching a bit to loosen his muscles. 

"Smells like she cooked chicken," Sora smiled, his nose in the air. "A welcome change from fish, ne?"

Riku nodded, running a hand through his silver hair. He paused, however, to watch Sora sniffing the air with half-lidded eyes, a smile slowly crossing the boy's face as the sun slowly crept towards the horizon, stretching Sora's shadow across the wooden dock and casting a faint darkness over Riku. The sight was definitely very _very_ appealing, and Riku found himself following Sora's smiling example, but the boy broke the mood, his blue eyes opening all the way and turning to Riku in question, curious.

"What's wrong?"

The older boy waved both his hands in a dismissive gesture, grinning innocently. "Nothing, nothing. Let's go eat and hope your mother doesn't hold a grudge."

The two boys crossed the dock to the door, a hungry Sora in the lead, the boy practically drooling as he reached for the doorknob. But the door swung open before he could do it himself and Sora's mom pulled him through the doorframe by her fish-patterned cooking mitts.

"Where were you? I told you to be back right after five!" she said, holding onto her son by the jacket. "I had to start cooking without you!" she whined accusingly, trying to make him feel guilty. And it worked, as usual. Sora had a soft heart when it came to matters with his mother.

"I'm sorry, Mom..." he began sadly. "I was with Riku---"

And right on cue, Riku cut into the conversation, giving her a charming smile as he walked through the door. "Hi Seiya!"

Sora's mother looked up to see Riku and her face immediately lit up with joy. "Riku! I'm so sorry! I didn't know Sora was going to bring you home tonight. Well, that would explain his tardiness, hee hee," she giggled, her voice taking on a rather enthusiastic, girly tone. 

But she said the last sentence with a smirk, as if she already knew something they weren't telling her. Flicking a lock of loose hair away from her face, she looked back down at Sora and smiled warmly. 

"Okay Sora honey, you're off the hook. Go wash your hands and set the table for three."

The woman had always been fond of Riku and Riku had always thought of her as the sort of mother he _should_ have had. No matter what Sora had done wrong, if Riku was there with him, Sora got off clean with no punishment; actually, Sora usually got rewarded with a special dessert or something. Seiya had shown more love for Riku in his fifteen-almost-sixteen years than both his two parents would ever show him in his entire lifetime. 

And for as long as Riku could remember, Sora's mother had not changed a bit --- she must have lived a happy life, for she showed no signs of hardship and looked no older than twenty, though she was undoubtedly in her mid-thirties or forties. With her knee-length auburn hair tied up into two disheveled buns, her bright red apron spattered with green fish, blue waves and a yellow sun, she looked almost like Sora's sister. The only sign she was a mother at all were the few wrinkles near her pretty blue eyes. Even her everyday demeanor was that of a teenage girl.

She stepped away from the two boys with a coy wink and returned to the kitchen, a spring in her walk and a soft tune drifting after her.

"Ah, mom...!" Sora suddenly said, as though remembering something important.

Hesitating in mid-stride, her tune cutting short, she blinked over her shoulder at her son and raised both eyebrows in question. "I know they're your favorite, but I didn't cook any potatoes if that's what you were going to ask."

"H-ha.... No, actually, I was wondering if we could eat in my room."

Seiya removed her cooking mitts and adjusted her apron before she straightened her back and leaned forward towards her son, an inquisitive gleam in her eyes. Really, she _obviously_ knew something they weren't telling her, and she wasn't telling them she knew. 

"Hmm.... And just what is more exciting in your room than the dining room?" she asked, her voice turning stony and flat. Sarcasm. Yay. "You want to leave your mother, who worked hours slaving over the stove to cook your dinner, to eat in your room with your best friend, who happens to be older and more cunning than you, and is probably planning on raping you once I turn my back?"

Sora suddenly grinned at Riku, but Sora's mother didn't seem to catch the look. Riku, however, _did_, and suddenly wondered if he should fear for his virginity. The look had meant, _Oh no, Mom. Riku's not going to do the raping---**I** am._

She tossed the mitts at Sora's head and laughed, waving one hand at them. "Fine, fine! Go to your room! I'll bring the food when it's ready. Oh. But Sora, honey. What happened to your neck?"

Sora's hand immediately went to finger the heart-shaped band-aid, a hint of pink crawling over his cheeks. "Er... Just a bruise from when me and Riku fought today. That's all."

She raised a single eyebrow, her face taking on a sardonic look. "_Fought_, huh? Well." 

But that was all she said. With that, she practically skipped down the hall as she struck up another tune, leaving the two boys behind in the entryway. As soon as she was out of earshot, Sora laughed quietly, latching onto Riku.

"Sometimes I think she can read my mind..." he grinned, pulling at the older boy's arm. "Let's go."

A sense of dread filling him, Riku managed a weak nod and let the younger boy drag him to his darkening room. He felt the color drain from his face with each step he took, but he tried to remain optimistic. It was possible that Sora _wasn't_ planning on jumping him once they were alone in the room, and even if he did, Riku could always turn the battle for dominance around.

Alone with Sora in his room...

While it seemed very tempting, the silver-haired boy couldn't help worrying about Sora's intentions. Wait a minute. Hadn't Sora himself said that he invited Riku over for dinner, not... _other_ reasons?

Obviously it had been a lie.

As soon as Sora was in his room, even before the door had closed all the way (Riku had to kick it shut at the last second), he attacked Riku with a deep, lust-filled kiss. At first Riku just sort of... stood there, caught by surprise at Sora's eagerness even though he had been expecting this sort of thing, as the boy wound his arms around him and tried maneuvering him to the bed. His mental trance shattered when he felt Sora's warm hands grasp at the back of his neck and pull him down so Sora could access more of his mouth.

When he felt Sora's tongue slip over his own, he fought the urge to just let Sora have his way with him, and (reluctantly) pulled away from the boy, managing to hiss, "Not here! Your mom will walk in on u---" before the younger boy leapt back in for another deep kiss, this time winding his hands in Riku's silver hair.

Reckless. That's what he was. The boy was reckless!

And damn seductive...

That just meant Riku had to fight back a little, that's all. Or flee. And considering Seiya was probably ready to walk through that door any second now, fleeing seemed more appropriate than being caught feeling her son up.

The silver-haired boy gently pushed Sora away from him and lunged for the door, managing to reach the doorknob when he felt Sora grab hold of the two elastic belts on the back of his pants and pull. 

Riku froze, sensing danger, and that's when Sora grinned and released.

The belts shot back, making a sharp _snap!_ as they slapped against Riku's butt, who cringed, stifling a sudden cry. He spun around, a spiteful smirk crossing his lips and his eyes dangerously narrowing, ready to seek revenge. 

But Sora was already lounging on his bed, arms behind his head as he lazily stared up at the ceiling. Riku picked his way over scattered clothes and shoes and made his way across the room to the bed, placing one arm on either side of Sora as he arched over the boy.

"What, if I may ask, was _that_?" Riku half-growled, though unable to hide his grin. But he managed to continue in an ominous voice, "If you leave a bruise..."

But Sora suddenly let out a long whine and rolled over onto his belly. "Oi, ahm _hungrrry_!"

Arching an eyebrow at that, Riku casually slid his hands under Sora and stroked at his stomach. "You don't need anything else to add to that pudgy belly."

This wrought the appropriate reaction. Riku had to take a step back as Sora quickly sat up, tucking his knees under him as he stared up at Riku with wide blue eyes, a pouty look on his face. "I thought I didn't have any more pudge," he said quietly, innocently, and for a moment Riku had to restrain himself from pulling the boy into a long hug. 

Or from, well, _molesting_ him.

But before Riku could answer, or molest him, the door swung open and Seiya entered, carrying two steaming plates of food, her voice bright and optimistic as usual. "Here you go! Dinner! Hope you _enjoy_ it by yourselves in this _dark_ room... Sora, what the _heck_ is that over there? Never mind, I don't want to know. C'mon, get your food." She shoved both plates into Sora's hands and handed Riku two bottles of yanyan milk. "I'll be leaving now. Don't leave without saying bye, you two."

The door unceremoniously closed as she left, the whole encounter with her having lasted less than thirty seconds. Riku could only imagine what would have happened if Sora had still been snogging Riku, or if Riku had still been leaning over Sora on the bed when she had burst in.

Somehow, he didn't think her reaction would have been one of surprise.

Surprisingly, they didn't eat dinner in silence. Instead, as they sat comfortably on Sora small bed, Sora told Riku about what he thought they would find tomorrow on the open sea, and Riku would add in his own opinion, coming up with elaborate stories as usual.

It was like they weren't a couple --- they were just two best friends again, laughing and playing with their food (or in Sora's case, scarfing down his food). Eventually Riku brought up his conversation with Selphie as they were finishing their plates, and Sora gave a cheerful smile when he heard that Selphie had supported their relationship.

And as Riku was waving Sora's mother good-bye as Sora ran ahead to the boat, Riku was glad. Their last day on Destiny Islands was finally ending, and tomorrow he would finally be free, out exploring new terrains.

However, even though Riku didn't have any caring parents to miss when he was out on the raft adventuring.... What about Seiya? Wouldn't she be worried sick about her son and Riku? And Selphie and Tidus... And even Wakka. Riku didn't know the next time he would see them again. What if he never did?

He felt a sudden pang of guilt, and maybe fear, but he forced it aside. The two of them and Kairi wouldn't be gone long --- just a while to discover new horizons. Then they would come home with presents and lots of stories about all of the wonderful, exciting things they had seen.

Right?

_______________________________________________________________________________________ 

Seiya, Sora's mother, originates in this chapter of Stygian Solace, but most of my readers probably will recognize her as a prominent figure in my other popular KH fanfic, _A Complete 180°_. That's right, Seiya was created for this story. ^^ But people liked her so much that I gave her a bigger role in my other fanfic. 

When I rewrote this chapter, I made sure to pay more attention to Selphie and Tidus, because in the original version I totally left them out of the story. I think this version is a lot more complete. Also, in the original version, Riku and Sora's relationship went _way_ too fast, so I considerably toned it down to make it more believable. Now they've only shared kisses and a few touches… ^^;;; In the original they almost had sex.

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	4. Ch 4: The Earth Breaks

_Author's Notes:_

**NOTE**: This chapter is _NOT_ rewritten, and therefore it is very very BAD. Please excuse its crappiness until it can be rewritten with more story and detail. Thank you!

_A look ahead:_

When fishing goes wild~! Exclusion and betrayal. And a hungry tummy.

___________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Four: The Earth Breaks _**

  
  


Riku stifled a laugh as he quietly waded through the shallow waters underneath the dock. Above him he could barely make out the voices of Sora and Kairi, who had their short legs swung over the wooden dock and were kicking them back and forth. 

They were watching the sunset. How disgustingly romantic. 

The silver-haired boy covered his mouth to hold in the ever-threatening laugh as he stopped directly under his two friends. Their voices were loud and clear as though he were sitting right next to them.

_Perfect,_ he thought, a wide smile cracking over his pretty lips.

He needed to separate Sora from Kairi to speak with him without her overhearing. Riku didn't think Kairi was ready to know about his and Sora's relationship just yet. She'd probably find out tomorrow morning anyway, because Riku didn't think he'd be able to contain himself in front of Kairi for long. Sora was just so... soo...

Cute.

Anyway, Riku's plan was to separate Sora from Kairi so the two boys could relieve some of the.. er.... "tension" before the big day tomorrow. Besides, Riku still felt bad about teasing him about his boyish tummy... So, what better way to make up (or out) with his new boyfriend than to get back on his good graces by playing with him? 

After all, Sora _loved_ games.

The sun spilled over Riku's shoulders as he reached out to their feet to yank at them, their legs and large shoes casting long shadows over his face. 

They were going to be so surprised...!

"Y'know... Riku has changed."

He froze. 

Wait, they were talking about _him_...?

"What do you mean?" Sora's voice came easy, innocently.

Hesitation held Kairi back, however. "Well..."

"You okay?" came Sora again, this time a bit concerned. Riku could picture his brows drawing together. Sora was so predictable. Kairi on the other hand...

"Sora, let's take the raft and go---"

Every nerve and muscle in Riku tensed, his eyes widening in disbelief.

"Just the two of us!" Kairi finished, her voice filled with excitement. There came the sound of shoes against wood as she leapt to her feet. 

Riku did a volte-face, his fists clenched at his sides. One of his worst fears was being played out: being left out. 

_What?! She_ wouldn't_...!_

But her cacophonous giggle stopped him from reacting foolishly.

"Heehee. Just kidding."

_Like hell..!! Why would you mention it if you were just kidding?!_

Riku silently cried, sudden indignation building up in him. He squeezed his eyes shut and lowered his head, his bangs drooping over his eyes, the shadows now creeping downward to cover his whole face.

Kairi had said it so suddenly, so easily, as if she had been thinking about it for a long time... And _Riku_ was the one who'd changed? HAH! Sure! He wasn't the one excluding himself, _they_ were the ones leaving him out.

"What's gotten into you?" Sora asked. The silver-haired boy lifted his head ever-so-slightly at Sora's voice. "You're the one that's changed, Kairi."

"Maybe," she replied, sounding tired. "Y'know, I was a little afraid at first. But now I'm ready. No matter where I go or what I see, I know I can always come back here. Right?"

Riku's eyes narrowed dangerously, knowing what Sora was going to say.

"Yeah, of course!"

Predictable.

"That's good," Kairi said, her high spirits returning. "Sora, don't ever change."

So she didn't trust Riku, was that it? Sora was a better candidate? 

"Huh?" Sora, clueless and innocent as usual. That was one of the things Riku appreciated and loved about him the most.

"I just can't wait. Once we set sail, it'll be great."

_Once_ we _set sail?_ Riku thought resentfully. _There's no_ you _anymore, Kairi. Just Sora and me, on_ our _raft, which_ we _gathered the supplies for, not_ you.

A silence drifted between them, the only noise from the either of them to tell Riku that they were still there was a sigh from Kairi as she slumped back onto the dock to sit next to Sora. However, Riku was still too clouded with hurt to care about their unusual silence. Why had Kairi suggested that just she and Sora set sail? It had been Riku's idea in the first place to build the raft! Had Riku done something wrong...? And why hadn't Sora stood up for him?

Oh.

_OH._

Had she found out about the paopu fruit incident...? Had Sora _told_ her...?!

As he ran the thoughts and possibilities over and over through his head, the ebb of the tide and small waves crashing against the dock reminded him of where he was. He was soaked, and even though the weather was warm, his hands felt numb from cold and a small shiver ran up his spine. His early want to surprise his two friends had been forgotten completely. Instead of wanting to make up with Sora, an emptiness now filled him. In a melancholy stupor, Riku turned to head back to shore as the sun began to finally sink behind the horizon. But Sora's voice stopped him.

"When you said that Riku has changed... What did you mean, Kairi? Really?"

Goose bumps slowly crept up Riku's arms and he shuddered again. Meanwhile, his shadow gradually stretched through the water as the sun disappeared even further.

What was this feeling?

"Riku..? Oh, I don't know." Kairi's voice came nonchalantly. "He's been more distant lately, hasn't he? He doesn't talk much anymore... Just about the stupid raft and his unrealistic dreams about other worlds. And he's been giving you the strangest looks, I swear. I miss his old playful self."

_Stupid_ raft? _Unrealistic_ dreams? And Riku was only acting distant because she kept excluding him!

"But, I don't think he's being unrealistic..." Sora suddenly said, his voice just barely carrying over the sound of the ocean. 

"You don't?" she asked, mildly surprised.

_You don't?_ Riku's thoughts echoed.

"We share the same dreams, Kairi. When you insult him, you insult _me_ as well," Sora muttered. "Yes, he's changed for me too, but that's because I've changed." The wood of the dock creaked as Sora rose to his feet. "And as for the raft... Riku comes, or none of us go!"

Before he even finished the last word, he was running down the length of the dock towards shore, leaving Kairi behind as the sun at last disappeared and shadows spilled across the water. She made no move to follow him, or even to get up. Meanwhile, Riku felt his heart lighten a little at Sora's words. Sora had stood up for him! After all, they were bound by the legendary magic of the paopu fruit now. A wide grin crossed the boy's face and he clumsily stalked towards shore after Sora, splashing his way there and undoubtably notifying Kairi that he had been there. His friend was already heading towards the giant tree and the secret place, the jingling of his jewelry easily heard by Riku, even at such a distance.

"Sora!!"

The other boy kept running, taking a great leap over the small pool where the waterfall spilled, and landed in front of one of the gnarled tree roots. Riku was just reaching shore when Sora was crouching into the secret tunnel.

"SORA!!"

This time the other boy heard him. Sora struggled back to his feet as he spun around to face Riku, who was just now reaching the tree. The silver-haired boy came to an abrupt halt in front of the younger, whose face was slightly flushed from running. Or perhaps it was because of Riku..?

"Riku, where did you come from...?" Sora wondered, sounding a little out of breath.

He ignored the question and instead blurted out, "Let's leave her, Sora!"

The brown-haired boy raised his eyes, surprised. "Who...?"

Riku grabbed Sora by the shoulders and pulled him close into a kiss. As he pulled away, he said, "Let's leave Kairi... It would be just the two of us on the open sea... We could do whatever we wanted, without interruption.. Without her there to come between us!"

Green eyes met blue ones in silent acknowledgment. And all of a sudden Sora smiled, wrapped his arms around Riku's neck, and kissed him. Filled with such a sudden, certain bright hope for the future, Riku felt the urge to just take Sora right there and kiss him to death.

However, _she_ spoke first.

"I knew it."

Both Sora and Riku turned at the familiar voice. Sora's eyes widened, realizing Kairi had followed them and had just witnessed the whole thing, so he immediately stepped towards her, an explanation already at the tip of his tongue. But Riku held up an arm to stop him, the silver-haired boy giving Kairi an infernal glare.

"I wasn't sure before," Kairi said, her face empty of emotion as she stood there. "But just seeing you two now... and after hearing that..."

"Kairi..." Sora made a move toward her again, but Riku again held him back.

"I'd thought you two were jealous of each other.... competing with each other over _me_," she continued, her voice dropping. "We all thought that... Me, Tidus, Selphie, Wakka..." She focused on Sora and managed a small, dry laugh. "Even your _mom_ did, Sora..."

"Listen, I can expl--" Sora began, desperate.

"You don't have to, Sora..." she interrupted quietly, eerily. Her head lowered, a hurt look crossing her face. "I know I'm not needed any more... I was just an excuse for you two to get together."

"You don't understand, Kai--!!"

"No, _you_ don't understand, Sora!" Kairi suddenly yelled as she looked up, her eyes filling with tears. "No matter where I am, or how many friends I make, I'm always alone!"

With that, she tore her eyes away from them, spun on her heels and sped away towards the dock where their boats were waiting. 

"Kairi, wait!!" Sora yelled after her, pushing past Riku. He paused, giving his... er... "boyfriend" a meaningful look before he took off into a run along Kairi's path. "Wait!!"

There remained Riku, staring after his two fleeing friends, unsure of what to think or feel. How long he stayed there like that, he wasn't aware. The waves crashed softly against the shore, a contradiction to the mood in the air. The air was stale, heavy with whispers of disaster, but Riku didn't seem to notice. The sky was a beautiful dark shade of blue now that the sun was buried completely beneath the horizon, and Riku lifted his gaze to the sky to revel in it, waiting for the stars to appear one by one. That way, it didn't seem like he had waited long at all before Sora came jogging back, looking thoroughly depressed.

"I couldn't stop her..." he explained sadly as he trudged to a stop before Riku. "But I told her she could still come with us tomorrow. All she has to do is show up." He glanced up at Riku hopefully. "You're not _that_ mad at her, are you?"

Riku lowered his gaze to study Sora, a tiny smile crossing his lips. "I'm not so much angry at her as I am disappointed and hurt, but... yes...." Riku mumbled. "I suppose I am _that_ furious with her." And in defense of his words, because Sora looked ready to coax him out of his negative emotions, he added, "You know what she said about me! Those words were for _your_ ears after all."

The younger boy slightly nodded, sighing. "Yeah..." But then his face brightened with a smile. "Let's start tomorrow's adventure with a smile, okay? I don't want any shadows looming over us before we even set sail."

Riku managed a grin. "You're so optimistic...." he paused there, looking back up at the sky and out at the vast ocean. "So what do you think we're going to find out there?"

"Another world, of course!" Sora laughed, nudging Riku playfully in the arm, Kairi's disappointment now forgotten.

The elder boy quickly snatched Sora's arm in his gloved hand before the brown-haired boy could pull away. Riku pulled Sora to himself and embraced him tightly, his soaked clothes cold against Sora's skin.

Sora blinked simply up at him with a questioning look. "You okay?" he asked softly, raising his free hand to brush at Riku's wet bangs. He stifled a giggle, grinning at the silver-haired boy. "You smell like salt water and fish."

"I do?"

"Yeah. And you're all wet."

"Yup."

"Well, you're bound to catch a cold in those wet clothes."

"And what are you suggesting? Another mushroom rock incident?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow at Sora's daring.

"Uh-huh." Sora nodded slowly, his bangs shifting with the movement.

Riku laughed loudly, pulling slightly away from the boy. Casually he grabbed Sora's chin and tilted it upward. Large pools of cerulean stared up at him expectantly, making him feel as though he could just melt into their icy depths and live there, eternally blissful. Sora's eyes slid closed, mouth parting ever-so-slightly, and shook Riku out of his mental stupor. The elder boy calmed his smile and leaned towards Sora, meeting his waiting lips. The kiss immediately warmed Riku, his heart jerking in his chest at the contact. 

But that was nothing, for Sora was quick to lean into the kiss for more of Riku, who was just learning that his arms fit perfectly around the younger boy's waist. Sora delved into Riku's sweet mouth, indulging in the emotions it catalyzed. 

Everything had happened so fast... He was still wondering if this was a dream that he would soon wake up from because it was just so... unexpected. 

Riku meanwhile pulled Sora closer, smiling into the kiss as the other boy explored deeper, his eight gloveless fingers reaching up to Riku's cheeks to brush against the soft pale skin in encouragement. 

And encouraged he was! 

He was about ready to tear Sora's clothes off, when Sora's tongue gently slid into his mouth, causing an unexpected soft moan to escape from the elder boy. Sora hesitated at the sound as Riku lightly blushed, much to his dismay. 

Slowly, an impish grin crossed over Sora's lips.

"Ahh... I see," he said as he leaned up to whisper into Riku's ear, his hot breath causing the silver hair to tickle Riku's cheek, which still had Sora's fingers there, caressing it. Sora paused to nuzzle that cheek, his lips brushing over the skin. "Riku, you're being submissive."

Riku pulled away at the sudden revelation.

Sora was right!

_Wait a minute, I'm not supposed to be the one on the receiving end! How the hell..?_

He laughed, gently pushing Sora into the shadows, against the tree. "Not for long. And stop trick---"

He stopped short, interrupted by a very long, loud growl coming from Sora's stomach.

The younger boy smiled sheepishly up at his boyfriend. "Second dinner. Didn't eat it yet. Guess we'll have to postpone it again, ne?"

Inwardly sighing, Riku nodded. "Always the hungry one, aren't you? Go home and eat," he said, his voice soft and hollow. "We'll see each other early tomorrow morning before we set sail."

"Yeah... You better not forget to take a bath first," Sora teased, his face lit with a wide smile. "Get the fishy smell off you."

"What about you? You stink like _me_."

Sora hesitated, his smile slightly fading. "Has it really been only a few hours? Since we shared the fruit? Seems like so long ago..."

So, Sora felt the same way Riku did. 

"It doesn't seem real, does it?" Pulling away from Sora and the tree, Riku commented, "Time can do some strange things when you're in love, I suppose."

___________________________________________________________________________

  
  



	5. Ch 5: Meeting the Darkness

Author's Notes:

**NOTE**: This chapter is _NOT_ rewritten, and therefore it is very very BAD. Please excuse its crappiness until it can be rewritten with more story and detail. Thank you!

___________________________________________________________________________________

**Chapter Five: Meeting the Darkness **

  
  


Sora had long ago gone home when the storm filled the dark sky over the island, alerting Riku. He had been lounging in the tree house, contemplating over their adventure the next day and wondering whether or not Kairi would show, when the first flash of lightning streaked across the sky. The sound of thunder came not far after it.

His first thoughts were of the raft and whether or not Kairi had safely tied it up. Knowing her, she probably had deliberately left it untied so that tomorrow morning Riku would find nothing and his adventure would be foiled.

His next thoughts were of Sora. Would he be coming to check on Excalibur...? Or was he sound asleep by now?

Another crash of thunder spurred Riku into action. He had to see if the raft was safe. Stumbling out from his makeshift bed of coconut tree leaves, he crawled to the door of the tree house and looked out.

What he saw filled him with a strange feeling of dazed apprehension.

A sphere of darkness, swirling with hues of purple and red, hissing and crackling with negative energy, was hovering almost directly over the paopu island.

Struck with awe, Riku began to move outside to get a better look---was this the key to other worlds that he'd been hoping for? the way to leave these wretched islands?---when all of a sudden, the coldness returned.

All he saw was darkness before the cold nothingness enveloped his body, more insistent than before. He cried out in confusion and surprise, only to find his voice swallowed by the abyss holding him captive. As he struggled to move, to no avail, realization dawned on him.

It was just like before!

Except this time Sora wasn't here to save him, to nudge him out of the shadows.

Silence overcame him. Not even the sounds of the storm outside could be heard---not even the reassuring sound of the waves crashing against shore.

Why was this happening to him? What was going on?

Riku felt his thoughts fade, turn to a hazy gray; as soon as his mind reached out to grasp a thought, it swirled away like smoke. He was aware, however, that he couldn't breathe. Lungs burning, he felt a violent shiver course through his veins, and slowly, a numbness crept throughout his limbs, just as his eyes were easing to a close. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was panic-stricken, aware of the fact he was slowly dying, suffocating in a cold, dark void.

And like a flickering flame, a voice filled his consciousness. 

You have the power to open the door...

The numbness spread further like icy hands caressing his skin, edging closer to his chest where his heart was finally giving in to the calm. 

You have it. Call the key to yourself... 

A constricting pain suddenly surrounded his heart, threatening to either tear it asunder, or squeeze it until it burst. 

Spread your wings and escape your prison surrounded by water. 

But Riku was vaguely aware of the danger. 

Embrace the power, keyblade master... 

It felt right, somehow. 

Don't be afraid. Open the door to your cage. 

The voice was appeasing, like a mother's kiss on a small wound... 

Light or dark... you have the choice. You have the key. The keyblade. 

It drowned out the pain. 

Open the door...! 

The door? What door?!

As if by answer, the void was suddenly filled, a conflagration of images now ablaze. Words, thoughts, pictures--all mashed together... everything rushed at him like a giant wave, washing over him and releasing him from the coldness. As he watched in marvel and tried to discern all the messages, they filled him with sudden warmth and hope.

witheredheartsemptycoldtearsredeyestideofdeathiobligerottingcorpsesdidikillthemunmovingboney fingerspullmeundergowiththemchokingmouthagapeseducingtwilightscarletauroraseenothinghear nothingblindandmadtwigsclawingbylastofthelightgrinningeartoearlostscaredaloneswallowedbythe** darkness**shriekofdemonsheartlessfiendsinpursuitcreepingintotheskygoodbyestarswinkingoutdrooling tigresslyrememistyraveofloryravenousangelscawlikecemetarycrowsdeathdancesonwingsofobsidianhidden** door**announcinghispresencewithasilhouettelikeawolfaloneinthedarkstalkingthenightclippedwings** fallenfeathers**motheatensoulssilverhopecypresswordsbeautyofasharpenedbladecerulean eyes  
  


And as suddenly as they had appeared... They were gone.

The darkness dissipated around Riku, seeping into the cracks and knots in the walls of the tree house before disappearing from sight completely. He fell to his knees, gasping for the warm night air, anything to let him know he was still alive. But then he hesitated, letting the gravity of the situation sink in...

His dreams... They were possible! The voice--the images--the darkness... Even Kairi's sudden appearance all those years ago... They all proved that there was more to the universe than just his island home. They proved that his dreams were realistic, within reach... And they had shown the path there. 

The door...

Rubbing his eyes to make sure he was still awake, Riku took another look outside. The darkness was still there, hovering like a ravenous dragon awaiting its prey. He knew what to do. Or... the basic idea, at least. He needed to open the door, and the only strange door that needed opening on the island was the one in the secret place where Sora and Riku used to play when they were younger. One time, he remembered, it has shown a large keyhole, only for him. The day he had met Kairi.

Of course the problem was.... Throughout all his years on Destiny Islands, not once had he heard about anyone opening that door before. It didn't even have a doorknob... All it had was a mysterious keyhole that only Riku had seen once.

Key...

Riku thought back to what the voice had said. 

"You have it. Call the key to yourself..."

Okay.

"All right, Riku... This shouldn't be too hard," he muttered to himself as he tried to block out the sphere of darkness from his thoughts as he crossed the wooden deck to the ladder that led down. His movements were sluggish, lethargic, as he was still suffering the side effects of being swallowed by that coldness, darkness, whatever it was.

The darkness was linked to the door, he figured, and to the weird visions he'd just had, and to the coldness taking over his body lately. He would somehow exploit all of it in order to get off these cursed islands. Whatever would come his way, he would overcome it. He knew Sora would come after seeing the storm. He knew Sora would be worried about the raft.

So, he'd take Sora with him! It would be just the two of them visiting other worlds, for that's surely where this door--or that big ball of creepy dark light--would take them. Whatever challenges, hardships, or suffering he would be presented with... He would protect Sora, and Sora would protect him. Their destinies were intertwined now, and nothing could change that, not even this darkness.

Riku dropped to the ground about halfway down the ladder and stumbled, trying hard to keep his balance on flimsy tired legs. Slowly he turned to face the secret place and, as expected, he shivered.

He would do anything to get off these islands with Sora...

So, taking a deep breath, Riku got on his hands and knees and crawled into the secret place. Riku couldn't remember the last time he'd visited the secret place at night... As he emerged from the short tunnel into the cave, he immediately noticed the odd lighting. It had been three hours since nightfall... Yet, the cave remained lit as though it had its own source of light.

Then again, wasn't it always like that?

He supposed, given the circumstances, his perceptiveness was at its peak, and that is why he was just now noticing these sort of things... And in any case, he rarely came down here anymore. He suddenly frowned, realizing he would never have the chance to see this place again, not if this worked... He wouldn't be able to see his parents again. Or his home... Or his other friends...

A faint crash of thunder shook him out of his thoughts.

He would just have to sacrifice all of that. And it wasn't like he was never going to come back, right...?

Making his way to the back of the cave, he noticed two things different from the last time he'd been here. One, the Sora that Kairi had drawn now had a hand grasping a paopu fruit stretched out to the Kairi that Sora had drawn... Riku felt a twinge of irritation. Had Sora drawn that paopu fruit, or had Kairi...? For some reason, it struck him as Sora's style... But it was hard to tell. 

Kairi nor Sora had been the artistic types--Riku had always outdone them all at art. With a twig in the sand he would draw elaborate depictions of his dreams and future adventures, always talking with such zeal and fullness of heart. Sora would watch him drag the stick through the sand, smiling at the beautiful dreams Riku had. The boy had always been taken with Riku's stories, observant and tendentious. 

But... Why had Sora drawn that?

Riku reached out and slid his hand along the cold stone, tracing the outline of the scribbled paopu fruit, a frown forming on his lips. He'd have to ask Sora himself later, when they were alone and off the islands.

In any case, aside from the cave drawings, something else was different.

The door.

The door that Riku had come down here for, the door that had no knob or lock or any means of opening... A large keyhole was now stationed in the very middle of it. Just like that one time, the day Kairi had appeared. It was open, waiting...

Hungry.

Riku slowly approached it, well aware that Sora would be reaching the island soon and would find him. He approached it, unaware of the disaster his actions would bring. He approached it, the unknown guiding him with an invisible hand. He stopped in front of the door and leaned his head back to take the view in.

This was the key to his freedom.

Speaking of keys... He needed one to open it, but he was already supposed to have it.

But he didn't!

"All right... Some strange events are going on right now... so... I suppose it wouldn't seem weird if a key just happened to materialize in my hand, right?" he wondered aloud.

No, at this point, nothing seemed strange anymore.

He took a step back and spread his arms.

"Oh wonderful key... thing... Whatever I need to open this door so I can get off this island, and hopefully not end up on some other littoral place with palm trees and seagulls..... Come to me! Because I'm supposed to have you!"

Not to his surprise, nothing happened. Sighing, he lowered his arms.

"Hm..." Rubbing his chin with one hand, he crossed his other arm over his chest as he studied the door intently. "Agh! Screw it!" he suddenly cried and lashed out at the door, frustrated. 

That's it. Open your heart to the darkness... 

"And you!" Riku called, his fine eyebrows coming together in anger. "Shut up if you're not going to help me!" 

Give yourself to me and the door shall open. Sell your heart to the darkness and you shall be free. 

The silver-haired boy blinked once... twice... three times, letting the voice's words sink in.

"So... Basically, you want me to sell my soul in order to get off the island...?" he asked, frowning. That was stupid... no way would he do that. Was any of this even real?

As soon as he finished that thought, he heard light footsteps at the foot of the cave. He spun around, his smile widening.

"Sora, guess what! We can leave now, we can---" He abruptly stopped, the smile fading. Trying to conceal his disappointment, he asked, "What are you doing here, Kairi?"

There she stood, her hands clasped behind her back, her face solemn.

"Who were you talking to?" she asked, calmly inquisitive.

He waved a hand at her, turning back to face the closed door. "Nothing, no one! What are you doing here? Did you see Sora out there?"

"I saw the storm and got worried. I thought maybe Sora was still here with you... But his boat isn't here."

He vaguely wondered why she hadn't turned back and gone home, then, if Sora's boat wasn't there... Was she here for some other reason? Maybe she was worried about Riku as well...?

"Say, Kairi..." he said casually, turning slightly to face her. "Do you remember what your world was like?"

Slowly she shook her head. "The first thing I remember is Sora's face."

He narrowed his eyes, carefully studying her. "Why are you down here? Why didn't you go home since you didn't see Sora's boat?" he asked cautiously.

"Because I know Sora. He'd come to check on the raft."

"Why not wait on the dock for Sora? Why come looking for me?" he asked, almost accusingly. He knew he was being a little too pushy, but he couldn't help himself. Somewhere amongst weird voices in his head, sharing the paopu with Sora, and prepping for tomorrow's voyage, he'd lost patience with reality.

She stared at him, silent, her face empty of emotion. After a moment, she asked, "Riku, what's wrong? You're acting strange... If this is about you and Sora, I'm sorry I took off like that... I was a little jealous, I guess, and surprised."

"No, this isn't about that!" As another thought occurred to him, he continued, demanding, "Didn't you see the mass of darkness hovering outside? Can't you see the giant keyhole in the door? Why aren't you asking about those?" he paused there, studying her again. "You're the one acting strange, Kairi."

Silence.

He took a step away from her, his back pressing against the door. When he spoke again, it was in a hushed tone. "I was kind of wondering why this was happening tonight, of all nights... It can't be just fate. Why tonight, after Sora and I share a paopu...? Why tonight, the night before we embark on the raft to discover new worlds? That's a little too much to be a coincidence."

Still, silence. She watched him, a look of pity upon her face.

"Who are you, Kairi?" he demanded, his lips tightening in anger. "What do you want with Sora? You can't lie to me anymore."

"What are you talking about, Riku?" she asked, her voice quavering, her eyes closing. She took a few steps toward him, her eyes opening, but her gaze lowered. "You're scaring me..."

She stopped in front of Riku just as the shadows of the cave began moving, twisting into shapes straight out of a nightmare. They were demons, shaped somewhat like hunched primates with long, pointed antennae that ended in curls at the back of their heads. Except, they were all black, completely black minus their beady yellow eyes. They lurched toward Riku and Kairi, their talons stretched forth, ready to rip at flesh.

"W-what are those...?" she stuttered, turning in a circle to watch them appear one by one.

"How am I supposed to know?" he asked, eyeing the creatures. For some reason, he wasn't surprised by them. Nor was he frightened. "Did they come from the door...?"

"No...!" She gasped, spinning towards him, her eyes like daggers. "Do you have something to do with these things?!"

Riku was taken aback. How dare she play dumb all this time and then suddenly turn on him and accuse him of making weird creatures pop out of the ground!

"I did, Princess."

The silver-haired boy hesitated, recognizing the voice. But this time it was different. This time it wasn't in his mind... Riku literally heard the voice.

Nearly perfectly blended into the cave wall was a man (or so he assumed, since the voice was awfully manly...) in a tan cloak. The hood was up and therefore Riku could not see his face, but he could have sworn he saw a hint of silver hair peeking out. The man was tall, no doubt... and his voice held definite authority.

"I opened the door," the mysterious man said calmly. "This is no longer your world. The Heartless are confused. They came here, seeking the heart that wields the keyblade." The man chuckled here, his voice ominous, yet euphonious to Riku's ears. "However, they didn't expect to find two such strong hearts, and a pure heart..."

"Sora?" Riku heard himself ask, not quite fully comprehending what the man was saying.

The creatures called the heartless were restless now, spasming and twitching around the trio, their eyes fixated on Kairi.

"They hunger for her pure heart, do you not hear their voices?"

Riku shook his head, watching the heartless. He couldn't hear them.

"You'll understand soon. Now go."

The man raised an arm and pointed towards the cave exit, past Kairi. Only hesitating a moment, Riku bolted for the tunnel. The heartless seemed to ignore him, and surprisingly it was Kairi who tried to stop him. She reached out as he passed and began,

"Stop, Riku! Don't leave me with this man, he's not---"

But her voice cut off as suddenly a shadow enveloped her, covering her body in darkness. Was this what had happened to him before in the tree house? Was that what the cold darkness looked like? Riku swallowed, knowing what she was going through, but unsure of how to help her... Or whether to help her at all.

"The door has been opened, boy! Go now!" the man called. "Choose your path wisely, for your Other shall take the route you leave open. Either way, this girl shall meet you there."

Riku shook his head, gathered his courage, and ran for it.

His destination was the paopu island, where the darkness ominously hung. There Sora would see him. There Sora would join him. And there... 

They would both leave the islands.

___________________________________________________________________________________


	6. Ch 6: Farewell to Destiny

Author's Notes:

**NOTE**: This chapter is _NOT_ rewritten, and therefore it is very very BAD. Please excuse its crappiness until it can be rewritten with more story and detail. Thank you!

A look ahead:

An extended hand. Fear of the darkness. And here come the plot twists!

___________________________________________________________________________________

**Chapter Six: Farewell to Destiny**

  
  


He hadn't been waiting long before Sora showed up.

The mass of darkness hadn't changed since Riku had first noticed it... It was still swirling in place over paopu island, where he now stood, staring out into the dark, vast sea. The sea that he and Sora were supposed to have sailed tomorrow... 

That didn't seem likely anymore.

The heartless ignored him, never touching foot within a five-foot radius of him, as though they were afraid... Afraid of him? If what that man had said was true, then why would the heartless be afraid of Riku? Were they afraid of being destroyed, or exploited?

It didn't matter.

He and Sora would be off these forsaken islands in a matter of minutes, as soon as the boy showed up. The knowledge filled him with wonder, that his dreams were going to come true. Much to his own disgust, however, he couldn't help wondering if Kairi was okay... He had left her down there with that strange man. Then again, what did he want with her, and why had he called her 'princess'? 

He didn't have a doubt in his mind about one thing, though. Kairi would be going wherever Riku and Sora did. She had to be powerful, he now knew. Maybe where ever they ended up, he could learn about her... And her power... And maybe her power could be used to his advantage, kind of like how he had planned to exploit her feelings so she would pay no attention to Sora, and Sora would return his attention back to Riku. Kairi was just a tool.

Yes, he hadn't been waiting long before Sora finally showed up.

The boy came running across the bridge, panic-stricken, and swung at a heartless with his cheap wooden sword. The creature fell into the water just as Sora spun on Riku and demanded, "Where's Kairi? I thought she was with you!"

Kairi? He was worried about Kairi...? Then again, Riku was too, he had to admit... and no doubt Sora would inquire about her, considering she had witnessed her two friends kisses and planning to leave without her. Come to think of it, hadn't that almost been Riku's fate?

Riku pushed that thought away and muttered, "The door has opened..."

"What?" Sora asked, exasperated, panting as he spoke. He must have been fighting pretty hard out there....

The silver-haired boy felt a pang of guilt. The heartless didn't even care about Riku... If Sora ever got hurt fighting them... Riku couldn't think about it. It was too painful. But then, if the heartless were after Sora, what did that make him...?

"The door has opened, Sora!" Riku said, his voice turning urgent. The elder boy began to turn around. "Now we can go to the outside world!"

"What are you talking about?" Sora asked, confused. He leaned forward, saying desperately, "We've got to find Kairi!"

Again, with Kairi...! Things didn't look good, not with Sora more concerned about Kairi. Then again, Sora didn't know about his conversation with her down in the cave...

Riku inwardly growled and spun around to face his friend, yelling, "Kairi's coming with us!"

This seemed to catch Sora's attention. The boy grit his teeth and fell silent to listen to Riku, who mentally cringed. Had Sora already forgotten about their undying bond created by the paopu...? Had Sora already forgotten his love confession...?

"Once we step through, we might not be able to come back," Riku continued, expressing his other fears. He didn't dare mention Kairi again. "We may never see our parents again. There's no turning back. But this may be our only chance." He tried to calm his worried heart. "We can't let fear stop us!" he said, trying to make Sora see what he felt. He took a deep breath, his brow furrowing in determination as he stared up at the swirling mass of darkness overhead. "I'm not afraid of the darkness!"

At the last sentence, he casually reached his hand out for Sora, urging the boy to join him.

That's right...

Sora's dream had been like this. The vatic dream Sora had told him about... With the giant wave. Riku kept his hand out, calm in the face of danger, unwavering against the tide of fate, while Sora was left to fight with a wave of emotion, unsure of what to do. 

But Sora knew one thing... He wanted to be with Riku, but he was scared of the darkness. With a shaky voice, Sora looked to Riku with eyes filled with apprehension. 

"Riku..."

At the sound of his voice, tentacles of darkness suddenly sprang out of the ground at Riku's feet, snaking around his legs. Whisps broke off like scintillas from a flickering flame, caressing his arms and face like cold silk. The darkness crept higher, wrapping around his limbs, numbing them, just like before. The cold darkness.

This time, it was taking Sora as well.

He had lunged forward, reaching his hand out to grasp Riku's. Sora didn't need to say anything, for his face already plainly said what he could not. His pained expression, begging Riku not to go, not to leave him. His scared expression, afraid of falling into darkness, but afraid of losing his best friend.

Sora strained to reach him, to meet gloved hand with gloved hand, but Riku just calmly stood there, watching him, one hand waiting. 

He trusted Sora. Sora would come with him, the loyal follower, his best friend. Sora would follow him to the end of the world, even if it meant that darkness would greet them.

The ground began to shake just as the darkness was beginning to envelope Riku's arms completely--just as Sora managed to reach over the last inch to Riku's hand. 

Sora lost his balance and gave one last, desperate grasp at his boyfriend's hand before pulling his arms back to steady himself. He hesitated, unsure of whether to reach into the darkness again.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl, just as Riku felt the darkness jerking at his body, ready to swallow him alive. Riku felt his heart stop as he watched Sora, afraid the boy would abandon him to a cruel fate, alone with the darkness.

He wasn't afraid of the darkness. 

No. 

He was afraid of being alone.

And all of a sudden, time returned to normal. 

Riku felt a hand grab hold of his. He immediately pulled Sora to him, pressing his hands to the back of the boy's head as Sora wrapped his arms around him, clinging closely, afraid. Riku locked his jaw and stared ahead, welcoming their fate.

As the cold darkness enveloped him this time, Sora's light was there to guide him.

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As aforementioned, here is the whole idea behind the fanfic: What would have happened if Sora had taken Riku's hand? I had to start from the beginning to add flavor to Riku and Sora's relationship, but now comes the actual fanfic. The question, of course, now is: how does this small, crucial change affect the entire story?


	7. Ch 7: In Foreign Worlds

_Author's Notes:_

**NOTE**: This chapter is _NOT_ rewritten, and therefore it is very very BAD. Please excuse its crappiness until it can be rewritten with more story and detail. Thank you!

___________________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Seven: In Foreign Worlds _**__

_Caw. Caaww._

For a moment Riku thought of home and those damn seagulls. He was afraid to open his eyes and find that it had only been a dream. On his skin he could feel the natural warmth of the sun he had always felt on the islands, and in the distance he could hear the familiar crashing of waves against the shore.

For a moment he feared he'd ended up on another island world. Of course Fate would screw him so dearly like that.

However, he wasn't home. And he hadn't ended up on another littoral world.

That became apparent to him rather quickly, in fact, when the once-monotonous tune of the waves suddenly had its volume turned up. They sounded like thunder, vibrating the very earth he was laying on. It was as though they were furious at him and intent on destroying him along with his rock.

Wait. Rock?

Slowly Riku opened his eyes, only to be greeted by a fluttering of blue and gold as a butterfly landed on his nose. He stared at it, watching it lift a leg and clean itself, its wings slowly opening and closing. There came another crash of water below him and the creature took flight again, darting gracefully to and fro through the air.

Only then did Riku have a good look at his surroundings. He was on a grassy plateau of some sort with cliffs on all sides; however, the grass was blue with thousands of butterflies, making Riku wonder how they all ended up here. Were they trapped because of the water? In the direction the butterfly had taken off was where the sounds crashing waves were coming from, and occasionally a stream of water would shoot up over the side of the plateau, the droplets of water reflecting a very bright, intoxicating setting sun.

Silhouetted against that sun was Sora.

The boy was staring off into the sunset, his back facing Riku, his spiky brown hair shifting lightly in the gentle breeze. Riku took a second to wonder why the boy hadn't bothered waking him up, but tucked the thought aside. Groaning, the silver-haired boy climbed to his feet to find that his whole body ached. His limbs didn't seem to want to respond; no, they were like puddy, shaky at his command.

But he didn't care. He was in another world... With Sora!

At the realization his body seemed to find the strength to take a few steps toward Sora near the cliff. Suddenly overjoyed, a smile crossed Riku's face.

"Sora!"

The boy made no move to acknowledge Riku's voice. Riku slowed to a halt a few feet away from Sora to watch him, his brow suddenly furrowing. 

Was something wrong? Was Sora unhappy that they had made it off Destiny Islands?

"Sora," he called gently. "We made it."

Again, nothing.

"Sora, are you okay? Is something wrong?"

And very suddenly Sora let out a horrible shriek, piercing through Riku like a hundred wooden swords. The sound was inhuman, like a dying angel. It filled Riku's consciousness, blinding him, deafening him, tearing his senses apart so that when the unearthly sound finally ended and he could think again, the silver-haired boy felt as though he had been reborn. However, he had no time to be concerned about himself, after all it had been Sora who had uttered such a sound. The boy's arms were wound around himself, tightly grasping at his sides as his face twisted in pain. Riku could literally feel the sensation in the air. He could almost taste the pain.

"Sora!!"

There came the sharp sound of ripping clothes, and to Riku's disbelief, two dark-feathered wings tore through the boy's back, ripping flesh and shredding clothing as they stretched free, like black death. They flung open, sweeping over the grass and sending a wave of butterflies fleeing into the air, clouding the air with blue and gold. As they took flight, they left the green field dancing, swaying in the wind, Sora's dark feathers gliding to the grass below.

Riku panicked, batting at the creatures aimlessly to get closer to Sora, afraid for the boy. But they suddenly dispersed, leaving Sora's wings stretching impatiently as he stepped closer to the edge. Another wave crashed against the cliff, bathing Sora with tiny light-filled droplets, giving him almost an ethereal glow. 

_Clipped wings... fallen feathers..._

Slowly Sora turned, spotting Riku for the first time. A smile filled with sad love crossed his face.

Something about the expression sent a chill running up Riku's spine, reminding him all-too-well of the cold darkness. He watched Sora, suddenly afraid. Not afraid of the darkness, however. Afraid of Sora.

The boy spread his arms wide, the smile ever-present...

And backwards he fell, towards the raging ocean below.

With a horrified cry Riku sprang forward with a hand outstretched for Sora, but he was too late. His hand grasped fallen feathers as he reached the edge, Sora plunging head first.

He couldn't protect Sora any more. But... Sora didn't need him.

"Open your wings!" Riku screamed, his voice breaking. "Fly!"

His cry was swallowed as another wave crashed against the cliff, violently rocking the plateau. Riku shifted his foot to gain better steading, and suddenly slipped. There was a slow moment of appalling realization that he was falling, but no one had granted him wings. Arms flailing out for a nonexistent handhold, dread filling him, the silver-haired boy fell after Sora over the cliff, wingless. He squeezed his eyes shut, refusing to watch the sunset to his death, as his own voice left him in a terrorized scream, swallowed by the ocean's roar. But then a familiar voice, sounding hollow and distant, reached his ears.

"Riku? _Riku!!_"

He had no wings. Not like Sora... There was no one to protect him as he fell toward his stygian fate.

"Riku, _wake up_!"

His eyes snapped wide open, his scream cutting short as he shot up into a sitting position. Clutching a hand to his chest, he felt his heart race through the skin-tight material, his breath coming out in ragged gasps.

It had been a dream. There was no cliff... no dark-winged Sora... He was still safe, still on Dest--Wait. Slowly he raised his head, the feeling of apprehension filling him. 

A set of worried cerulean eyes met his.

Sora.

His Sora.

They were still alive.

And, after casting a quick glance around, he confirmed that they were indeed not on Destiny Islands any longer. No, definitely not his islands. As his breath gradually slowed, he noticed he could actually see it as he exhaled. That, and his body was numb with cold. Not the cold darkness, but rather actual cold weather. Soft white flakes were drifting slowly from a gray sky, covering the foreign world in a colorless blanket. They were definitely in a town, for there were short buildings aligned on the sides of an empty street. However, it was the town's lifelessness that intrigued Riku. Then again, who would want to be out in the cold, with strange things falling from the heavens? Curious, the silver-haired boy reached a hand out to catch a flake. There was a quick sensation of a burning cold, but then the white flake suddenly melted into a small puddle of water.

Ah, so that's what it was. Frozen water. Snow.

"Where... are we?" he asked softly, meeting Sora's gaze again.

Something seemed to come over the boy just then. His eyes began to water as he stared at Riku, his lip beginning to quiver ever-so-slightly as his body shuddered from the cold.

"Sora...?"

Sora's eyes squeezed shut as he lunged at Riku, enveloping him in a tight embrace.

"I was s-so scared!" he cried, burying his cold face into Riku's neck. "I t-thought y-you weren't going t-to wake up!"

The silver-haired boy slowly blinked, letting Sora's words sink in. He sighed, lowering his eyes as he lifted a hand to run through Sora's ice-crystallized hair, his other arm winding around the boy's waist. Sora was shivering uncontrollably, his skin unusually pale and a hint of blue in his lips.

"I-I didn't want to l-leave you here to look for help be... because I thought you were g-going to die if I did--I didn't know w-what to do, s-so I stayed... And... A-And now I can't move... I'm so c-cold."

His body began to quiver with weak sobs as he clung to Riku, scared to let go again, one shivering hand clenching tightly onto the older boy's shirt. Sora was immeasurably lethargic due to the cold, but he still had the strength to hold on to Riku... But if Riku didn't get the both of them to a warm place quickly, their adventure would be over before it could even begin. 

"R-riku... What are we going t-to do...?"

"Shh..." Riku hushed reassuringly, softly petting the boy in an attempt to assuage his fears. "As long as we're together, everything will work out. I'll protect you."

For a moment Riku continued to stroke his hair, muttering small sounds of comfort. Sora finally gave a resigning sniffle and gave completely in to his boyfriend's solace, relaxing his grip on Riku's shirt and slumping in to the other boy, exhausted.

Riku sighed in temporary relief and lifted Sora's chin with his hand. The boy's eyes were hollow, distant, staring not at Riku, but through him. Parting Sora's bangs with his hand, Riku leaned forward and planted a light kiss on his forehead. He paused to breathe in the boy's scent, expecting at least a small lingering trace of salty beach air or maybe chicken from their last dinner on Destiny Island... But there was nothing. 

Riku painfully, shakily rose to his feet, biting back curses as his limbs screamed in defiance and his muscles hissed in pain. He was going to get Sora out of the cold, even if it cost him a few frostbitten toes.

But as he stooped to help Sora up, Riku suddenly felt his heart jerk.

He didn't know how or why, but he knew something was definitely coming. Something dangerous. Something familiar.

And it was coming fast. Right below Sora.

Not throwing this gut instinct aside, Riku snatched up Sora's arm and quickly jerked him off the small hill they had been sitting on by the side of the road. As soon as the boy hit the white ground and began sliding down the slope, the ground where they had been resting suddenly rippled, like a pebble being tossed into a puddle. This puddle, however, tore open a portal from hell and spat out three of its heartless demons.

The creatures twitched as they swayed from side-to-side, surveying the foreign world they were in. Unfortunately, they seemed completely immune to the cold.

The situation could not have been worse for the boys. Nearly collapsing from the coldness, exhausted from being sucked into the darkness, and weaponless, they were no match for the three heartless.

Even so, Riku wasn't going to let them have Sora.

"Sora!"

Riku slid down the hill after the boy, who was struggling to sit up as he sank into the white-covered ground. Pulling Sora to his feet, Riku paused to look the boy in his eyes.

"Sora, I need you to run with me. We can't fight these monsters, and I don't want to die here."

Slowly the boy nodded, his eyes drooping as he trembled, his muscles threatening to give way.

"All right then." Riku gave a strained smile before tightly grasping Sora's hand. "Let's go!"

The two of them broke off into a clumsy run, struggling through the snow as their feet sank in with each step. Sora almost immediately fell behind, casting worried glances over his shoulder to keep track of the heartless as Riku tugged on his arm for him to hurry. But they didn't get far before Sora tripped, unable to lift his feet any longer. The boy fell face forward, too tired to even bring his hands forward to catch himself. He hit the snow without a sound, his hand falling away from Riku's.

Wordless, without hesitation, Riku knelt beside his boyfriend and plunged his hands into the snow, digging Sora's feet out. He roughly wrenched the boy's shoes off, tossed them away, and pulled his socks all the way up before he slipped his arms under Sora and lifted the boy into his arms.

His heart was in his throat, but he ignored the panic that filled him. Even as the heartless decided to take pursuit, Riku only had one thing on his mind.

Protect Sora.

Just as the black demons synchronically stooped forward and brought their talons forth, Riku strengthened his hold on Sora and brought a leg out to kick at a heartless. His foot connected with its head and it fell backwards. The other two heartless disregarded their fallen comrade, stalking towards Riku hungrily, who prepared for another kick.

If only he had a weapon!

But as he lifted his leg, the heartless suddenly sprang at him. Talons ripped at his clothes, through his flesh, reaching for his chest where his heart was racing. They stretched past Sora's vulnerable skin, eager to separate Riku's heart from his body and taste it. A new fear suddenly struck him.

When had the heartless begun to ignore Sora and target Riku instead?

Riku shifted his balance and crouched, hugging Sora to himself as the demons shredded his shirt, sliced into skin and drew blood. But the pain wasn't so bad. No, it was the coldness that bothered Riku. Eyes forcing shut, he hissed through his clenched teeth as he felt it envelope his heart, caressing it as though to appease it. Shuddering, he held Sora close. The other two heartless were relentless, clawing at his bare skin and trying to gain access to their prize as the third creature paid no heed to them, its eyes locked onto the task at hand.

"Go away."

Riku eased his eyes open at Sora's voice.

"Go away..."

The heartless's face was less than four inches to Sora's face. The boy glared at it, his face colorless and his voice sounding hollow and withdrawn. The heartless meanwhile hesitated at Sora's voice, its hand paused in mid-reach.

"_Go away_!" he cried, his brow wrinkling in anger.

There came the thundering of hooves and a war cry, and very suddenly two objects flew past Riku's head, shooting into the heartless. They went flying backwards snow before disappearing into nothingness, leaving two arrows stuck in the snow. Riku lifted his head in surprise, feeling the hand retract from his heart as the remaining heartless panicked. Another arrow zipped past the two boys and into the creature's head. It gave a low hiss before it too disappeared, leaving the arrow to fall to the snow below.

Riku took a moment to catch his breath and realize what had just happened. He wasn't dead yet. He'd been saved... But why had Sora been neglected by the heartless when they had been so keen on him before back on Destiny Islands?

He didn't have time for further thoughts, for the sound of creaking wood reached his ears. He looked up to see his savior leveling an arrow at him. He surveyed his rescuer with a solemn face. The boy was mounted on a large black horse and wore some sort of ancient bulky clothing armor. A sword was sheathed at his waist, tucked under a sash, and a quiver of arrows was slung over his back. He looked a bit young and small to be a real warrior with his semi-large, pointed dark eyes, slick top-knotted black hair, and tanned skin... 

"You don't look like one of them," the newcomer said in a not-so-feminine voice, his eyes narrowing. "But I know you're not from here."

The large horse whinnied in protest, shifting a hoof in the snow impatiently at its rider.

"Hush, Kahn," the boy said with a sigh, lowering his bow and arrow. A friendly smile curved his lips and he took in the two boys below him with a quick glance. "All right, I'll ask questions later. My camp isn't too far from this town. Do you think you can ride a horse? You can warm up there."

Riku managed a small nod, grateful for this stranger's kindness. He struggled to stand, his knees shaking as he clutched one gloved hand to a wound on his arm. Despite his weakness, however, he managed to face his savior with a small smile. "T-thank you..." he said lightly, violently shivering. "I don't know w-what would have happened if you hadn't helped me..."

The boy's smile fell, noticing Riku's wounds and how weak he was, and that the other boy wasn't even moving at all. "_By the ancestors..._you two are nearly _dead_!" he exclaimed, his voice turning even more feminine. He swung off his saddle and landed in the snow, rushing to their side. "Come on, I'll help you. We'll have to hurry to camp."

"What about the town...? I-isn't there someone who could help us?" Riku asked as his savior began to pull him to the horse. "N-no.. Sora first."

The boy hesitated, but then nodded and reached for Sora. "No, there's no one in town. Everyone evacuated when Shan-Yu and the huns sided with the demons. My group is the only one left to fight them... Li Shang still has hope though." 

"Where are we?" Riku managed to ask quietly.

"A few miles south of the Imperial City," he answered, lifting Sora with some effort. After seeing Riku's confused face, he added, "China."

Once Sora was slung over the horse, their savior motioned for Riku to mount the horse as well. "You'll have to hang on to your friend... Sora. I'll try to hurry Kahn to the camp as best as I can," he said quickly, helping Riku onto the horse. He swung up after him in front of Sora, taking the reins. "Remember, _hold on_. This will be a bit bumpy."

Riku nodded, clinging tightly to Sora and the stranger's back as shudders racked his torn body. "My name is Riku. May I ask yours...?"

His savior frowned as he kicked at the horse's sides and lightly slapped at the reins to get Kahn running. "Fa Mu-" he began, but abruptly cut himself off. As Kahn broke into a gallop, the boy began again, a smile lighting his face. "Fa Ping. My name is Ping."

___________________________________________________________________________________


	8. Ch 8: The Drifting Horizon

_Author's Notes:_

I AM ALIVE!! yay.

Thanks Lane, for dragging me out of my stupor by my hair. Thanks to the rest of you for all the wonderful reviews (over thirty! Yes!) and I'm sorry I didn't sit down and write as soon as I got them.

_A look ahead:_

Enter ancient China. Enter a plan to defeat the Hunny Heartless. Enter snuggling, cuddling and a bit of angsty Sora.

* * *

**_Chapter Eight: The Drifting Horizon_**

-o-o-

Riku woke up shivering, although a whole lot more warmer than he was before. Blinking, his eyes slowly came into focus on the ceiling of a very spacious beige tent. He didn't even remember falling asleep, and he didn't have a clue where he was--only that his whole body ached, like some creature had decided to rake its claws all over him.

Ah, now he remembered.

The snowy street, the empty village, the strange warrior, Sora... and the heartless.

Lifting an arm, he inspected his skin for bruises or scratches, but found the very few that he had were already bandaged. That was also when he noticed that his shirt and gloves were missing. Inspecting the room further, he found a small fire crackling at his feet and a blanket covering his bare chest.

But that wasn't the only thing curled up on his chest.

Sora, wrapped in thick fur pelts (and not much else), was snuggling his nose into Riku's chest, his arms wrapped around his waist in a tight embrace, as if Sora was afraid that he'd melt like snow in his hands. Their legs were intertwined beneath the thick blanket, leaving very little space between the two boys.

Blushing, Riku shifted slightly, but even that was enough to stir Sora out of a restless sleep. He raised his head and looked up at Riku, who raised an ungloved hand to run through Sora's hair, a small reassuring smile touching his lips as he did so.

Sora. He'd fought the heartless back at home. But here, in this strange land, the creatures had gone after Riku instead. Why the change of mind? And what were they anyway? Were they connected to Kairi, and where was _she_?

Sora smiled back, his lips back to their original pinkish color--not the blue tint that had frightened Riku so much. He pulled himself up level to Riku, his hands sliding around the elder boy's neck. Sora leaned up to kiss him, and suddenly Riku winced, noticing that the boy's lips were still freezing cold. He also couldn't help noticing that Sora's close proximity was intoxicating to his senses. He kissed back, trying to warm them up, but he got the feeling someone was watching. As Riku turned to glance around the room, Sora tilted his head to nip at Riku's neck, but paused in the middle of a lick and stared at the pair of almond-shaped eyes that were watching the two of them with a bemused expression.

Wait.

Make that _three_ pairs of eyes. A pair from Ping, a pair from what looked like a rainbow-colored snake, and the last pair from an overly-large cricket.

"Am I... interrupting something?" said the boy in a highly amused tone.

"Ping!" the silver-haired boy cried, blushing furiously, quickly sitting up as Sora tried to hide underneath the blanket. "H-how long have you... How long have we..?"

"You've been asleep a few hours. Captain Li Shang and the rest of the recruits are off scouting." The boy paused there and smiled sheepishly. "I'm not exactly army material, so I was assigned to watch you."

"And we're BORED!" came a very loud, very boisterous voice.

The colorful snake suddenly leapt from Ping's knee and scampered over to Riku, its eyes narrowing as a reprimanding look came over its face. Both boys blinked at the creature, Sora surprised it could speak, Riku meanwhile trying to hide the thrill of discovering such a strange new creature.

They were indeed on a different world!

"Bored, bored, BORED!" it continued, its tail thrashing about as Ping smiled apologetically. "And now that you're awake, you can tell us why we saved your asse--"

"What _is_ it?" Sora interrupted mildly, poking the creature with his forefinger.

"_It_," the snake began angrily, rudely brushing Sora's hand away, "is a dragon! _Dragon_! And how would _you_--" it paused to flick Sora's nose, "-like to be prodded like some sort of animal?"

In the time the dragon had been talking, Ping had gotten up and knelt beside the small makeshift bed where the two boys were resting. As soon as the last word was spoken, Ping grabbed the dragon and laughed softly, embarrassed.

"I'm sorry. Mushu gets carried away sometimes."

There came a small chirp from the cricket on Ping's shoulder.

"All right, most of the time," Ping smiled. "He doesn't know when to keep quiet."

"See how they pick on me?" Mushu said, turning to look at Riku. "I'm so unappreciated. See if I try to help any more. Hmph." And with that, he crossed his arms over his chest and turned his nose into the air with a huff of indignation.

"So..." Ping said, his brow furrowing in concern, "how are the two of you? Feeling better? I was afraid you wouldn't make it... But as soon as I made the fire--" The dragon huffed again, interrupting, and Ping managed a small smile before he continued. "As soon as Mushu made the fire, you seemed perfectly fine... just exhausted."

"I'm feeling better," Sora muttered shyly from over Riku's shoulder. "Just confused..."

"As am I," Ping replied, eyeing the two of them. "Since those creatures had been attacking you, I deducted that you're not on their side, or Shan-Yu's. So who are you?"

"Yes, who are you?" came a new voice.

A shadow fell across the entrance to the tent and suddenly Mushu ducked under the covers near Riku as everyone else turned their eyes to the newcomer. Ping immediately leapt to his feet, a light blush crossing his cheeks.

"Shang--er, Captain, you're back!"

"Yes, Ping, we are all back," the man said nonchalantly, his eyes resting on Sora and Riku. "I see they are awake."

Riku regarded the newcomer emotionlessly.

"Shang" held the air of importance. Regal and warrior-like, he stood proud, his dark eyes no doubt holding the trust of many.

Glancing from Ping to Shang, Riku understood why the young warrior held the captain in such high esteem. Li Shang seemed like the type who, faced with hundreds---maybe even thousands of heartless, wouldn't even break a sweat.

Meanwhile Shang looked Sora over briefly before turning to Riku, his eyes dark and knowing. "I know you have many questions," he said. Even though he spoke quietly, his voice held a certain imposing tone that demanded attention without even asking for it. He turned slowly, his gaze shifting over Ping as he headed for the exit. There he paused, turning slightly to glance at Riku again. "Get dressed. We have much to talk about."

-o-o-

"So you're from another world?" Ping asked, incredulous. He fell silent after Shang gave him a stern look.

For the past hour or so, the two of them and Riku had been strolling around the campsite, past smaller tents and makeshift warriors who watched the young boy with an air of suspicion. Riku, feeling he could trust Shang and Ping, had told them everything he knew about the heartless and the darkness (which wasn't much), and a little bit about his world. He left out his suspicions about Kairi, however, and his relationship with Sora. After all, his love life wasn't vital to these people's war, nor were his vague (and probably wrong) beliefs about Kairi.

"Yes, another world," Riku confirmed.

"How...?" Shang asked softly, mostly to himself.

"But if you are from another world, then these... 'heartless' probably are too," Ping pitched in. "And maybe the way to kill them also derives from another world, which is why we have not been very successful so far--our weapons are too primitive."

"Ping."

Ping hesitated in mid-step at Shang's suddenly sharp tone. "Sir?"

Shang turned to look at him, a small smile stretching over his lips. "I think you right." Pausing, he glanced over at Riku, who nodded in agreement. "It seems Riku also agrees. Since our weapons are useless, what do you suggest?"

"I wouldn't say they're entirely useless. When Ping rescued us, his arrows were pretty handy..." Riku said.

"But they are _changing_," Ping broke in, his voice concerned. "One of the other soldiers said he came across one with armor, and that his arrows wouldn't even pierce it. Shang, you told me that you were attacked by one so small and fast, you couldn't even sight him with your arrow."

"Mm..." Riku agreed. "All in the past few hours. Who knows what will happen next."

"In any case," said Shang sternly as the three of them came to a halt before the main tent, "it seems our weapons will not be enough to overcome these creatures that have sided with Shan-Yu and the Huns. A plan is what we need, and quickly, before the Imperial City falls and all of China is overrun."

"A plan?" Riku asked, his brow furrowing. "How can we formulate a plan? The heartless pop out of the ground! We don't know when or where they'll strike. They're so unpredictable."

Something in Ping's eyes flickered just then. "That's not true!" he suddenly cut in with a lit smile. "They're after you and Sora, right?"

"Well, we do not know that for sure..." Shang began, but then he hesitated with a nod. "But if we can somehow set up a trap, and make sure the creatures follow you..."

"Are you implying that we should be used as bait to lure the heartless here?" Riku asked cautiously, eyeing the other two men carefully. "Even if they followed us, what kind of trap would you set to make sure you kill all of them?"

"I don't think we _can_ kill them all. They're demons," Ping replied simply. "But maybe there is some way to keep them from 'popping out of the ground' as you said. First we need to defeat Shan-Yu's army. The heartless we can deal with later. We just need to outsmart them, and that shouldn't be too hard." He paused, turning to Shang. "Captain. What techniques have been successful against the creatures so far?"

"Regular arrows work on the smaller ones if you can target them long enough. The weak spots for the large ones are their backs. But we don't have enough artillery and manpower to take on an army of Huns and the heartless at the same time."

Ping looked at Riku hopefully. "Maybe some trick?"

The silver-haired boy looked from Ping to Shang, his green eyes narrowing in concentration. He could feel his brow furrowing as the wheels in his head slowly began turning, putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

A trick... Evolving heartless, some large, some small, some coated in armor, some weak yet fast. Successful techniques: arrows, weak spots are their backs. A trap. Sora and himself as bait. Target them... An army of demons... Probable death. The world overrun. No effective weapons. Too many of them....

Shivering, Riku thought back to a few hours ago when he had awoken from that eerie dream about Sora. Sora. With dark wings. A grassy plateau surrounded by water and butterflies. A glaring sun, searing into his consciousness as he fell to the waves below. The sky clouded with black feathers. Dark feathers. Darkness.

The cold darkness. The heartless. The voice. The Huns and Shan-Yu. China. Ping and Shang and the other warriors.

And Sora.

Sora, with his bright goofy smile. Sora, in his hooded jacket and silly burning-red overalls.

Wait.

Burning?

That's it.

"Fire."

Riku's voice cut through the silence like a knife through ash. Ping and Li Shang watched him, waiting for him to continue. "Fire is the key," he said, his voice rising as he gained confidence. A smile found its way onto his face. "The heartless are changing to better adapt themselves in this cold environment, right? By now they should be pretty well suited for the weather. But what if we suddenly change their surroundings?"

By now he was getting excited, his face bright and eager to explain. He spoke passionately, Ping and Shang's stares only fueling his fever more. He didn't, however, notice Sora standing at the foot of the tent, watching and listening to them. No, he didn't notice Sora at all. Or the boy's air of sadness, stemmed from being left out of the adventure.

"They're after me, right? I can lead the Huns and the heartless into a fiery trap," Riku continued, kneeling down in the snow to draw out his plan with a stick. It felt like old times, when he and Sora would come up with plans to beat Tidus and Wakka in a small game of War. It felt like old times, when he would always draw out his ideas with a stick in the sand, Sora intently watching on.

Only this time it was real, and Sora had no part in it.

"We need a valley or something surrounded by tall cliffs," Riku said as he dragged the stick through the snow, drawing a miniature cliff and a valley below it with stacks of wood and brush on the sides. "The area will be surrounded by dry lumber or cloth--anything flammable that will produce smoke and fire," he said, pausing to draw a mini-Riku luring an army of heartless into the valley. "I will draw the enemy into the trap. Your troops will be stationed on top the cliffs with flaming arrows to set the brush afire and surround the enemy in flames." Here he paused to draw a large flame rising from the valley. "If the smoke doesn't kill them first, the fire will. Also, your troops will have the chance to pelt flaming arrows at the Huns and heartless from above, killing them quicker. Of course your men will be protected with cloths around their faces so they won't inhale too much smoke. And someone will have to lower a rope or something for me to climb up to escape."

At that, he rose to his feet and triumphantly tossed the stick back down, the smile still on his face.

This is what he had craved for so long while cooped up on Destiny Islands. Adventure. Planning wars. Having people listen to his ideas. Being a part of something greater, more important. Like saving the world.

And as Shang and Ping exchanged equally satisfied looks, they knew.

The three of them quickly drew the plan out again, working out a few of the flaws, and where and how to set it up. Then they scheduled to set it up as soon as possible. When they finished, the plan was figured to be ready by tomorrow. Shang excused Riku and left with Ping to gather his troops and brief them on the plan.

But when Riku finally entered the tent, Sora was asleep, an awake and wary Mushu curled up in the crook of his neck. The silver-haired boy paused at the entrance, his earlier excitement quickly beaten out of him by Guilt when he saw the younger boy buried beneath all the fur pelts, looking utterly lonely and abandoned.

Mushu watched Riku cross the room and slump into a stack of other pelts. After a moment of silence the dragon decided to gently rise and scamper over to the awake human, settling proudly on the boy's panted knee.

"Fire, eh?" it laughed lightly. "That's my element, y'know. That's some plan you came up with."

Riku managed a small smile.

Mushu, noticing Riku's suddenly depressed mood, sighed, deciding to cut to the chase. "Sora there was really proud of you. But, although he didn't say anything to me--and I'm sure you're aware of it now--he felt really left out. He watched you from the tent the couple of hours you were gone."

"Did he...?" Riku said, his eyes turning to Sora's sleeping form.

"He feels inferior," Mushu said, suddenly serious. "We had a chance to talk today--great kid, really--and he told me about you two. He feels inferior. He doesn't understand why big-shot Captain Li Shang didn't ask him to come with you when you guys left. Depressing, if you ask me. Especially when you didn't say anything about it. You acted alone, when he thought the two of you were in this together."

That was then, truly, when Riku realized what he had done. What they had done, when they had shared the paopu fruit and exchanged kisses.

There was no "I" anymore.

He couldn't leave Sora out of anything, there couldn't be any secrets between them. The further and farther away they were from each other, the more painful it would be, whatever **_it_** was.

Love, maybe. Living. Even breathing.

Reaching a hand out, Riku patted the dragon on the head. "Thanks, Mushu," he smiled, and the red dragon beamed with pride.

Within the next minute Riku was curled up next to Sora under the pelts, holding the younger boy in a warm solace. Here was where he belonged, at Sora's side, arms wrapped around each other. Whether on Destiny Island, in foreign lands, or even in dreams...

They needed each other.

Riku smiled, sleep threatening to claim his tired body, when he felt a cold hand brush against his cheek. He winced, slowly raising his head to find Sora's haunting blue eyes watching him. They remained that way for a while, lost within their own gazes, not sure what to say, think or do, and after what seemed like only seconds (but was probably long minutes), Sora brushed his cold hand over Riku's cheek again and spoke.

"I overheard your plan."

Sliding his warm hand up to Sora's own cheek, Riku caressed the boy's skin, letting him lean into his touch and nuzzle his cold nose into his palm. Sora welcomed Riku's body heat with a content sigh, pulling closer to his boyfriend.

"I know you did," Riku hushed softly. "I know everything, Sora. I won't leave you alone again."

Sora froze momentarily, either surprised at Riku's words, or infinitely relieved. But then he lowered his head and buried his face into the other boy's neck, shivering.

"Thanks, Riku..."

"I don't need words of gratitude. You know I love you"

Sora smiled against Riku's neck before he slid his hands around the older boy's waist, his fingers dipping under the skin-tight shirt to lightly brush against the warm skin.

"Mm.. Jeez, your hands are freezing," Riku commented, shying away from the cold touch with a small laugh.

The smile on Sora's face suddenly turned mischievous. "Oh?" he mouthed, wiggling closer to the other boy. "Why don't you warm them up then, Ri-ku?" Sora teased, playing with the syllables of Riku's name as his cold hands trailed an agonizingly slow path down into Riku's pants, who immediately turned an interesting shade of pink.

Riku tried to pull away from his soon-to-be-lover, but Sora, not letting another chance slip away, rolled over and put Riku underneath him.

"What's wrong, Ri-ku?" Sora smirked. "There's no Kairi, no parents, no terribly hungry tummies to get between us now. Oh, wait. I know what's wrong..." Sora paused there, leaning down to brush his lips over Riku's before nipping at his earlobe. Then, as Riku squirmed beneath him, the younger boy purred, "You don't want to be on the bottom your first time, right?"

"S-Sora!" Riku managed to cry before the brown-haired boy pinned him down, a wide grin on his face.

"All right. Then promise me," Sora said, softly kissing his boyfriend. "After we win this war, we'll do it. But if you get in trouble and I have to save you, I get to be on top."

Riku sighed in relief. Silently he was jesting, positive that there was no scenario in which Sora could save him. "All right. Deal."

Sora stuck his lip out in a pout. "Promise?"

Something about that hesitant question nagged at Riku. But he said it anyway. "I promise. Now could you remove your freezing hands from my pants?"

Sora did, and then proceeded in snuggling into his Riku, a content little smirk on his face.

-o-o-

* * *

Again, I'm terribly sorry that this took over a month to write. I got sidetracked. Several times. And I couldn't even find my copy of Mulan to inspire myself!! Anyway, I'll hurry with chapter nine... 


	9. Ch 9: Hints of Seclusion

_Author's Notes:_

Look, it didn't take me a month this time!

Many many thanks to those who reviewed. And an extra special thankies to those who have reviewed more than twice! I'm thrilled that I have so many returning readers who take a minute or two more out of their time to review. It really makes a difference to me. I'm extremely proud and very excited about where this story is going, and I'm even happier knowing how much you guys love it. Anyway... Just wait until the next few chapters when everything starts happening.

_A look ahead:_

Shang asks for help and Ping has a secret. What's this? More weird voices? And IT finally appears..

* * *

**_Chapter Nine: Hints of Seclusion_**

-o-o-

Riku was already awake when he heard the footsteps just outside their small tent.

Captain Li Shang had asked some of his troops to set up a tent for just Sora and Riku, so that they wouldn't be bothered. After all, they had been staying in the captain's tent all day (which would explain why it had been so large compared to everyone else's, and why it had so many comfortable fur pelts), and, well, the captain needed somewhere to sleep. Right?

So they had politely moved to their new tent (taking a few of those warm fur pelts with them, since they didn't have any of their own--heck, they didn't even have warm clothes! Sora even had to borrow boots from a polite soldier, his shoes having been lost in the snow when Ping had first saved him and Riku), stationed right next to Ping's. This proved to be a problem, as Mushu would take it upon himself to check up on them every few minutes or so and see if they were comfortable or needed anything.

The dragon was teasing them, Riku knew. The whole camp knew the two boys from another world were a couple. It didn't bother anyone--not like it would have in their own world. People here seemed to be more lenient. Open-minded.

Or maybe it was just that. Maybe they were all being kind to him and Sora because they _were_ from another world.

Oh well. Why did it matter? They were safe here for now, and they would be even safer when this Hun army was defeated and the heartless were gone. If they _could_ die.

This was why Riku was awake. He was still piecing together all that he knew, hoping to come up a theory or something. Something to help him understand the heartless and what they were, where they came from, what they wanted...

The footsteps came to a stop at the entrance of their tent. Riku, not wanting to wake Sora if it wasn't necessary, didn't say anything to the newcomer. He simply waited for the person to make himself known.

He didn't have to wait long. Even through the shadows of the night, Riku recognized Ping as he peeked his head into the tent and, seeing that Riku was awake, smiled.

"All is set for tomorrow morning," he said, keeping his voice low so as not to wake Sora up.

But, as it turned out, Sora was already awake. The boy lifted his head at Ping's voice and blinked sleepily at the young warrior. "Mm... Ping? I was wondering... Where will I be during all of this?"

"Ah... That's one of the reasons I came here," Ping admitted. "You can't stay at camp because no one will be here to protect you, and you can't go with Riku be--"

"Yes I can!" Sora suddenly cut in, his slugabed ways magically forgotten, his brow furrowing as he sat up to defend himself. "Riku and I are the same! He's as lost as I am and I'm in as much trouble as he is. We're in the same war. I want to go with Riku!"

Riku placed a hand on the boy's shoulder in an effort to assuage his temper. With a sigh he began, "Sora... The heartless are after _me_ now, not you. I don't want you to put yourself in danger when you have a choice not to be."

Sora's back stiffened, his eyes narrowing in anger. "Don't treat me like a child," he muttered. "I can make my own decisions."

"Sora, I said I would protect you, didn't I?" Riku said, tightening his hold on the boy's shoulder. "How can I protect you in a situation like that?"

"Well, who's going to protect _you_, Riku?!" Sora demanded, lifting his head.

His eyes were watering.

Riku hesitated, unsure of what to say as he stared into those watery blue eyes.

"I..."

"You just don't want me to save you, because then you have to be on bottom the first time!" Sora choked out, sniffling.

Riku immediately blushed. "That's not true! I just don't want you to get hurt!"

"It's true! You want me as far away from you as possible...!"

"I do not!"

"Yes you do!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No! Sora, you're acting like a child!"

Sora opened his mouth to counter Riku's words, but paused, letting them sink in. Riku was right, and anything Sora said would just be proving it further. Flushing with humiliation, Sora lowered his head, forcing back the tears.

"Sora," Riku sighed, pulling the boy closer to him. He lifted Sora's chin with his hand so that, even though he could look away, he was still facing Riku. "Sora, this isn't a game or a competition. Either of us could die out there tomorrow. Die. Then what would happen? What would our bond have meant? I'm not protecting you to make you feel inferior, Sora. I'm doing it so when this is all over, I'll still be alive so that I _can_ be on bottom, you goof."

"Ah, I don't mean to interrupt," Ping cut in softly, an awkward smile on his face, "but I was going to suggest that Sora can stay with the rest of the troops as a sniper. He'd just have to learn how to use a bow and arrow... He'd have plenty of protection there."

Riku, who had intently listened to Ping, now cast a glance at Sora, who had a blank expression on his face.

"Well," the boy began quietly, no longer on the verge of tears, "where would I learn to use a weapon like that before tomorrow morning...?"

At this, Ping smiled widely. "It's still early in the evening! We have all night!" he said cheerfully, grabbing Sora's wrist and tugging him to his feet, out of the tent.

Sora stumbled to keep his balance, opening his mouth to complain, when a familiar voice cut him off.

"Fa Ping!" Captain Li Shang came hurrying up to the tent, but when he saw Ping and Sora nearly hand-in-hand, a look of relief washed over him. "Oh, wonderful. I understand you're going to help train Sora?" he asked, managing a grateful smile.

"Already on it, Captain!" Ping beamed, jerking a confused and slightly annoyed Sora along behind him as they headed deeper into the campsite.

And as soon as the two boys had disappeared, Shang turned his attention to Riku. "I know you have helped us with the heartless and Huns, Riku..." he began, some-what hesitant. He lowered his gaze momentarily before lifting his eyes to meet Riku's again, and then continued with an air of embarrassment. "And I feel below myself telling you this, but I need your help again."

Something about the tone of the captain's voice caught Riku's attention. It was very unlike the man (or for a captain) to hold such an embarrassed voice, and it intrigued him--certainly Shang's problem wasn't so embarrassing that it would show so clearly through the mask he usually wore in front of people.

Riku carefully eyed him, trying to guess the problem. "Help for a captain," he asked quietly, "or help for a man?" He'd drawn the conclusion that Shang probably didn't want to ask for any more military techniques from someone as inexperienced as Riku; it tainted his reputation as a reliable captain, after all.

"For a man," Shang replied as he took a seat near Riku.

Riku managed a haughty smirk. "I must be something if someone as dignified as you asks for my help all flustered like that."

"Do not get too excited," Shang sighed. "It is a topic that may embarrass even you."

"Well, I don't know... Lately, the only thing that can embarrass me is Sora..." Riku said slowly, thinking about how that boy always wanted to "be on top."

"Exactly."

"I mean, he has no shame. Sora really likes to---" Riku began with a smile, but stopped, Shang's one word ringing in his ears. "What? What 'exactly'?"

"You and Sora. You two are lovers, am I right?"

Riku blinked a few times, trying to figure out why Shang, of all people, who held such a high rank for a very good reason, would be asking Riku about his love life.

"Uh.. Erm... Yes. Well, not yet. We're just... a couple," Riku stammered, trying not to feel awkward. He would _not_ blush in front of Shang. He would _not_ blush!

"How did you confess your love to him?"

"A-Actually... Sora beat me to it," Riku admitted, feeling his face redden (he blushed!).

Shang looked taken aback at Riku's answer--obviously he had assumed Riku was the dominant one in his and Sora's relationship. Oh, if only he knew the truth.

But Riku blinked again, curious. "But why do you want to know about me and Sora...?" he asked, and Shang suddenly looked even more flustered.

That's when it hit him.

"You have a thing for Ping!" Riku laughed. "And you want to confess your love!"

Shang narrowed his eyes. "I find nothing funny about it. If my father were still alive, he would have forbidden me to even think such thoughts. He would have put me straight and told me to seek out the most beautiful woman in China so that I could have a son and continue the Li bloodline." He paused here, fighting some internal demon, and when he continued, he voice held no emotion. "But my father died the day before you appeared. He died in battle against the Huns, and my troops and I came across their battlefield. All of my father's soldiers were dead." He hesitated, watching Riku carefully. When he spoke again, it was meaningful. "Ping and the rest of my troops are the last hope for China. If your plan does not work tomorrow, then our empire falls. Understand? There is no room in my life for an unrequited love. Yes, I 'have a thing' for Ping. But I need advice on whether or not I should tell him."

And for the first time in Riku's life, the situation was out of his control.

He had never felt so lost in his life.

Not even when he and Sora had played on the beach and had begun to cross the line over to lovers.... Even then, Riku had every chance to take control of Sora. Not even when the heartless had invaded his home and Sora had been apprehensive about joining Riku.... Even then, Riku could have just grabbed Sora's hand. Not even when he and Sora had found themselves in this new strange world and were nearly slaughtered by the heartless... Even then, Riku had had the power to protect Sora, even if it had cost him his life. But now... He was in the middle of a war. If his plan didn't work, they were all dead. There was no way he could control this situation. He couldn't defeat the heartless or the Huns. He was just... Riku. Riku from Destiny Islands.

He was just some kid tossed into the middle of it all.

After a (very) long moment of silence between them, Riku finally gathered his thoughts and was about to answer when a cry went up through camp.

It sounded like they were being attacked.

Alarmed, Shang sprung to his feet and burst out of the tent, turning his gaze here and there searching for the source of the cry. Riku was right behind him, momentarily forgetting his helplessness. Sora came running in a panic-stricken frenzy, a few of the troops at his heels as he came to a stop in front of the tent, nearly out of breath.

"Ping, he's-"

"Is it the heartless?" Shang demanded, just as Riku was asking,

"Are they after you again, Sora?"

Sora chose to answer Riku first. "N-no..! They were just heartless scouts! But Ping protected me when they attacked! And he's hurt now...! I don't know how badly. But there will probably be more coming... it's like they were searching for something."

"Where is he? Ping?"

Sora pointed in the direction he had come from. Shang immediately took off into a sprint in the direction as Riku grabbed hold of Sora's hand before he followed. There was no pool of blood or dirty entrails. It was just Ping sitting there in the snow, his tunic stained red in the torso area. He was waiting for them to show up, one hand clutched to his wound and his face slightly pale from the pain.

"Scouts," he weakly tried to explain as he saw Shang run up. "Two of them."

"Never mind that!" the captain said as he knelt beside Ping, who uneasily edged away from him as Shang reached for his chest. "Let me see your wound!"

Ping turned away, turning a scarlet red and nearly shrieking as he exclaimed, "No! I can dress it myself!"

But Shang was too fast. The captain pulled Ping to himself and pulled open his tunic.

Er...

_Her_ tunic.

Everyone gaped. It seemed only Sora still had the state of mind to speak.

"Ping has boobs!" he cried, blatantly appalled at this revelation.

Shang practically leapt to his feet, quickly removing his hands as if he had been burned. The look on his face was one of complete awe. In fact, Riku wasn't sure if Shang was in a pleased awe that he had found out his love was actually a woman, or that he was in a degrading kind of awe that he had actually thought he had loved a man, or that he was in the sort of awe that comes when a man realizes his love had been keeping a gender-changing secret from him, or the kind of awe that comes when a person knows what is supposed to happen next, and fears it.

In fact, it was all four.

"Ping?" Riku managed to utter before the boy-turned-girl struggled to her feet and shakily clutched the sides of her tunic together.

"M-my name is Mulan," she began, her voice soft and afraid. She hesitated, looking from the angry Shang to the dumbfounded Riku and Sora to the rest of the troops, who had gathered around. Forcing herself to be strong and keep her voice steady, she continued, "My name is Fa Mulan. I cut my hair and stole my father's armor and sword to fight in his stead because he's too sick and old to fight. I knew he wouldn't have survived, so I became a man to save him..."

"You're no man," Shang nearly spat, turning on his heel and storming off to his tent with a righteous intent.

He was going to get his sword, Riku realized. To kill Ping.

But Sora beat him to it. The boy broke off into a run after the captain, calling out for him to wait. Riku didn't waste any time in following.

"Shang, you said you had feelings for him!" Riku cried. "You can't really intend to kill her now!"

"It's the law!" Shang called back, his step unfaltering. "And punishment is death!"

But when Shang reached his tent, Mulan's punishment was forgotten, for another cry had come up from the camp.

Attack. The heartless were attacking.

Riku didn't know how or when, but he was suddenly surrounded by them. But unlike the last two times he had encountered the creatures, they ... different. Ping/Mulan had been right.

They were evolving.

One especially large bloated one was throwing itself onto tents in an attempt to hurt some of the troops, but the soldiers were already aiming for its back where there was no armor. Then there were countless tiny ones, all of the color blue, that were zipping to and fro through the air like birds without wings, occasionally pausing to toss frozen crystals at their targets. Of course there were also the regular kind of heartless--the primate-shaped ones with no patterns that Riku had first seen in his world--but the ones that took him by surprise were the ones surrounding him now. They wore a sort of white mask with slanted red eyes and gaping mouths to go with their wickedly curved brown horns atop their heads, and on their bodies was the sort of armor Riku had seen some of the troops wear--primitive, yet distinct of their culture.

Were the heartless also trying to adapt to the human's style? Why else would they dress the same and mock their culture?

He watched them dancing around him, their claws wiggling excitedly as they watched him in turn, waiting for him to make the first move. But he was weaponless, and certainly not stupid enough to attack them with his bare hands. However, if he had to, he'd do it to protect Sora.

The thing was, there was no need to protect Sora. The boy was standing outside the circle of heartless, seemingly invisible to them, for their eyes were solely focused on Riku.

Granted, many of the other heartless were keeping Shang's troops busy, but none of them wanted Sora. And these... These wanted Riku, but made no move to grab him.

Sora was as confused as he was, but much more frightened, even though the creatures had no need for him. Or maybe that was one of the reasons he was afraid in the first place.

And as if by an imaginary cue, the heartless sprung forward, talons raised to rip him apart.

Time slowed. The sounds of battle faded.

Riku saw Sora open his mouth and call his name, but it was like watching it through a dream. He watched as the heartless advanced upon him at a crawling pace, their feet sinking into the snow with each sluggish step, their beady eyes eerily watching him. He watched the battle in the background between the other heartless and the soldiers--arrows drifting towards their targets, swords being slowly sunk into their victims, Mulan painfully wielding her sword in slow motion, and Shang standing beside her, own sword in hand and protecting her at his own slow pace.

Riku saw all of this and wasn't afraid.

_Light or dark. You had the choice. You have the key._

No. He wouldn't be afraid. Never.

_Embrace the power, keyblade master._

This was just the beginning, after all.

_Take your weapon. You have it..._

He had to begin his fight.

_Call it to yourself and fight._

Even if Sora didn't need protecting, he had to fight.

_Protect them. Use it._

He had to.

_The keyblade..._

Riku felt his hands wrapping around an invisible weapon and suddenly he turned to face his enemy, letting out a cry so angry, he intimidated even himself. He swung forward with his imaginary weapon as time returned to normal and the heartless finally reached him. Something struck the creature nearest him and it suddenly dissipated into nothingness.

Surprised, he turned his glance to his hands to see how he had destroyed the creature. In his grasp was a giant key, plainly visible and very much real. He had just pulled a weapon from thin air, and it had easily cleaved into his enemy. Slowly, a wicked little smirk crossed over Riku's face.

So, he hadn't lost control of the situation after all.

The other heartless hesitated, weighing their options at this new power. They turned to look at one another as though looking for approval.

_Keyblade..._He has the keyblade!_Master wants his heart._Take his heart!_No, the keyblade._Too risky._Yes, too risky._But we need his heart._Yummy, juicy heart._Yes, let's take his heart._Master wants his heart._

Wait... They were talking to each other? Why could he hear them now? Just what kind of powers did this keyblade hold anyway?

Riku swung it again to test it, and the heartless suddenly shrunk back with fear.

_Take his heart!_No!_Keyblade!_But what about Master?!_Yes, we cannot disobey Master..._

The heartless lunged forward again and Riku, bringing his sword fighting skills in from practicing with Sora all those years, easily ducked in between the clumsy creatures and his weapon beautifully sliced into each of them. The last one tried to flee, crying out for its "Master," but Riku casually brought the blade up before jerking his arm forward, letting it fly from his hand towards the creature. The keyblade pierced through the heartless before gracefully swooping in an arc back towards Riku, who caught it with an impressed smile.

Sora immediately came running up, Mushu now perched on his shoulder, widely smiling.

"Riku!!"

Riku turned toward his boyfriend, expertly twirling the keyblade and resting it on his shoulder in a stylish pose he knew looked good. All he needed was a theme song and sexy outfit and he'd be set for eradicating the worlds of heartless.

Oh yes.

He was good, and he knew it.

"What's up?" he said, smiling warmly at Sora.

"_What's up?!_" Sora echoed, his blue eyes widening. "You just kicked those heartless' asses!"

"Yup."

Mushu narrowed his eyes. "Is he always this full of himself?"

Sora threw his arms around him and laughed, clinging tightly to him. "I don't know why I put up with you, Riku! You're so reckless and stupid sometimes! But you always come out in the end as calm as you went in!"

"It's one of the many reasons you love me, right?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at the boy.

Sora was quickly thinking up a comeback when the ground beneath their feet suddenly shook with a terrible force, nearly sending both of them tumbling onto the ground. Even Mushu had to cling to his dear life.

"What the hell...?"

There came terrified screams from the direction of the other battle that were quickly deafened by a fiendish roar that sounded like it had come from something of mammoth size. Sora and Riku exchanged looks before they simultaneously jogged towards the source of the sound and earthquake.

It was a dragon, and it was the size of three paopu islands lined side-by-side with its long, wide body, squashed snout, four legs as thick as five people huddled together, and long sweeping tail. Aside from its magnitude, it was quite beautiful, with rubies and orange sapphires as scales that covered nearly its entire body, which glistened under the watch of the moon and flicker of the torches carried by some of the warriors. From its spine to the tip of its tail ran burgandy fur, and from its snout came a long mustache that dragged along the ground as it walked, each step sending a tremor throughout the camp grounds. Atop its head was a mop of fur that hung over two curled ears and a set of wise amber eyes, and, to embellish it to the fullest, one large yellow gem was pressed to its forehead, creating the illusion that the beast had three eyes. However, unlike the dragons Riku had studied as a child from reading lore and mythology, this dragon had no wings.

"Cousin of yours, Mushu?" Riku asked, managing a grin.

The small dragon snorted and crossed his arms. "Pfft. Nothing _that_ ugly runs in my family. Though... It does sort of look like my aunt Chow Mein from the Feng family."

"Great. I can kill it then?"

"Let me help!" Sora suddenly cried, his blue eyes wide with ambition. Confidence. "I can fight too, Riku!"

"Sora, that thing is _huge_. And you don't have a weapon!"

"But--!"

But before Sora had even finished his rebuttal, Riku had ducked into the crowd of soldiers surrounding the dragon, trying to subdue it without getting killed themselves. The dragon, however, wasn't enjoying being prodded at with spears and torches, and had decided to start swiping at some of the humans with its scarlet talons. The soldiers being targeted stood their grounds, not wanting to be known as a coward and abandoning their country, and were knocked aside like rag dolls as the dragon advanced into the camp, lifting one large talon-ending paw which easily crushed a tent as it came down.

What did the beast want? It seemed it wasn't here for a fight, since it was mostly taking a defensive sort of strategy. If Riku some how figured out why it was there--if it was connected with the heartless and cold darkness--perhaps he could think of some way to get rid of it.

The dragon continued forward at a steady pace, swatting soldiers aside. When the first six or so men fell and then cowered away, the rest took the hint and got out of the beast's way, creating a path for it. At the end of that path was Riku, who had his keyblade grasped in both hands, his knuckles white from clutching it so tightly from excitement.

This was it. What he had always dreamed about.

Real battle, not the games he had played back at home. Here there was actual danger, with not just his pride on the line, but his life as well. He could smell the torch smoke in the air, feel the bitter cold of the air brushing against the bare skin of his arms and face, hear the hush of the crowd as the dragon came to a stop before him, its head tilted as it sniffed the air around Riku. He could even taste the nervousness in the air around him, created by all of the fallen and gutless soldiers.

This was battle. And he was the hero.

The dragon narrowed its eyes upon Riku as it recognized the weapon in his hand. It drew back shortly, opening its maw to take a rattling breath as it hissed, "_Keyblade Master...._" It hadn't actually said anything understandable, but Riku, who held the keyblade in front of him, had heard it quite clearly. His weapon sung to him, speaking of battles of the past and warning him of the dangers facing him now. Of the darkness. And betrayal. But he wasn't listening as intently as he should have been, his attention completely on the dragon, anticipating attack.

"Riku!"

"Don't!!"

Mulan and Shang's voices came from the crowd somewhere, momentarily hindering his thoughts.

"It's after me! They're all after me!" Riku yelled, his voice even and unafraid. "Just make sure Sora's safe!"

"Don't be stupid, kid! You'll get killed!"

Mushu.

Riku shook the last statement aside and leapt at the dragon, widely swinging his keyblade at its torso. The sound of metal on rock bit the silence in the air, and the blade bounced off the scales of the dragon, leaving not even a dent.

_"Let me help! I can fight too, Riku!"_ came Sora's voice, only it hadn't been spoken aloud. Riku's thoughts were surfacing, clouding his mind as he gripped the keyblade tighter.

How could his new weapon be so useless now?!

Growling, Riku swung again, this time at an upward angle in hope of catching a weak spot under the dragon's leg. It struck, and the dragon howled, lifting a paw to rip Riku open. The boy easily ducked, letting the talons pass harmlessly over his head, sweeping his hair aside from its momentum.

_"You're so reckless and stupid sometimes, but you always come out in the end."_ Sora's voice, so full of love for him. For Riku. So relieved.

The silver-haired boy let out a small breath of relief. Those claws could have separated his head from his body. However, he didn't have time to contemplate what that would have felt like, for the dragon attacked again, this time trying to squash Riku with a giant paw.

Riku brought his arms forward and fell into a roll, the paw striking the snow behind him and he came back to his feet and found himself under the dragon. His limbs felt stiff from the cold, but the dragon seemed completely unaffected, just like the heartless had been.

This beast had to have _some_ sort of weakness!

He grit his teeth and jerked the keyblade up into the beast's belly.

_"Don't treat me like a child."_ Sora's voice, so full of hurt and the feeling of inferiority.

Unfortunately, it again bounced right off, leaving Riku momentarily off-balance as the dragon shifted around to uncover Riku's hiding spot. It brought its head around and narrowed its amber eyes, glaring at the human boy with a hint of a smirk on its face, as if to mock his feeble attempts at slaying it.

That's when he saw it. The jewel on the creature's forehead. He'd forgotten about it... Was that the key to winning the battle?

Riku shifted his feet in the snow to prepare for a lunge at the dragon's jewel, but, much to his surprise, the dragon lunged at him instead, its wide mouth splitting open to reveal its yellow teeth.

But it was too late! Riku stopped himself at the last second and tried to leap aside, one of his legs ending up trying to spring forward as his other leg decided to flee in a different direction. The end result? Riku fell onto his back, making a soft fwumph in the snow, the dragon's maw descending on him. Panicking, he raised the keyblade...

_"Who's going to protect **you**, Riku?"_ Sora's voice, so worried and tinged with his innocence.

...and an arrow shot past his head, striking the dragon on the roof of its mouth. It cringed at the sudden pain and whimpered, and its mouth close on reflex, causing the arrow to further dig into its flesh.

As the dragon was contending with the arrow in its mouth, Riku took the opportunity to climb back to his feet, keyblade in hand. The beast saw him and growled, bringing its tail around to strike him. The boy held the keyblade in front of him to block the blow, knowing full well he'd get knocked back into the snow from the strength of the dragon.

But he never did.

The tail struck the blade and, well, bounced off, as though the blade had been the one striking the dragon's scales, and Riku didn't even feel the force behind the blow.

With this new revelation, Riku ran for the dragon's side.

_"Riku and I are the same!"_ Sora's voice, so full of determination and purpose. So perseverant until the very end.

Riku grabbed onto the fur dangling from the dragon's back and used it to climb, his large shoes scraping against the jeweled scales of the dragon's hide. The creature began to thrash about, feeling the human on his back, becoming angered at being outsmarted. But Riku held on, slowly working his way up the dragon's spine towards its head, careful not to drop his weapon.

By the time Riku reached the dragon's ears and used them to keep himself steady, the beast was furious and wildly shook its head like a wet dog, or a cat with an ear problem. His heart was pounding in his chest, and his gloves were sticking to his hands with sweat even though he was freezing, but he didn't care.

As soon as the dragon paused a moment to orient itself, Riku slid onto the monster's snout, wrapping his legs around it and staring it in the eyes. He hesitated with a smile, and then immediately plunged the keyblade into the dragon's jewel with all of his strength.

The blade sank into it and this time the dragon shrieked in pain, jerking its head around. Riku was thrown off the dragon, his hand letting the keyblade go as he fell towards the ground far below. The white snow cushioned his fall somewhat, but the landing was still hard, the impact sending jolts of searing pain throughout his cold body.

And when Riku glanced up, the dragon was frozen, like an ice sculpture, its head rested on the snow and mouth open in a soundless scream. The keyblade was no longer protruding from its forehead--no, it was back in Riku's hands, appearing there like magic whenever he called for it. He took a moment to admire its beauty, noticing not even a dent on it from the fight. He was still sitting there in the snow when Sora came running up, the troops a little more uneasy and cautiously walking up to the dragon.

"Riku!" Sora cried, tackling him in an enthusiastic hug, a wide smile plastered onto his face. Mushu, too, was smiling at him, hidden in the creases of the hood of Sora's jacket. "You did it!! You beat the dragon!! Everyone was really doubtful, but I knew you would win!"

"But the heartless will keep coming, right?" Riku asked, managing a small smile at Sora's enthusiasm. "Just because I beat some heartless dragon doesn't mean the fight is over."

As though by answer, there came a small gasp from the crowd around the dragon. Riku's head snapped in that direction, expecting maybe the dragon to come back alive and eat all of them. But instead, a small dark keyhole had appeared where the jewel had been, right there in the middle of the dragon's forehead.

Keyhole. Like the one in the secret place at home. Keyhole. As in keyblade?

Riku shakily got to his feet, Sora letting him and Mushu staring after him, and both boys then trudged up to the dragon's head, which had frozen laying on the snow at about their height, conveniently. The soldiers around him began whispering to each other, confused at this turn of events.

"I think this will keep the heartless out of your world," Riku said softly, his brow furrowing at the keyhole. Was he supposed to stick the blade into it? Or do something else? "But it's not the end, is it? The war's not over. You guys still have to beat the Huns."

Without further ado, Riku extended his arm and turned the keyblade towards the hole. He felt the keyblade's song fill him again, whispering tales of the darkness and humming warnings to him. He'd heard them before, when he had faced the dragon, before either of them had attacked. And, before he knew what had happened, a small light escaped into the keyhole and there came the reassuring click of a lock closing.

Being sealed.

With a swirl of colorful lights and air, and a shimmering sound, the dragon's frozen form dissipated into the cold, bitter air, leaving just a clearing of white snow in its place. Riku stepped back, letting the keyblade disappear from his grasp, knowing it would return if he needed it. Sora stepped up to stand beside him.

"Y'know, Riku, you won against the dragon..." the boy said, a strange smile on his face, "but you lost the bet."

Riku blinked, turning towards the boy. "What?"

"Remember that arrow that hit the dragon's mouth when it was about to eat you...?" Sora asked. "Well, Mulan did teach me how to shoot before the scouts appeared an hour or so ago, and I had been aiming at the yellow thing on the dragon's forehead... But I did save your life."

Riku blanched, realizing what this meant. Sora had saved his life. Sora got to be on top!

The battle for domination was over. Riku had lost.

Riku managed a twitchy smile and opened his mouth to accept his defeat, when...

"S-Sora...!! Riku! Move! Get out of there!" Mulan suddenly cried, breaking through the crowd.

A small black puddle was growing beneath Sora's feet. The cold darkness. It was trying to take Sora!!

"Sora! Move!" Riku cried, not wanting to leave his boyfriend to the darkness.

Sora's wide eyes were focused on the trail of darkness crawling up his bare legs, inching towards his waist and torso. He looked pale. Too pale. "I-I can't move...!" he cried, trying to pull his legs away. This only caused the darkness to move quicker, sliding up around his arms. "Riku!"

Riku immediately sprung forward and wrapped his arms around the boy, holding tightly onto him. "I'm here. Don't worry, Sora. I said I would protect you..."

"R-Riku..."

Riku flinched, not at the coldness that was seeping into his body as the darkness began to cover him too, but at Sora's scared voice. He sounded like a lost child.

"It's so c-cold..."

"I know," Riku hushed, turning his head to give Mulan and Shang a sad smile as the tentacles of darkness were cover his shoulders now.

He knew what was coming, but he didn't know if he would see his new friends again. He wouldn't be able to help them fight their next battle, or help them finish the war. The two warriors said nothing. Mulan managed an uneasy smile, and Shang simply nodded, accepting their departure.

"I know, Sora," Riku repeated softly, hugging himself closer to the boy, the darkness clouding his vision as it completely covered them both.

_I know..._

-o-o-

* * *

Uh-oh. What happens next? XD Bye-bye China and Mulan's world.

See you next chapter!


	10. Intermission Interlude Thingy 1: The Oce...

_Author's Notes:_

This update is not an actual chapter. No, it's a random insertion kind of thing to reward you readers. Kind of like an Intermission for a long movie. It has a little to do with the plot, since it takes place before the actual fanfic; it's here to build character for the.. er... characters. And to fill up space. Yeah. And I never really did get to play around with Tidus, Selphie and Wakka. Also, with this intermission is an explanation about why I've chosen to take some of the routes I have in my fanfic. It might answer many of your questions and ease some of your doubts. That's first, the random chapter is afterwards.

* * *

**_About Stygian Solace: Uzumaki's Decisions and Plans_**

-o-o-

All right. THIS IS IMPORTANT! Please read this all the way through, as it **is** written for your benefits. Time to explain some things that some of you readers were 'eh' about in the last chapters. Many thanks to those who liked the choices.

**_Sora's Doubts:_ **

As aforementioned, Stygian Solace is what would have happened if Sora had taken Riku's hand. In the actual game, I really do believe Riku was meant to be the keyblade master--the hints are everywhere. Sora received the keyblade in the game, in my opinion, because Riku had chosen to go with the darkness. Therefore, if BOTH of them go with the darkness (like in SS), the keyblade would either choose a new master entirely, or it would go with the strongest of the two: Riku. That's why Riku gets the first keyblade.

But don't worry--there's always the blade that Mickey had, and there's always the plot twists I'm planning later on. And if you're still unhappy that Riku received the keyblade, well, sorry. :D My fanfic. I'm writing it true to **_my_** interpretation of the KH story, and this is what I had planned since chapter one.

Keep reading, even if you don't like what has happened, because Sora will get stronger as per character development. Yes, I realize that I have been portraying him rather weakly in the last few chapters. It was something that was **and** was not intentional.

It was intentional because, right now, and at the beginning of the actual game, Sora was pretty weak. But at the end of the game, he had grown quite a lot, both mentally and physically. I'm doing the same thing with my fanfic, only in a different, more obvious way. Yes, he's very weak now (mainly because Riku insists on protecting him all the time), but at the end of the fanfic he'll be impressing all the readers, and even Riku.

However, I did not mean to make him **that **weak. I think it was because I was focusing more on Riku as the main character (because he is, in SS, the main character), and less on Sora's own strengths..

With what I have planned, Sora will become an even more important factor in the storyline, and he _will _begin to stray away from Riku's protection--which is what has made him so weak so far in the first place. Sora will also mature a little and rely on himself (which, in later chapters, leads to some problems) more.

**_Disney Worlds:_**

As for the Disney worlds... Well, with SS already going on to chapter ten, there won't be many more long parts dedicated solely to the Disney stories, especially now that the plot is hurrying along. The keyblade has appeared, they've been to their first foreign world and left it alive, learned more about the heartless, and discovered how to seal the worlds. The next step, yes, is the plot with the Princesses of Heart, Ansem, Maleficent and Hollow Bastion, and the conflicts between Sora and Riku.

However, I'm not going by the game any more, as you can tell by my decision to start off with Mulan. Traverse town and some of the other worlds will be acknowledged, but time is going to go much faster between the next few chapters.

Chapters 1 through 9 took place through a period of about 5 days, if you do realize. But the next few chapters will span weeks, even months, and you'll see why. So, I might not get to go into much detail about each individual world, and many won't even be addressed. Therefore, many of the worlds I did want to address (Halloween Town especially), will not make it into this story.

Also, there won't be much character introduction when I do address new worlds--such as, I'm going to assume you already know the differences between Cloud and Squall, so I won't focus a lot on them at first. But since they **_are_** essential to the plot, there will be a lot of them and Sephiroth.

**_Sora and Riku:_ **

I know, it's a bit disappointing that they got together so early on in the fanfic. But think about it. It wouldn't have been the same if they hadn't gotten together really early on. If they hadn't gotten together, this fanfic would have followed the same plot as KH, and I did **not** want to novelize the game. I wanted something people would be familiar with, but with a completely different twist. If they had not gotten together when they did, if they had just remained friends, it wouldn't have had the same impact when Sora finally did take Riku's hand, and they both went down the same path. In fact, if they hadn't gotten together, Sora would have never taken Riku's hand, and, well, I wouldn't be writing this fanfic in the first place.

Also, if Sora and Riku had gotten together later, like say in the Mulan episodes, the next few chapters won't have as much meaning to the reader. They wouldn't be as emotional, or scarring. Right now, at chapter 9, they're an official couple, and they're used to cuddling with each other in their sleep, and stealing kisses from each other, even though they've been together for only a few days. This way, there will actually be angst when the times comes, not cheesy "WHY??!" lines.

Understand why I made them get together so early now?

And besides, Sora had been watching Riku for a few weeks before he confessed, so technically, they didn't get together as sudden as it seems. I just didn't write the longing, the suffering and shifty looks of wanting between them--to save time, y'know. I really hated the beginning, yes... And even I didn't like how they "got together so soon," even though there was a lot going on between them even before my fanfic. So maybe I'll go back and write a prologue between them with those subtle hints?

**_Angst Ahead:_ **

And as a final note, the angst is approaching the story finally. Expect to see some dramatic changes in the next few chapters. I love angst and plot twists. It'll only get worse from here on (not story-wise, I mean depressing-wise). A lot of you are going to hate me for what I do the characters, and a lot of you are going to "stop reading" or threaten to.

I'm warning you now... While I adore feedback and do listen to suggestions carefully, I still write what I want to write. Even if you complain about a certain course of action, I'm going to continue with what I have planned. I write for myself first, and the readers next.

* * *

And now that I'm just about done rambling, here's the random insertion intermission chapter thingy majiggy. I'm generally not a funny person, nor am I a romantic, so give me a break if it's not funny or fluffy. ;.; I like angsty stuff.

* * *

**_Intermission Interlude Thingy #1: The Ocean Ends Here_**

-o-o-

"Rikuuuu--!"

_Glomp._

Riku only just managed to keep his balance as the familiar voice rang in his ears and Sora leapt onto his back, his bare legs wrapping around Riku's waist as he buried his face in Riku's silver hair. Honestly, Riku didn't know whether to feel irritated or playful as Sora's fingers dug into his shoulders. Being glomped first thing in the morning by the object of his affection (who definitely did NOT return those feelings) was not his ideal wake-up call. Especially when he was in the middle of getting dressed!! The way Sora just walked around his house like it was his own home kind of unnerved Riku, but it was flattering all the same, even though Riku knew his parents weren't the very loveable type and would kill him if they knew Sora was prancing around their home with Riku when they were gone. They didn't like _Riku_, much less Sora, in any case.

Sure, one could say that, "Well, why not like Sora hanging all over you? At least he's always around for you to goggle." But Riku, lately, had been finding it quite hard not to goggle, and it was becoming quite obvious. Too obvious, in fact, that even Tidus, who was thicker than even Sora, had noticed. It was only a matter of time that Sora found out too.

Would Sora return Riku's feelings? Or would he be disgusted and run off with Kairi?

And Sora's daily glomps and 'hey! let's hang all over Riku!' rituals did not help Riku's problems, nor did Sora's usual five-year-old-like adorable personality and little pranks and never-ending competitions. This was why Riku didn't know whether to be irritated or act playful. According to his character, he could go either way and not be acting suspicious enough for Sora to suspect something. However, if he did brush Sora off and act irritated, Sora would turn his attention to Kairi...

Riku chose to be playful.

In the next few seconds he had removed the boy from his back, spun him around and pinned him to the closest thing he could find: his bed. Sora grinned up at him with his trademark toothy grin and bright blue eyes, and the sight nearly stopped Riku's heart.

That image of his affection was pinned to his bed.

How obvious could he get?! Stupid Riku! Stupid!!

Managing to keep calm, and, forcing down a horrible uncharacteristic blush, Riku grinned back. "I win." At that, he unpinned Sora and took a step back before snatching the nearest shirt for him to wear. But as he was slipping it on to cover himself, he heard Sora's short, sunny laugh.

"Win? Win what? I just came to wake you up."

Riku nonchalantly waved a hand. "I win anyway."

He heard the creak of the bed as Sora sat up, and he turned around to face him, curious. Sora had on his classic pout, and was watching him with defiant blue eyes.

"You can't just win something out of thin air! That's cheating!" he said, his brow furrowing.

Riku shot him a coy smile. "Well, it's not like you can stop me."

There was a moment of silence, and then Sora suddenly shot up from the bed and tackled Riku to the floor with a war cry that segued into a giggle. They landed in a pile of dirty clothes filled with the colors yellow and indigo and a wrestling match ensued, with Riku finding himself not really wanting to end it by winning, enjoying the feel of Sora so close to him. Instead he lightly batted and kicked at Sora, who was struggling to pin him down, confused as to why he was winning. He hesitated, confused, and Riku took the chance to roll them over and put Sora beneath him. He sat atop the younger boy and crossed his arms over his chest in victory.

"See? I win."

Sora smiled, and then broke into warm laughter, Riku joining in not too far afterward.

But the sound of a door slamming silenced them.

"Riku! We're home!!"

Very suddenly Riku's eyes widened. He stumbled back to his feet and rushed to the window, throwing it open and looking out at the palm trees. There was a way down. Usually Sora had plenty of time to sneak out the back door, but Riku's parents were already inside. Quickly he motioned for Sora to come to him, and soon Sora was there with him, knowing full well what was wrong.

Riku's parents were home. And Sora was trespassing.

"I think you can climb down from here, but make sure they don't see you--the kitchen windows are directly below," Riku whispered, his voice hurried.

Sora hesitated, his blue eyes full of worry. "Riku, I'm sorry... If they knew I was here..."

Riku stopped him with a raised hand and a shaky smile. "Just don't get caught. Go. Now. I'll be outside in a little while."

"RIKU!! Don't make us go up there and get you!!"

"Dammit, boy!! Can't even welcome your parents home!"

His parents' voices were coming closer, probably near the stairs. He felt his teeth clench in anger. They expected him to come running whenever they called, as though he was some sort of dog--just another mouth to feed, not their son.

"He can't do anything right, honey."

His mother's voice, now in the stairway. They were coming, and he was probably in deep trouble, for something he never even did wrong. Well, better him than Sora. Sora at least had a loving mother.

The brown-haired boy was already working his way down the palm trees when Riku's door flew open and made a loud k-tunck against his wall, ripping one of his posters. There in the doorway stood Riku's father, green eyes narrowed in anger, his lip turned upward in disgust. His mother was standing behind him, silver hair neatly done into a bun, her red lips pursed in irritation.

"Honestly, Riku, you could be more respectful towards us. We _are_ your parents," she huffed, her sweet voice masking her tightly-closed mind and snobbery.

Riku stepped away from the window, his eyebrows coming together in anger. "Respectful?!" he spat, one of his ungloved hands clenching into a fist. "When you treat me like dirt?!"

His father ignored him, his eyes noting the open window. "Enjoying the breeze?" he drawled before brushing past his son to look out the window. "Or letting someone escape?"

Riku braced himself, biting his tongue so as to not anger his father further. Sure enough, the man spun on him and slipped a hand around his throat, pushing him against his dresser as he leaned close, his eyes narrowed to mere slits. His father kept his voice cold, calm, and malicious, which was infinitely more terrifying than if he had chosen to raise his voice.

"That _brat_ was here, wasn't he?"

Riku said nothing, his own eyes meeting his father's with a coolness that only irritated the man further. His hand tightened and Riku tensed, unable to breathe.

"Your relationship with that brat is unnatural," the man hissed through clenched teeth, his breath burning against Riku's cheek. "If I find out that you two are screwing around..."

He let it hang, his hand squeezing further to emphasize his point.

That was when Riku knew he had to leave the island.

As soon as possible.

-o-o-

That day Riku chose to wear a high-collared shirt... to cover up the bruises around his neck. He knew he had them even before he noticed them in the mirror. It hadn't been the first time.

He liked the shirt, however, as it fit him nicely and drew the eyes of the town to him in admiration. It was, as mentioned before, high-collared, buttoned at the base of his neck and the collar reaching up to his jawbone, with a nice slit just above the button to allow his chin to breathe. Not literally, of course. It was also a nice, rich dark blue--a color that was generally uncommon on the island, considering it soaked up all the heat and caused its wearer to sweat like faucet. Which was why it was sleeveless, and button-up, and clung to his skin instead of sagging and generating all that unnecessary heat. All that, and it went very well with his hair.

Yes, he liked his shirt, and it was obvious the girls liked it too. None of them even inquired his change of wardrobe for today because they were so impressed.

However, Sora knew better.

Before Tidus could approach and challenge Riku to their daily duel, Sora had dragged Riku to the empty dock (Selphie was elsewhere, talking with Kairi). Sora sat him there and, before Riku could object or pull away, or even blush, Sora had unbuttoned his collar and pulled it open to inspect his neck.

An angry frown crossed over Sora's normally bright face, and his eyes darkened as he stared at the bruises, his warm fingers gently brushing against them.

"Are there any more?" was what Sora asked when he finally removed his hand and sat back, giving Riku space.

Slowly the silver-haired boy shook his head.

"What did your father say?"

Riku froze. He remembered clearly. But he didn't want to say it... not to Sora. "T-That I was disrespectful."

"That's all?"

_And that he suspected you and I were lovers... Other than that, nothing new..._ Riku sighed to himself. Aloud he said, "I need to get off these islands, Sora. I can't wait for the tide to 'be just right' like Kairi says. I can't stand it here any longer."

Him and Sora lovers? Hah... So even his father saw the looks he gave Sora.

So why didn't Sora himself see them?

"Hey hey! Riku! Sora! Selphie and Wakka are going to fight!" Kairi called, her voice chirpy and bright, like an annoying bird in the wee hours of the morning.

Sora turned to Riku, a sad smile on his face. "Want to go see?" he asked softly.

Riku shook his head. "You go."

Without a sound Sora left, leaving only the sound of the waves lapping against the wooden dock to comfort Riku. He stared out into the blue ocean and into the slightly-lighter blue sky, wondering when the other began and the other ended. Somewhere, over that horizon, was freedom. His freedom. From his parents, from his monotonous life... Out there was adventure. Chance.

His future.

A soft sigh escaping his lips, Riku slumped forward, his arms wrapping around his legs as he rested his chin on his knees. The sound of laughter from the beach reached him, Sora's among the medley, reminding Riku of his dilemma.

Even if somehow Riku got Sora to understand his feelings, Riku's father would never accept their relationship.

Wait. What was he thinking?

His father already didn't accept him!

Hell, further angering his father was like a daily goal for him.

Still, his parents were there, in the way, and would probably find a way to separate them for good. And then there was Kairi--who knew what she would do if she found out that her two best friends loved each other, not her?

Riku was still running over his own thoughts when he heard the sound of shoes on the dock, closing in on him.

"Sora... Go back. I'm fine. Have fun without me..."

"Hah. Even if I was Sora I wouldn't go back. Not when you have a tone like _that_ in your voice, you weakling," came Tidus' arrogant assertion.

Riku felt his mood stoop even lower. He so did _not_ need Tidus bothering him right now, especially since the boy knew about Riku's feelings for Sora, and always found a way to tease him about it.

"Go away," replied Riku, his voice flat. "Go duel Sora. Catch a fish. Fall off a cliff."

"Aww... Bitter, are we?" Tidus laughed, dropping onto the dock next to Riku, one leg tucked under the other.

There was a long silence after that, Riku knowing Tidus was just buying his time, and Tidus knowing Riku was irritated to the fullest. But then the air grew serious.

"It's your dad, isn't it? The one giving you those bruises."

"I bruise easily," Riku mumbled. "I have pale skin. You give me bruises too, you know."

"But not on purpose," Tidus countered, but then paused. "Okay, maybe on purpose, but it's always just play fighting. Your dad is really serious... Does your mom hurt you too?"

Riku stiffened, turning to shoot Tidus a nasty look. "I don't want to talk about this! They don't abuse me! My dad just gets carried away sometimes!"

Tidus simply stared at him, unafraid.

"Do they love you?"

Riku forced his eyes shut, welcoming the momentary darkness instead of the blinding blue. He considered ignoring Tidus until the boy went away, but he found himself relaxing under the boy's gaze and questions. "If they do, they have a shitty way of expressing it."

This earned him a short laugh from Tidus, who scooted closer to him. "Well, if it means anything, I love you."

Riku's eyes shot open.

Tidus immediately backed up. "I, uhh, I mean, not in that way, Riku. Not like how you love Sora. Haha. As a good friend. That kind of love."

Riku turned toward him, curious.

Tidus continued, laughing to himself. "And I'm sure Selphie and Wakka share the same kind of love too. But Kairi and Sora? They're something special, Riku. Their kind of love you can never destroy. Even if they get together, you'll always be there, Riku, even if it seems they're ignoring you. Just like if you and Kairi got together--"

"Never," Riku cut in, shuddering. "I'm just using her to get Sora's attention."

"You didn't let me finish, Stupid," Tidus sighed, picking up his sentence. "Just like if you and Kairi got together, Sora wouldn't hold it against you, and I'm pretty sure Kairi would be behind your and Sora's relationship, all the same. I've gotten over the initial shock that you're gay, Riku, and I'm sure none of your other friends will care either."

Riku narrowed his eyes, a smirk pulling at his lips. "I'm not gay."

Tidus raised both eyebrows. "Oh? Then what are you?"

Riku turned his gaze back to the ocean, the smirk widening into a genuine smile. "Only Sora can make me harvest these feelings... It just doesn't work with anyone else."

"So you're Sora-sexual?"

Riku frowned, looking at Tidus curiously. "You come up with the weirdest things," he muttered, impressed.

And they both broke into laughter. Two minutes later, Tidus was nearly rolling on the dock from a stomach cramp, and Riku was trying hard to breathe from laughing so hard. They didn't even see the growing shadow underneath the dock, or hear the splashing of water and clandestine whispers.

Before either of them knew what was happening, they were being pulled into the water by their friends, who had heard their laughter and had decided to pick on them. Sora was with Kairi, pulling Tidus under the dock, but Riku easily outmaneuvered Wakka and Selphie's groping hands, and managed to flee, but not before snatching the small girl's jump rope. He took it with a triumphant laugh and began running down the dock as fast as he could.

"He's getting away with my jump rope!" Selphie cried.

"Let's get him!" Kairi laughed, and a few cheers of agreement chorused, followed quickly by the sounds of feet splashing through the water after him.

And behind them all came Tidus' defeated cry, "Hey!! What about me?!"

Riku sprinted ahead, his laughter floating ahead of them as he headed for the secret cave-tunnel that lead to the other side of the island near the race course. When he got there he easily climbed the vines growing there and ducked into the tunnel, just as the flock of children were rounding the corner.

"Yo! He's heading for the Star Tree, ya?!" came Wakka's voice, and then the sound of retreating footsteps heading down the long way.

He smiled to himself as he came out on the other side, still carrying the jump rope, near where they were building the raft, and dropped down on to the ground. None of the others beside Tidus had the skill to climb up the way he had come, so they had to take the other route around the circumference of the island. He had plenty of time to get away with his new jump rope.

However, he was still telling himself that when someone suddenly landed on him and he fell to the ground, causing sand to fly into the air. The person wrapped his arms around Riku, trying to pin him down, but Riku managed to squirm in such a way that he was free to kick his attacker. And he did.

Sora rolled off him, panting for air, a mischievous gleam in his eye. "I nearly had you!" he laughed, brushing sand off his arms, one hand carrying his wooden sword. Riku noticed he was missing his usual jacket, and was only flaunting his red zip-up jumper. His shoes were even gone, his feet merely covered with socks.

"Went for the stealthy approach?" Riku said, smirking. "I thought you couldn't climb that wall yet."

"You thought wrong," Sora countered, brandishing his sword. "Now, surrender or suffer excruciating torment by the hands of Sora the Almighty Knight of-"

"Seagulls?" Riku interrupted easily.

Sora's face began to form a pout, but he stopped himself and instead narrowed his eyes. Deepening his voice and putting on an accent, Sora boldly said, "Clever one, Sir Riku the Devious Thief. But now hand over your booty or face the consequences!"

"Booty?" Riku asked innocently. "Oh, you mean this?"

He shot the handle of the jump rope at Sora's head, and the boy had to quickly step aside to escape getting a black eye. He turned back towards Riku, clearly impressed.

"I didn't know you could fight with Selphie's weapon!" he exclaimed, accent dropped, holding his sword out in front of him.

"Of course I can. How do you think I win all the time?" Riku asked, smirking. "You need to know your enemy's style as well as your own, you know."

That said, he swiped at Sora's feet with the rope, and the boy had to quickly leap back. Sora cried out, suddenly desperate, and brought his sword down to knock at Riku's head.

But Riku, expecting that, pulled the rope tight and brought it up to deflect the blade. It worked, naturally, and Sora's face became determined.

That was when Riku chose to end the fight, wrapping the jump rope around Sora's sword and jerking it clean out of the boy's hands. It landed on the sand at Riku's feet, who knelt to pick it up, now carrying two of his enemies' weapons.

Sora kicked at the sand, obviously disappointed. "That wasn't fair."

"Of course it was," Riku laughed. "Stop being a sore loser. You'll defeat me when the time comes."

"How can I defeat you if you know everyone's fighting style by heart?" Sora asked, his lip sticking out in a pout.

Riku took a moment to inspect the wooden sword before handing it back to Sora, who took it, confused.

"Everyone has a weakness, Sora. You just need to find mine, that's all," Riku explained.

The sound of voices and splashing water reached their ears, and Riku suddenly stiffened. He'd forgotten about the others. Sora had distracted him from hiding! Oh, well, it was better to fight than cower...

But Tidus chose that moment to drop into the sand next to them, carrying his sword with an air of revenge. He took a look at Riku and Sora and grinned impishly. "They left me there, so I decided to join you. That's okay, right?"

Sora saw the exchange of grins between Riku and Tidus, and joined in. "The three of us against the three of them sounds fair enough."

"What? You mean two weaponless girls and one protective Wakka?" Tidus asked, raising a single eyebrow. "I was talking about us teaming up, Sora, against Riku."

Riku narrowed his eyes and sighed, tightening his grasp on the jump rope. Why did they insist on picking on him all the time? It must have been his shirt. They were all jealous of him because of his shirt, and they wanted to get him dirty and wet. Why else would they try to pull him under the dock? Chase after him when they knew he'd eventually give back Selphie's rope?

Well, that could have been it, Riku decided, but it also could be that they were all trying to take his mind off things. Namely, his parents. And his infatuation with Sora.

When Wakka, Selphie and Kairi rounded the corner and called out to him, and as Sora and Tidus both raised their swords and attacked, Riku knew this was going to be a long day.

But he would win. He always did.

-o-o-

* * *

Well, I hope you enjoyed this first random intermission interlude thingy. It was short, I know, but, it was a last minute thing. They'll get better. Now, onto the next portion of Stygian Solace.

-_Uzumaki_


	11. Ch 10: Now Darkness Falls

_Author's Notes:_

Wow. ^^ I'm so glad Stygian Solace is so well-loved. Makes me feel all important. This chapter is 403 words more than the last chapter! Hah. I'm getting good. 

I wrote this entire chapter while listening to The Lord of the Rings sound track and various songs by Hyde. ^^; Hm.... Does it show? Ahh... Some of you are already curious about Kairi. ^^ Sharp readers, sharp

On a final note, now that I'm pretty far along in the fanfic, I've become even more unhappy with the beginning--the first two chapters, at least. I want to rewrite them. Badly. And I think I'd have more readers if they were a little better written... But, knowing me, I'd get started rewriting the first few chapters, get bored, and never finish chapter eleven, and leave all of you hanging. None of us want that. Hm... I guess I'll wait then, to rewrite it. In the mean time, review! ^^ There's been a lull for the past week, and it makes me sad.

_A look ahead:_

The darkness shall consume thine hearts. Thou shalt cast suspicion. Thine tears will fall alone...

________________________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Ten: Now Darkness Falls_**__

_  
  
_

_"I can feel it."_

Darkness.

_"And you can too, can't you?"_

Cold blue eyes, soft roan hair.

_"It's taking me, Riku..."_

~~~

When Riku opened his eyes, he could not hold back the audible gasp that escaped his lips.  
  
The scene before him was a nightmare in progress, a land of green being consumed by the aura of darkness. All around, towering above him, were dying trees, one after the other their leaves shriveling and trunks bowing under the tide of death, vines and flowers disappearing under a murky fog, all at a heart-breaking pace. What was once a lush and beautiful forest was now decayed and blackened. 

A bruise on perfect skin.

Riku's knees suddenly gave way and he fell to the still-green grass, pulling Sora down with him, his eyes never tearing away from the death around him. There was a sharp *crrrack* as a tree buckled, taking two more with it as it crashed to the ground, sending a few forest animals fleeing in all directions. There was no escape. Not here.  
  
"Riku?" 

Sora's muffled voice came from Riku's chest where the boy had his face pressed, his shoulders tensed and his hands clenched into Riku's arms. The small call reached his ears even though it was barely audible, faint and scared-sounding. His smaller body was shivering, his skin pale enough to compare to even Riku's.

"Riku... Where are we...? I'm afraid to look..."

Riku lifted Sora's chin and searched his worried blue eyes, looking to comfort him. But Sora wouldn't even meet his gaze.

He could tell. Sora's will was weakening--he didn't trust Riku to protect him. Riku couldn't stop the darkness... He didn't know the answers they were looking for. He couldn't even keep Sora warm.

"Where the hell are we?"

Quite suddenly Sora's hood moved and out popped Mushu, scrambling atop Sora's head. The little dragon looked around, alarmed, as if he wasn't supposed to be there. Then again, none of them were.  
  
"I wish I knew," Riku sighed softly. "But we need to get moving. It's not safe here."

Sora finally raised his eyes to study Riku, his young face forming a frown. "Do you think Kairi is here?"

Riku quickly rose to his feet, ignoring the lightheaded feeling he felt as he surveyed his surroundings once again. As he watched, more of the forest withered right before his eyes. He felt like he was standing in vertigo, the world spiraling around him, or that he was the one spinning. 

This forest was poisoning them. 

"This world is dying. If Kairi is here, she won't be for much longer, and neither will we. We can't stay here," he said, pulling Sora to his booted feet. "We've gotta get moving."  
  
But the darkness had other plans. 

The darkening trees and vines shuddered angrily, their leaves rustling to each other like furtive whispers, hissing at Riku's voice and suggestion. The black vines started to reach for him, winding around each other as they snaked forward, dark flowers blooming behind them, revealing spiked stamens and over-sized sticky stigmas crawling out to greet him. Or eat him.

Riku became very aware of the situation, immediately summoning the keyblade to his hand.

"Run!" he hissed, pushing Sora toward the last of the green forest, turning to face the vines that were beginning to thrash before him. He wasn't surprised when the heartless appeared around him, or when their voices began to fill his head again as he leveled the keyblade at them, unafraid. 

Unfortunately, so were they.  
  
The vines lashed out and wrapped around him so quickly, he didn't realize they had even moved when he began to feel the constricting pain around his body as they slowly tightened around him from all sides. The keyblade, wrenched from his grasp by the vicious plants, gave him no comfort as another vine snaked around his neck, cutting into his skin. Eyes squeezing shut, he grit his teeth to stifle cries of pain.  
  
_Master will be pleased with his heart.  
  
_The heartless began making chortling noises as they drew closer, Riku trying desperately to free himself from his savage binds. As the darkness drew closer, and the vines continued to creep over his body and cut off his circulation, steal his breath, and enclose him in a dismal tomb, his chest tightened and his heart thundered as if pleading not to be taken. Soon his ribs would crack under the pressure and pierce his lungs, or the vines would snap his neck, a twig to a snake. The feeling of numbness was already spreading throughout his throbbing limbs, his chest already shuddering from the lack of air...

Or was that the heartless, taking his heart? He couldn't tell any more. They were too strong. He couldn't break free.

Impossible. He was going to die...?

_No..._

"No!!!"  
  
Riku's eyes snapped open at the sound of Sora's voice as the boy leapt into the fray to rescue Riku. The heartless around him suddenly hissed and recoiled, as if burned.  
  
Wait.

They _were _burning.  
  
"Mushu! Keep at it! They're going back!"  
  
Riku suddenly found that he could move again, and feeling was beginning to seep back into his lifeless limbs. The vines pulled away, leaving Riku to fall back onto the now-withering grass. Sora ran past him, Mushu still perched atop his head, firing at the heartless and evil forest around them, driving them away from Riku.

Black smoke filled the air, the smell of cooked plants stinging the back of Riku's throat as he struggled to breathe, welcoming in the foul air, just as long as it was air. He struggled to stand, only to find that his legs wouldn't work yet. But then Sora was there, pulling him to his feet and jerking him into the dying forest away from the vines and heartless, Mushu still spitting flames at the enemy behind them.

He wasn't sure how long they ran like that before he collapsed onto the forest floor, in need of breath. Sora dropped next to him, Mushu peering at him from his nest inside Sora's hood.

The silver-haired boy took a moment to scan the forest around them as he regulated his breathing and tried to control his hammering heart. The trees and wildlife here were still growing, untouched by the darkness behind them, which meant they were safe, if only for a short moment.

And when Riku turned to glance at Sora, he was surprised to find the boy smiling. 

"W-What?" he stammered, giving Sora an odd look.  
  
"That's twice now," the boy grinned. "You owe me big time, Ri~ku."  
  
Riku managed a trembling smile, wondering when he was going to see the end of Sora's competitive streak to be on top. He was about to make a snide remark, but his voice died in his throat as Sora moved closer, one hand resting on Riku's shoulder and his other hand reaching out to caress the bleeding lines around Riku's throat where the vine had held him. Riku stiffened as Sora leaned in, his hair tickling Riku's chin as he moved towards the older boy's neck, softly brushing his lips over the wound in a gentle kiss. Riku slightly winced at the stinging the touch brought, and when Sora pulled away, Riku gave him an odd look.

"Feel better?" Sora asked, smiling brightly, no trace of blood on his lips. "I can kiss those other cuts of yours too, if you wa-"

But he was cut off when a feminine scream sliced through the air. Riku immediately turned towards the sound, worried. 

"Someone's in trouble!" he cried, shakily climbing to his feet before heading towards the sound. "Let's go!"  
  
Sora's smile fell, but this small action went unnoticed by Riku, who now had the keyblade back in his grasp as he ducked into the green forest. And when the boy stood and followed Riku into the underbrush, neither he nor Mushu noticed that the grass where they had been resting had withered and crumbled into a black dust. 

Meanwhile Riku was sprinting through the woods, leaves, twigs clawing at his bare arms as he gripped his weapon close to him, the sun beginning to dwindle through the high branches as ominous slate-grey clouds filled the sky above. But he suddenly came to an abrupt halt when he realized no one was following him, and that he had no idea where he was going, or what he was planning to do. He turned in a circle, his eyes sweeping over the trees surrounding him, his breath hitching as he strained to listen for any signs of life in the forest. But he heard nothing except the sounds of the leaves rustling in the quickening wind.

"Sora!"

His voice sounded almost desperate, afraid, as though his worry was that readable. Riku immediately forgot about the woman who had screamed. Where was Sora? The boy had followed him, hadn't he? 

Or had the darkness taken him again and Riku hadn't been there to go with him?

This thought filled him with sudden fear, and he panicked, turning back the way he came, crying out Sora's name again, praying to whatever deity would listen that Sora hadn't left him in this dying world alone. How could he fight without Sora?

"_Sora!!_"

He leapt over a fallen log and nearly collided with a black tree, managing to duck out of the way just as the tree laden with darkness decided to crash to the ground next to him, decomposing even as it fell and poisoned the plant life around it. Riku stumbled back, watching the darkness slowly creep into the grass towards him, the bright green shriveling into a bruised blue before crumbling to the dead soil as nothing more than mere ash.

Was this what would have happened to Mulan's world if he hadn't sealed it...?

Is this what happened to Destiny Islands?

As soon as the thought entered his head, vines sprung out of the dark earth and snaked around his legs, trying to pull him down. With a sudden growl, he swiped at the cursed plants with his keyblade, cutting easily through them and freeing himself from their deadly grasp. 

Behind him heartless were climbing out of the dying grass, their beady yellow eyes hungry and focused on him as he continued whacking at the vines with his weapon.

_Take his heart...!_For Master!!_Before he escapes...!_

Riku spun around just in time, cleaving into a heartless as it sprung at him from behind. It went flying back into a wilted tree before it disappeared, two more springing out of the ground to replace it and add to the three surrounding him already. With a quick glance over his shoulder he spotted the vines lurching forward for another attack. And as the heartless advanced towards him from the front, and the vines shot forward from behind, Riku leapt into the deteriorating underbrush and ran without thinking, leaving the heartless to be caught in the vine trap and be squeezed until their heads burst.

He ran, unsure of where he was going, or whether he was heading deeper into the dying forest, only knowing that the heartless were chasing him, and that the forest was getting darker, and darker, and that the wind was picking up, helping the bowing trees collapse around him on all sides.

This world was beyond saving, if the rest of it looked like this forest.

He needed to get out. He needed to find Sora.

Sora.

His Sora wouldn't have left him, would he?

Alone to fend off the darkness?

"Sora!!" he cried, swiping at black tree branches with his keyblade. "Sora, answer me!!"

"Riku?!"

A voice from behind him. But not Sora's. 

Riku froze, his eyes widening. "Kairi?!" 

Impossible. It couldn't have been her. He must have just imagined her voice...

"Help!"

Another feminine voice, but this time not Kairi's. And it was to his right.

"Riku!!"

"Where the hell are you?!"

Sora. And Mushu. In another direction.

Riku turned in a circle, weighing his options, trying to decide in which direction to go. The trees here held no answer, their green leaves shivering around him as the tide of death crept up their roots and seeped into trunks and branches. Soon they would fall around him, and then those vines would sprout again, just like before. He had to think fast. Shaking his head to clear his mind, he took a step to dart in the direction the cry of help had come from. 

But then he saw it.

Pale skin, lavender skirt.

Kairi?

He froze and turned to get a second look, but the vision had left, leaving an emancipated tree in its place. Had he been imagining her voice, and her form just then? If that had been her, then why had she suddenly gone?

Throwing off the uneasy feeling he was getting, Riku broke off into a run, hoping he wasn't too late to save whoever had called for help, and hoping Mushu was keeping Sora safe. Wherever they were.

And just as he was beginning to doubt he was heading in the right direction, he came clear of the dying trees and stumbled into a clearing where the grass and trees were still growing, and the flowers were still bright white, pink and yellow, not the colors of the night. In the middle of the clearing sat a young woman in a yellow and blue dress, surrounded by forest animals of all kinds--birds, rabbits, squirrels, deer, chipmunks--and they all had the same look of fear on their faces, furry or not. They knew their forest, their world was perishing. The wind blew about them, making them shiver, the woman's dark hair drifting with the turning of the breeze, but other than that, she seemed unaffected. She sat there calmly, petting the trembling bunny in her lap with her pale, delicate hands, her eyes closed as she sung a soft tune to comfort the animals.

At first Riku wasn't sure of what to think, standing there watching the woman, who could remain so calm, even though her forest was being swallowed by the heartless. At first he felt admiration for her bravery, but then he studied her more closely. Her song sounded like a lullaby, and her voice was quavering through the words, shaking, just like the hands running through the rabbit's fur. It was as though she was trying to comfort herself.

This wasn't a sign of hope. She had given up fighting and was waiting for death.

Riku took a few steps more into the clearing, the grass crunching under his shoes and alerting the woman of his approach. Her eyes drifted open and she lifted her head to study him, the animals frightened by his presence but remaining at the woman's side. She eyed the keyblade skeptically and took in his serious face before she spoke.

"Are you my executioner?" she asked, her voice lined with fear. "I suspect you will not find it in your heart, if you have one, to spare me any mercy. Your creations did not show any when they took the dwarves and their hearts."

Riku ignored her little speech and asked, "Were you the one screaming for help earlier?"

"Yes, but my friends saved me from your beasts. I suspect they will not be much help now that you yourself are here."

He stopped himself from rolling his eyes. "So you're safe for now? Good. Have you seen anyone running around here? I'm looking for someone..."

Her eyes widened visibly. She was just now noticing all the cuts and bruises on his skin and the bleeding lines around his limbs from where the vines had held him.

"Who are you?" she asked, a spark of hope lighting in her eyes.

"You tell me first," he said, tapping the keyblade against his leg impatiently.

"Snow White. I was once a princess," she answered, tucking some of her black hair behind an ear. "You are...?"

"Riku. The heartless call me the Keyblade Master," he said, and then added as an afterthought, "They don't seem too fond of me."

"Are you here to save my forest, Riku?" she asked, her voice sweet and suddenly musical, and all of the animals turned towards him, curious.

_I think it's too late for that..._ he sighed silently. He felt guilty about it, but Sora was more important in his mind, than saving an already doomed forest. How was he supposed to save it anyway? He didn't know where the keyhole in this world was. He couldn't even find his boyfriend.

But still, he had to do _something_... right?

He returned Snow White's look with a fake smile. "Is there a river or important landmark near here? I need to find my friend... And I think he would head for a place where I would be able to find him."

"A stream. Near where I live," she replied. "But I do not know if it is safe any longer."

Riku swung the keyblade and rested it on his shoulder. "We'll have to risk it. Which direction?"

"East," she said, lifting a hand to point ahead of him. "It is not far from here. You will find it easily."

Noticing the "you" in her statement, Riku narrowed his eyes. "I don't want to leave you alone. This clearing could be overrun with heartless in a few minutes."

She managed a sad smile. "I cannot go with you, Keyblade Master." Pausing there, she reached down to lift the bottom of her dress, revealing a bruised ankle and a long, deep gash along her leg. It wasn't even dressed, and the bleeding hadn't stopped. "As you can see, I cannot even stand."

Riku stared at her in a mixture of awe and pity, realizing that this was why she had just been sitting there, singing, waiting for death. With a slow nod, he lowered the keyblade and managed a reassuring smile.

"Thank you. I'll come back as soon as I find him."

But as he turned to go, she called out, "Please hurry. I do not know what these creatures want with me or my forest, but I shall do my best to ward them off as long as I can."

"Ward them off?" he repeated, curious. "How?"

"I am not completely helpless, Keyblade Master," she replied, smiling sadly. "Now go. And hurry back."

With that said, he crossed the clearing, deer and squirrels making a path for him as he headed east into the forest where the leaves still sung in the wind and the grass still crunched under his feet. Behind him he heard her resume her lullaby, as though she was singing the animals of the forest into an untroubled, eternal sleep.

Once away from the clearing, he quickened his pace, hoping to meet up with Sora before he had a chance to seal the world. If he did manage to find the keyhole, then wouldn't Sora, like last time, get taken by the darkness? Riku had to be with him when it happened. He had to protect him.

At that, he broke off into a run, realizing that even if he did find Sora before he could seal the world, there was a chance that the darkness would swallow the world first. At the rate it was spreading through the forest earlier, it would be reaching Snow White very soon. Too soon.

And Riku cringed at the thought of what the clearing would look like after that happened.

All those flowers and their color, replaced with a dull black ash. The thriving trees, dead and withering with those infamous vines sprouting from their roots. All those forest animals... gone, succeeded by the heartless, probably. And who knows what would become of the princess?

Dread filling him, Riku managed a sigh of relief when he heard the trickling of water. He broke through the line of trees and came to a halt at the stream's side. Here the wind was stronger, and the cloud-filled sky visible now that there were no trees to obscure his vision. Hope replaced dread when he saw no sign of death. Yet.

But, obviously, that wouldn't last long. He had to hurry and find the keyhole and seal this world, if it already wasn't too late. Would there be another guardian protecting the hole even if he did find it? Like the dragon. While fighting another dangerous beast like that usually would have thrilled Riku, he was too worried about Sora at the moment to want another encounter like the previous one. There just wasn't any time.

As he contemplated wading into the stream to cross over to the other side, the keyblade suddenly began humming its song, filling his head with warnings and instructions, most of which he couldn't understand. He hesitated, holding the blade out in front of him, concentrating on listening to it. Its blade glinted in the fading light and reflected his solemn expression, but showed him nothing of its meaning.

_Thedarknessitcomes**be**carefulbe**careful**protectthelightprotectyourheart**he**hungersfighttheheartlesshe**is**themastertheyare**coming**fighthimhebringsdeath_

"Protect the light...?" Riku repeated, his brow furrowing as he stared at the keyblade.

But when he lowered his weapon, he found a pair of amber eyes staring straight into his.

Riku stumbled backwards, surprised, and felt his heart give a jerk in his chest. At first he couldn't tear his eyes away from the yellow ones staring so intently at him, but he almost immediately felt comforted by them as their owner broke into a wide smile that lit up his entire tanned face. The amber-eyed boy who now stood before him looked maybe about Riku's age, his head tilted to study Riku, white bangs shifting slightly from the momentum. White. The rest of his hair, which was chin-length and hugged his boyish face, was also white. As white as the snow from Mushu's world.

Ah yes. Snow White.

Riku had almost forgotten about her.

He finished surveying the newcomer with a quick nod of his head, taking in his matching black outfit and bronze skin with a questionable stare. He felt a bit unnerved that he hadn't heard or seen the boy approach, and that he was actually smiling at him when his world (if he indeed belonged to this world) was dying. Then again, Riku's attention _had_ been fixated on deciphering the keyblade's song. Maybe this boy really had just approached and Riku had been too lost in his thoughts to notice him.

"Um... Excuse me..." Riku began, unsure of whether to be formal with this kid, "I'm kind of in a hurry."

"Are you?"

Riku did a double-take. The boy's voice was eerily familiar, and much to Riku's vexation, he couldn't figure out why. It was a nice voice, no doubt, tinged with a coyness that made Riku think the boy was either flirting with him, or just overly haughty.

"Yes, I am," Riku replied, letting the boy know he was irritated. "Unless you can help me. Or explain to me why you're wasting my time."

The boy raised both of his eyebrows at Riku's bitter statement, clearly impressed. "Off to save the world?" he asked, his smile never falling.

"Something like that," Riku said, narrowing his green eyes. He was liking this kid less and less. "You going to help or not?"

"Yami," the kid said, holding a hand out, his smile spreading.

Riku stared at the extended hand before raising his eyes to look into the boy's yellow ones. "Riku," he said, keeping his hands wrapped around the keyblade's handle.

Much to Riku's surprise, Yami laughed at Riku's rejection. He slowly blinked before stepping away from Riku, raising a hand to brush at his hair.

"Sora did not mention your impatience."

Stalking forward, Riku let the keyblade disappear so he could grab the boy's collar and bring him close. "Where is he?!" he demanded, shaking the kid for emphasis. "Tell me where Sora is!"

But Yami kept smiling, unruffled and unperturbed by Riku's strength, but clearly impressed. "He is at the bridge with his pet dragon. He said for you to hurry."

Riku released the boy before asking, "And where is this bridge?"

Without another word, Yami lifted an arm and pointed down the stream. Riku nodded a thanks before sprinting down the length of the stream in the direction he had indicated. 

Yami, however, did not follow.

The further down the stream Riku got, the more Riku was beginning to doubt Yami's word (maybe Riku had been a little too rude to him?), but then a bridge did appear.

Riku slowed to a jog, and then came to a stop at the edge of the stream, studying the bridge in the distance. Something felt wrong... Maybe the heartless were waiting for him there? Maybe Yami had set a trap. 

Yami, the boy with the eyes of the heartless. The idea in itself was creepy.

But when Riku approached the bridge, he saw Sora... talking with Mushu as if they had not a worry in the world. Relief washed over him--at least Sora was safe, and Yami had been telling the truth. Now they could go find the keyhole together. Riku opened his mouth to call out to the boy, but Sora saw him first. The boy sprang to his feet and slid under the high railing of the bridge, falling gracefully into the shallow stream below. 

"Riku!" he cried, a bright smile on his face as he practically tackled his boyfriend.

Riku returned the embrace, ruffling Sora's hair a bit. Mushu was still perched on the bridge, staring down at them with an amused grin; Riku assumed that the dragon was letting them have their space for now. Sora's fingers brushing against the wounds on Riku's neck brought the silver-haired boy's attention back to his boyfriend.

"I was worried about you, Riku..."

Riku managed a soft smile. "I was afraid the darkness had taken you again and left me all alone. Glad my fears were wrong." He paused there, brushing his thumb over Sora's lips and frowning. "Yami said you were waiting for me here."

The brown-haired boy smiled brightly. "So he kept his word! He told me he would look for you."

Mushu, who had climbed off the bridge and was now clambering up Sora's back, laughed and came to rest on the boy's head. "That kid gave me the creeps. Those eyes."

"How did you meet him?" Riku asked, frowning. "Does he live in this world?"

"He didn't say where he was from. He just wanted to know who I was, why there was a lizard on my shoulder, and why I wasn't affected by the darkness like everything else was."

"Dragon," Mushu corrected with a snort.

"So I told him I was Sora, this was Mushu, that I didn't know why the heartless didn't care about me, and that I was lost and looking for you, Riku."

Riku smiled, relieved, managing a small nod. "I guess he wasn't so bad after all... I didn't treat him very kindly."

"I almost didn't at first either," Sora said. "I mean, he held his hand out to me and said his name, so I was a little confused as to why he was being so friendly. But I figured that, in worlds like these, being overrun with heartless and all, we need as many allies as we can. So I shook his hand and told him my name."

Mushu, now nestled in Sora's hood, crossed his arms and let out a low snort. "The kid didn't bother introducing himself to me," he commented dryly, turning his eyes over to watch Riku. "I should have torched his ass for being so disrespectful to a dragon as high-class as I am. That would have taught the brat. Next time he'd be groveling at my claws, or polishing them."

Choosing to ignore Mushu's rambling, Riku slipped his hand behind Sora's head and leaned in for a brief kiss. Sora nearly whimpered when Riku pulled away, softly whining, "Ri~ku... That wasn't a kiss."

"We have a world to save, Sora," Riku grinned. "Can't very well make out here when the world is being swallowed by darkness, now can we?"

"Yes we can," Sora mumbled, pressing his lips to Riku's, tugging the older boy to him. Riku raised both eyebrows at that, smiling as he returned the kiss.

"Hey, hey!" Mushu cried, batting at Sora's head. "Break it up! I do _not_ need to witness this!"

Riku lazily waved him off.

"Hello!! Boys! Wake up!" Mushu cried, pulling at Sora's ears and trying desperately to kick at Riku's cheeks. "The world is ending! Literally!"

Reluctantly pulling away, Riku glared up at Mushu, who glared back in return. But then he saw the trees in the distance, withering and crumbling to the ground. The darkness was already here.

"Snow White..." Riku murmured, realizing his mistake. 

She was a princess, wasn't she? Hadn't she been injured by the heartless? Wouldn't they try to go after her again? Wasn't she an important part of this world?

She probably knew where the keyhole was, without realizing its importance.

But... It was too late now, wasn't it?

"Riku?" Sora asked, his voice small and innocent. 

Riku frowned, knowing this was going to be tough. He turned to meet Sora's eyes, staring evenly at him. "This time don't fall behind, okay?"

Nodding, Sora smiled. Mushu, probably sensing a fight or two, scrambled atop Sora's head again to take his sniper position, grinning as he laughed, "Thank the ancestors! I was getting a cramp from doing nothing. It's about time we saved the world."

Riku simply raised an eyebrow at the dragon, saying nothing.

"What?" the dragon demanded, giving him a crooked look.

"Never mind."

The darkness was just reaching them as the two boys ducked into the line of trees, Riku leading the way, hopefully, towards the clearing where the princess was. But the deeper they plunged into the forest, the more obvious the taint of darkness was. The stream, which had branched off somewhere behind them into the forest, had turned a poisonous purple, with dead fish littering the bank, the trees here being devoured by the black death.

The doubt grew in Riku's mind, but he tried to remain hopeful. 

But what would happen if the heartless got to her first?

"Sora?" Riku called behind him, where Sora was struggling to keep up with Riku's fast pace.

The boy looked up from watching his feet to answer. "Yeah?"

"No matter what happens, don't get separated from me. I think we're too late to save this world. We were too late even when we first got here."

A frown crossed Sora's face, but he said nothing as he continued running, ducking under low branches after Riku. But when the two of them broke through the line of trees into the clearing, they were greeted with a surprise.

The clearing was untouched, the flowers still swaying in the harsh breeze, the leaves still rustling against each other and the trees undefiled, untainted.

But how?

They had just run through a dying forest, and the trees just outside this small clearing were withering and crashing to the black earth, so why were these still thriving?

However, though the clearing was untouched, it was now empty, the animals and Snow White no where to be found.

Riku rushed to the spot where the princess had been sitting, wondering if he had come to a different clearing by accident. But, no, he was right... The grass here was crushed, where she had been sitting, and blood from the wound in her leg had stained some of the ground red. She had been here.

But where was she now? She said she couldn't even stand, not with her leg. And even her animals had left...

Riku exchanged looks with Sora and Mushu. "I swear she was right here..."

"Who?" Mushu asked, staring at the ground Riku had been inspecting.

"The princess. Snow White. She said the heartless were after her."

"Maybe the heartless got her," Sora suggested quietly. "And they're going to finish this world off."

"She said she was going to ward them off as long as she could..." Riku said sadly, gazing around the clearing for a sign of struggle or fight. There was none, of course.

"Ah. That explains it," Mushu mumbled, sitting back.

"What explains what?" Riku asked, turning to look at the dragon perched on Sora's head.

"Why this clearing is the only part of the forest untouched by the heartless," Mushu said. "In my world there are holy beings who can ward off evils by expanding their auras to cover a certain area. This princess must have had that power. Even though she's gone now, her power is still protecting the clearing."

"How long will it stay this way?" Sora asked.

"It would depend on how strong she was when she was casting her power, and how long she's been gone."

"So now what?" Sora sighed.

Riku returned the sigh. "We find the keyhole and see if we can save the world."

"I say we get the hell out of here," Mushu grumbled.

"And I whole-heartedly agree," came a new voice from the direction they had come. "Though, I do wonder how you came to this world in the first place."

Riku summoned the keyblade as he spun around to meet the voice. Sora, however, had a different reaction.

"Yami!" he cried and rushed up to the other boy. "I was wondering where you were!"

The white-haired boy surveyed Riku with a harmless smile, ignoring Sora's outburst. "Riku. Glad to see you found who you were looking for."

Riku narrowed his eyes at the other boy, unimpressed. "Planning on joining us?"

"I had not been planning on it, but since you suggested it, I think I might," Yami replied. "If Sora does not mind."

"But..." Sora began, looking from Riku's hostile glare to Yami's friendly smile, "we can't just leave this world like this!"

"This world is at its breaking point," Yami explained, "even if you do know a way to save it, it is too late."

"I knew it! You're not from this world!" Riku hissed, his eyes narrowing even more.

"I was merely stating the obvious," Yami commented, surprised by Riku's accusation. "That does not give you the right to assume anything about me."

"So we should just... leave?" Sora asked.

"Yes, leave!" Mushu agreed. "And fast!"

The dragon was right. The clearing they were in was already beginning to decay. The small group of boys took notice of this, and Sora looked to Riku, the shadow of fear in his blue eyes.

"Riku... How? How can we leave? Last time..." Sora began, his voice sounding small and frightened. "Last time we saved the world... A-And how can we be sure that we won't end up on another world like this one, that's being destroyed...?"

Riku took hold of Sora's hands and looked into his scared eyes. "Close your eyes. Concentrate on leaving. With me. With all of us. Concentrate on another world."

"Preferably a civilized one," Mushu muttered bitterly. "I'm starving."

Riku shot the dragon a nasty look and it shrugged innocently before ducking back into Sora's hood. The silver-haired boy continued, squeezing Sora's hands reassuringly. "Just _want_ to leave, Sora. Imagine yourself leaving."

Sora nodded, his chin set with brave determination, his eyes fluttering closed. He realized that, even though the darkness frightened him, he felt stronger knowing he was able to help Riku. Only Sora held the key the escaping. Without him, they were doomed. So he cleared his mind, thinking only of leaving.

The trees around them were beginning to stoop under the weight of death, branches crashing to the dark soil, sending clouds of grass-turned-dust into the air. The beautiful flowers of pink, yellow and white were dying, their petals falling and shriveling as they went, the grass crumbling from life. And slowly, the tide of death crept towards the trio, surrounding them, leaving them a small circumference of space.

Riku pulled Sora close to him, away from the blackening ground behind him, and Yami rested a hand on the smaller boy's shoulder, so as to not be left behind.

The deadly vines were beginning to sprout, nefariously blooming and shuddering with anticipation when they sensed life ahead of them. Then there came the heartless, stalking out of the decaying underbrush, their yellow eyes fixated on the trio, and not just Riku, it seemed. The silver-haired boy couldn't hear them speaking, however, since his hands were wrapped around Sora, and not the keyblade. There was no weapon to defend himself if they did decide to attack.

And just as the last of the green grass withered away, Riku felt the familiar presence of the cold darkness wrapping around his ankles and creeping up his legs.

Sora had done it. They were leaving! They weren't going to die on this world...!

Yami looked down at the tentacles of darkness crawling up his limbs, numbing his senses, and managed to glance over at Riku with a grin as if to say:

_You're not the only one._

Ignoring the white-haired boy, Riku clung closer to Sora, taking a deep breath as the darkness slid over them quicker now, covering their faces and welcoming them into its icy world.

This was new.

The previous two times Riku had traveled this way, he had blacked out almost immediately. But not now... He still felt very much awake, and aware of what was happening. Could it be? He was getting used to it? 

Though there was nothing to see, or even feel, he sensed the world crumbling under him, finally giving in to the heartless' desires. He mentally shivered, since his body was already doing so. He couldn't feel his arms around Sora, but he knew they were there, and the boy was there, hugging him just as tightly. And then there was Yami... but who knew what that frightening little boy was thinking? Mushu, of course, would shake the experience off like last time, and complain no matter where they ended up.

He wasn't sure how long the three of them and Mushu remained in that state of not-quite-unconscious or how long they remained in the dark, cold abyss that they were in whenever they passed between worlds.

But when Riku sensed the light, he thought of only two things. 

The first was, of course, that they were safe, that they had survived and made it to a new world. The darkness dissipated around them, revealing a strange new world filled with brown stoned buildings and flashing signs and bustling people. A city. 

Riku immediately turned to glance at Sora, who managed a weak smile before he collapsed onto the floor, pulling Riku with him. The older boy held Sora close, comforting him as they both quivered from the side effects of the darkness.

"You okay?" Riku asked softly, ignoring the tingling feeling in his limbs that indicated that he was still alive. Thank goodness. 

"Y-Yeah... Just a little tired."

"Probably from dragging us from world-to-world," Yami commented from behind them. "I would be mentally exhausted too."

Sora managed to crack a small smile.

"And dammit! I'm hungry!" Mushu cried from inside Sora's hood, voicing Riku's second thought after realizing that they had all survived.

Food.

And, judging from the low growl coming from Sora's stomach, there were no complaints.

~~~

Traverse Town! Finally! More bishounen...! ^^ Heeeeeee....

A lot of action this time round, wasn't there? Not much interaction between Sora and Riku though. But, well, that's expected, now that the plot is moving along. It'll pick up again, I promise you. And it should be obvious who Yami is, so I won't insult your intelligence and tell you. ^^ All I did was give him a new appearance and fake name--he's still who you all know and secretly love.

I don't like Snow White much, and I don't think I ever did. But, well, she's a princess, and she lives in a forest, so I thought I'd kill two plot devices in one scene. I mean, I've always wanted to write a scene in a forest, and I hope it was successful. What do you think? Eh? Eh?! Review! I need A LOT of inspiration for this next chapter... Oh yes, most definitely.


	12. Ch 11: A Passing Judgement

_Author's Notes:_

I know, I know. You want Sora and Riku to make out already. But it's not time yet! I'm still building up to the angst. And I'm shooting for plot, y'know, and right now, a full-blown make out scene is _not_ part of the current plot, nor would it fit. Yet. Anywho.... 

10,563 words. This chapter deals with plot. Plot plot plot. No action, no adventure, not much angst. It's plot. And some inserted fluff (because it stood up and demanded attention). Prepare yourself for an extremely long chapter that contains, well, characterization, basically. And plot. It's kind of boring, but it leaves you going "Ooooohh... So that's what she was planning." Ah yes.... There's lots of other shounen-ai pairing hints now too. 

Thanks to Lane, as always, for her support (aka stupor killing or "If you don't write, I'll stop drawing yaoi for you!" or "This scene sucks, add in more Yami"), and this time, thanks to Fumi for her e-mail inspiration. ^^ Both of you guys helped me **_a lot_**. Along with those Riku and Sora action figures. ^^;; hee. And of course, thanks to those who have reviewed (and I express my deepest gratitude to those who keep reviewing). 

^^ Truthfully, I had no idea what to do for this chapter, so, basically, it was written on a whim. Several of them. Halfway through it I decided to go back and add in some scenes, which is why it's taken so long (that, and that I kept deleting it on accident... no really, I'm an idiot). I was going to update on Feb 11, but since that Friday was Valentine's, I decided to just wait and add in a few extra scenes with Sora and Riku to reward readers. And then I fell into another stupor that lasted a few days. -.- Sorry. I promise the next update will be faster. But look! I made it EXTRA long for you!

_A look ahead:_

Duck, duck, goo-- er... dog? Aerith and Yuffie conspire against boys. And drinking soda can be dangerous.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Eleven: A Passing Judgement_**

Two weeks.

It had been two weeks since they had arrived in Traverse Town. The world then had been nearly overrun with the heartless, but now that Riku had sealed the keyhole in the second district, the town was stable again, and the refugees were beginning to move on with their lives.

But the world was already getting boring for the silver-haired boy.

Riku sighed as he rolled over onto his side, causing the old, tattered bed he laying on to creak noisily in the dry, dusty air. It was nearly impossible to make sense of the past few weeks, but it didn't stop him from trying whenever he found time alone to think. To him it seemed like time didn't matter any more, as if it was flowing through his fingers like loose sand in an hourglass. Two weeks had passed like two days, even with all that he had accomplished.

Though he had sealed the world, a few strong heartless appeared now and then to torment pedestrians and try to steal his heart. He had Leon to thank for helping him, although Sora most of the time insisted on helping--he never _had_ liked being left out of the things Riku did.

Both of them were somewhat pleased to see more people like them settling into the small town--people whose worlds had been swallowed by the strengthening darkness. They were now a part of those survivors, having seen no sign of Destiny Islands since they had left it, so they and Yami had fixed up a vacant building in the Third District and claimed it as their home. They helped others, of course, establish new homes, but Riku's main job was heartless hunting. He was always busy, day and night, and barely had time to spend with his Sora.  
Sora.

Recently the boy had begun to drift away from him.

And there was still no sign of Kairi. Since that day nearly three weeks ago, the last time Riku had seen Destiny Islands, he had been sifting through his memories of her, wondering if she had been someone completely different from who he had known. Judging by the encounter that night, when that strange Outsider had approached him and Kairi in the secret place, there was more to Kairi than what she was letting them know.

Agh! All this thinking was getting him no where. He was considering taking a nap to forget his troubles, but there came a sudden tugging at his collar, pulling him away from the issues swimming around in his mind. His eyes slid open to find red scales and a disproving frown.

"Hey Riku! Wake up! I've met some freaks who can probably help us save the worlds!"

It was Mushu (who had settled quite comfortably into the new world), but Riku really didn't want to deal with the dragon, his crazy antics, or saving worlds right now. So he closed his eyes again, hoping the dragon would take the hint and leave him alone to catch up on much-needed sleep.

Mushu, true to his nature, lost his patience rather quickly. Taking a large breath, he blew right into Riku's ear.

As sparks threatened to singe his hair and mar the skin of his ear, Riku flailed out with a surprised cry and rolled off the bed, hitting the cold floor with an ungraceful *thunk* that reverberate throughout the empty room of his new home.

"What the hell was that for?!" he demanded, covering his ear as he shot up from the floor and gave the dragon a nasty glare.

"It's because you never listen! You need to come down to the accessory shop _now_ so you can meet the newcomers! They're total freaks! And I thought **I** looked weird. Hah. And besides, Sora and Yami are already there," he hissed, emphasizing the last sentence with great purpose.

Rubbing his poor ear, Riku scowled at the reminder of the last problem he wanted to worry about.

Yami.

His eyes narrowed as he thought about the creepy yellow-eyed boy, who had seemed to have taken an immediate liking to Riku ever since they had arrived at Traverse Town. And it seemed like Sora, lately, was putting his trust in Yami more than he was with Riku.

And as for Riku...

He didn't trust Yami at all.

It could have been jealousy, that Yami was with Sora more than Riku was because Riku was always too busy hunting or sleeping. It could have been Yami's eerie eyes, or the way the boy spoke so formally yet managed to always twist his words into a tease specifically crafted to irk Riku.

Yami also never spoke about himself (one of the many reasons Riku didn't like the boy--he was too damn mysterious!). He never even shared their little home--he was never there and spent most of his days missing. At least, when he wasn't busy hanging around Sora or watching Riku train with his keyblade.  
  
Mushu took careful notice of the scowl Riku was giving him before he continued. "Y'know... Yami has been teaching Sora magic to use with that new sword of his... Einlanzer. How much munny did that cost again?"

"A week's worth of heartless hunting," Riku grumbled, brushing his pants off before reaching over to the small table by his bed to snatch up his shirt.

He was all too aware of Sora's new fascination with magic and the things he was capable of if he could master the right spells. The boy was already running around, lighting candlesticks with Fire and constantly asking Riku if he was hurt so he could Cure him.

And then there was Einlanzer. Sora had fallen in love with the long magical blade as soon as he had seen it displayed in the Moogle synthesizing shop. It had cost Riku a fortune, but the munny had been worth it when he saw the captivated, animated grin on Sora's face when he had held the sword for the first time.

He would have gladly spent every last cent, and maybe a limb or two, just to see that look again.

"But it was worth it," Riku added, before Mushu could reprimand Riku for spoiling his boyfriend.

The truth was, Riku didn't even have time to spend with Sora. Not even to fulfill his promise to be submissive, even though the very thought of it made him shudder.

Him? _On bottom...?_

Riku actually had to thank Yami for keeping Sora busy so that the boy didn't have a chance to wander off and go adventuring or hurt himself. Or get depressed, since Riku was never around.

"Worth it, huh? Well... Anyway. I'm just warning ya. Find more time for Sora," Mushu said, jabbing a finger in Riku's direction to emphasize his point. "But _after_ you meet the newcomers. Get down to the accessory shop!"

With that, the little red dragon scampered out the scampered out the open window and into the busy Second District streets.

Riku mentally sighed.

Newcomers?

He already had enough skilled fighters to help him keep the heartless under control. Yuffie and Leon were fine warriors. Even Aerith and Cid had skills to boast about, though they tended to like the sidelines more. Then there was Sora, of course, the bundle of energy that he was. And finally Yami. The amber-eyed kid knew magic--he hadn't shown many powerful spells, but Riku could sense that they were there.

As he slipped on his shirt, pulling his silver hair out and running his hands through it, he stalked towards the door, grabbing his gloves on the way out.

Anyway, whoever these newcomers were, he didn't need their help. Unless they offered a way out of here.

When Riku entered the spacious accessory shop, he realized what Mushu had meant by "freaks." The newcomers were, literally, a dog and a duck. Their size and gaudy attire only added to their bizarre nature, and, even though he knew it was a rude first judgement, he couldn't help thinking that these creatures were probably useless.

How could _they_ help Riku?

Assorted around the accessory shop were some of the people Riku had gotten close to over the past two weeks, and they all turned to face Riku when the door jingled to a close behind him, announcing his arrival. In the far corner of the room sat Aerith, Yuffie standing next to her with Mushu perched on her shoulder, and Leon against the wall in his usual detached way. Sora was lounging on the counter in a boyish manner, and Cid sat next to him, picking at his mouth with a toothpick. Yami was opposite Sora, sitting quietly on the floor next to Leon, his body turned towards the newcomers even though his yellow eyes were fixed on Riku at the moment.

Riku caught the gaze before smiling over at Sora, who sat up and swung his legs over the counter, raising one hand in a small wave. Then the silver-haired boy looked to Leon, who was the unofficial leader of the small group of humans.

"Right. This is Riku, the keyblade master," the older man said, speaking deeply and slowly. He was the kind of man that could quiet a room with just one hushed word because he spoke so little, and unknowingly demanded so much attention.

The duck eyed Riku reprovingly, but the dog immediately hurried forward, grasped Riku's hand and spiritedly shook it, nearly pulling the boy off-balance. Riku firmly planted his feet in place and stooped forward as the dog tried to pull him close.

"Uh-huck! I'm Goofy! Pleased to meet you."

Riku managed a polite smile as he composed himself. "...Hi...?"

Goofy grinned widely before pushing the duck forward. "And this is Donald! Donald, say hello to the keyblade master!"

The duck stubbornly crossed his arm... er... wings. "I don't like him!"

"Whether you like me or not, I'm still the keyblade master," Riku said, his voice tight with slight irritation. "I heard that you might be able to help my quest."

"_Your_ quest?!" Donald spat. "You don't know anything about it!"

"Then enlighten me. Leon and Aerith have already explained Ansem's disappearance," Riku said pleasantly, pushing his irritation and exhaustion aside and not letting the duck get to him. "He may be related to the spreading of the heartless and how the worlds are all connected now, and that, supposedly, we can figure out what happened if we gather all the pages of his report on the heartless."

"They came for a different reason," Aerith said, and Riku turned to look at her, curious. "The king who watches over all the worlds in this part of the universe has disappeared, leaving only a letter explaining his absence."

"The worlds are disappearing, so he got concerned, and left to find out why," Yuffie added. And after Riku gave her a _how the hell do you know?_ look, she added, "Er... Donald and Goofy briefed us before you showed up."

Goofy nodded quickly. "King Mickey told Donald and me to find the keyblade master and look for Leon."

"They had trouble on the way though," Leon said quietly. "The worlds around here are disappearing at an alarming rate."

"As soon as we landed on a world, it would disappear!" Donald exclaimed, clearly upset. Understandably worried.

But something about what he said caught Riku's attention.

"Land?" he asked.

"In a gummi ship," Cid explained. "Traverse Town has its own port, but not many of the people in this town will risk their pretty little necks out there, those cowards... Not with the heartless controlling the roads between worlds."

Riku's brow furrowed in angry realization. There had been a way off the world and no one had told him? He could have been out there saving worlds instead of pointlessly protecting the streets of Traverse Town!

"Why hasn't anyone mentioned this to me before?!" he demanded. "Those worlds out there are dying while I'm rotting away in this town!"

"We didn't say anything because the mayor shut the port down when the heartless invaded our town," Aerith said softly. "Many of the ships were damaged beyond repair... Now that people are moving on with their lives because you saved the world, they are considering reopening the port and seeking out other worlds in need. Cid has offered to repair some of the ships."

"Also, this is one of the few worlds that is aware that there are other worlds out there, and that they're being invaded, and that the heartless exist. That means that very few of the worlds out there know about gummi ships and how to use them," Yuffie said.

"And you would have been meddling!" the duck cried, jabbing a feathered finger at Riku. "King Mickey has managed to keep the worlds safe and separate from each other, but the heartless are ruining all of it!"

"Meddling?" Sora asked, speaking up for the first time.

"It's not good for the worlds to know about each other, so the king doesn't let many people travel," Goofy explained.

"But this is an emergency so we have permission from the king," Leon added quietly. "Any other questions?"

"Yeah," Sora said, curling his feet under him as he sat on the counter. Something about his tone caught everyone's attention. He continued with a fake smile, a hint of sadness showing through his mask. "Why did the keyblade choose Riku? Why don't the heartless care about me? And why hasn't anyone from our world made it here to Traverse Town?"

"I can answer that last question," Cid said hoarsely, chewing on his toothpick. "It's because their hearts were too weak to pass through the roads between worlds. They're either dead or have become heartless themselves."

Sora stared wide-eyed at the man, lowering his pale face as the truth settled in. "Oh... So my mom... and Kairi..."

"But I want to know about the keyblade. Why did it choose that kid?" Mushu asked from Yuffie's shoulder.

Donald shrugged. "The keyblades choose their master."

"It's said they choose those strong of heart," Goofy added, patting Riku on the shoulder.

"There's more than one keyblade?" Yuffie asked. "But Riku carries only one."

"So they say," Cid replied gruffly. "There's one we know of, but there could be more."

Donald nodded, the grumpy look on his face deepening. "Others exist or can be made."

"What about the heartless' tendency to ignore Sora?" Riku quickly cut in. "And why can he travel between worlds using the darkness?"

"I'm afraid that answer is a little more difficult to understand," Aerith said sadly.

From the corner of the room, Yami raised his head and spoke, "I think I know."

Riku turned to stare at the boy, his eyes immediately narrowing. "Do you?"

"It is merely a theory that has yet to be proven." The white-haired boy inclined his head slightly, his own eyes not moving from Riku's. "Something happened the day your world was destroyed. From what I have seen during the time I have known you two, you are quite close to each other, in more ways than one. Not just physically close in your relationship, but close mentally and ability-wise," the boy explained, his amber eyes momentarily shifting from Riku to Sora before returning to stare at the keyblade master. "Sometimes it seems you know what the other thinks, feel what the other feels... Like brothers. Twins."

Sora exchanged glances with Riku before speaking up. "We've always been that way, I think. But lately it's gotten stronger..."

"On our world, there's a legend that says if you share a certain fruit with the one you love, your bond will become unbreakable, and nothing will separate you. Sora and I shared the fruit," Riku explained. "Like Sora said, we were always really close as friends, but we became closer after we shared the fruit. And that very night, the heartless attacked."

Yami nodded again. "Continuing with what I was saying.... I have a theory. Maybe you and Sora were equals up until that night. Shared the same fate, same dreams, same love. But that night you had to make a choice, did you not?" He paused there, studying their confused faces. "That choice set your paths apart. Made you opposites."

"Opposites?" Sora asked.

"Opposites," Yami confirmed. "You will excel in magic and Riku will become an even greater swordsman. He wields the keyblade for the light, and no doubt the darkness is seeking out to dominate his power."

Yami said no more, but Riku caught the hidden meaning behind his words.

_Dominate his power._

Yami was referring to Sora. 

He could have merely said "seeking out to destroy him," but he purposely fabricated the sentence to relate it to Sora and Riku's relationship. Yami knew about their little bet, ever since Sora had let it slip a week or so ago, and knew that Sora had won the right to be the dominate one.

From what Yami was saying, because Riku held the keyblade, the darkness chose Sora.

And they were really enemies.

From the look on Sora's face, he had understood Yami's words as well. He looked over at Riku and shook his head, saying without words that they were never be torn apart by this stupid war... Their bond was too strong.

...right?

But Donald broke the silence before Riku could ease Sora's worry. 

"Well, get ready. We're leaving soon," the duck huffed as he waddled past Riku, who took a step back towards the wall, out of his way.

**_We're_**_ leaving soon._

That implied only Riku and the king's messengers.

From what Riku had just heard, there was no way he could leave Sora behind. If Fate had intended to make them enemies, Riku would just have to defy that destiny. He took a deep breath and settled his thoughts before he spoke.

"I don't want you to come with me."

All eyes turned towards Riku.

"You don't have a choice!" the duck suddenly cried as he spun towards the silver-haired boy, his eyes narrowing in anger. "King Mickey sent us to find you!"

"Uhuck, we can fight too, y'know," the odd dog-human said, his ears flapping against the side of his head as he nodded vigorously.

"So what if you were sent by the king?" Riku sighed, closing his eyes as he leaned against the wall, arms crossing over his chest in defiance. "I don't want a dog and a duck to fight with me. I'll just borrow that ship of yours and seal the worlds myself. Anyone inexperienced will just slow me down."

"But you can't do it alone!" Yuffie pitched in, taking a step towards him.

Leon stopped her with an icy glance before turning to Riku and asking, "Then who are you taking with you?"

"I checked the ship myself. There ain't more than three seats in it, kid," Cid said, mindlessly scratching at his neck. "If you bring me more gummi, I'll try buildin' a larger, more kick ass ship, but until then, you're limited to just two blokes per trip."

"Well," Riku said, not bothering to open his eyes or raise his head, "the limited space on the ship is easily solved. Just take more than one ship."

"Then how many people are you planning on bringing with you?" Aerith asked quietly from her corner next to Sora.

"Well, where am I going first?" Riku asked as he pushed away from the wall and stepped further into the room.

"The worlds around here are already gone," the duck said, a bitter tone in his voice. "Because it took so long to find you."

"But there's a strange world nearby," the dog said, "where fighting the heartless has become some sort of game."

"A tournament?" Riku asked, finally looking up.

"That's what it sounds like," Leon said, exchanging looks with the boy. "Who are you taking with you?"

Riku studied the older man for a moment before responding. "Leon, Sora and I will take one ship, and participate at this tournament, if it really is one. The king's lackeys and Yami will take the other ship and follow us," Riku explained, narrowing his eyes at the white-haired boy sitting silently across the room.

Yami returned the cold gaze, his amber eyes hiding a smile.

Donald looked around the room before making an irritated sound. "Fine! Take your own ship!" he grumbled. "But tomorrow we're leaving with or without you!"

That said, he stormed out of the accessory shop, Goofy bumbling after him, waving and saying a kind good-bye. As soon as they were gone, Cid slid back behind the counter.

"I'm reopenin' the shop for the last time before I quit to work on gummi ships," he announced, winking at Riku. "You want a good ship, right?"

Riku nodded a thanks to him before crossing the room towards Sora, who was now talking animatedly with Yuffie and Aerith. But before he could reach his boyfriend, Leon pulled him to the side, the man's dark hair falling over one eye as he studied Riku.

Riku blinked up at him in surprise, feeling a little naked under those sharp blue-gray eyes.

"You're worried about what Yami said," Leon muttered, his voice barely audible so as to not let Sora or Yami overhear him.

The keyblade master managed a resigned nod.

Leon's grip on Riku's arm tightened. "Don't be. Your worry will only make it worse."

Riku nodded again, letting the man know he was listening, and was thankful for the advice.

The swordsman released his hold on Riku, but didn't step away or raise his voice. "I'll have Yuffie and the others take care of the town while we're away. And when you're busy with Sora--"

Riku's eyes widened, his cheeks flushing a little.

"--I'll keep an eye on Yami for you."

"Thanks," he murmured, grinning lightly up at the man.

Leon gave a solemn nod of acknowledgment before stepping aside to let the boy pass, but when he did, Yami raised his eyes and stared at Riku, his yellow eyes narrowed and knowing. Riku studied that look for a moment, wondering if Yami had actually overheard him and Leon, but hushed giggling drew him out of his thoughts. Both Aerith and Yuffie were staring his way, hiding smiles behind their hands while Sora was giving the girls a rather confused look before he followed their gaze and also looked over at Riku. The chocolate-haired boy frowned, his lower lip sticking out a little as he reached up to tugged on Yuffie's arm.

"So are we going?" he asked the ninja girl, who inclined her head to grin down on him.

"Of course!" she laughed, and Aerith nodded in agreement. "Just the three of us. And don't worry--we'll pay for everything."

Riku raised an eyebrow at that statement. Just what were those three planning any way? But before he could open his mouth and ask, Sora had bounced over and leapt onto him.

"They're taking me shopping, Ri~ku!" he cried happily, clinging tightly to the silver-haired boy like a sugar-rushed monkey.

Reaching over to ruffle Sora's hair, Riku asked, "Shopping? What for?"

"Clothes," Sora replied, his voice hinting at clandestine intentions.

"What's wrong with the ones you have now?"

Sora tilted his head to stare purposefully at Riku. "Back at home I had more than one outfit, y'know. The only way I can get my clothes cleaned now is when I take a bath, because any other time I'll be wearing them. It's stupid. So, as an early birthday present, Aerith and Yuffie are taking me shopping."

Birthday.

That's right. Sora was turning fifteen in a few weeks. He and Riku would be the same age for about four months, and then Riku would turn sixteen.

"Well, I hope you have fun. And don't spend all of their munny," Riku said as he leaned in to give Sora a chaste kiss.

The boy widely grinned in response, bright blue eyes cutely closing, and Riku swore that if Sora had a tail, he would have been wagging it in glee. "Don't worry! I'll get something for you too!" was the boy's response before he released Riku and bounced back over to the two brunette women.

"You two are so adorable together..." Aerith commented quietly, gently smiling down at Sora. 

"Adorable? It's hot! Hot hot **hot**," Yuffie laughed, winking as she grabbed Sora's arm and began dragging him out of the shop, leaving a rather surprised Riku behind staring after them. 

Aerith followed closely behind, stifling a small giggle behind pale fingers as she darted past Riku as well. 

The silver-haired boy watched them disappear before he turned to Leon, sighing. "I don't understand women."

The older man managed a short smile before he leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest and closing his cloudy blue eyes. "Be careful around those two. Yuffie was too young to know what she was doing back then, but they tried to get me to go out on a date with one of my male friends."

Riku raised an eyebrow, curious. "Oh. I didn't know you..."

"I don't," Leon cut in sharply. "Relationships aren't my thing. Men or women."

"So then why did they try to hook you up with your.. Er.... male friend?"

"Girlish fantasies. I don't really know," he sighed, waving a gloved hand through the air. "After our world was destroyed, and our leader Ansem vanished, the two of them stopped their little antics. I guess they couldn't continue since my intended partner had disappeared too. You and Sora seem to have restored their interests though, which is why I thought I would warn you."

"Aa, I remember that time."

Both Leon and Riku turned towards Cid, who had spoken up so suddenly. The blonde man was scratching at the stubble on his chin, one eye narrowed as he intently studied Leon. Leon narrowed his eyes as if to ask, _"Which time?"_

Cid gave a crooked grin. "His name was Cloud, right? Pesky little brat. Blonde hair, liked to hang out with you. The women were always sayin' he was goin' to grow up to be a looker. Can't say much about him now--probably wanderin' aimlessly somewhere."

"He was your best friend?" Riku asked.

"More like a leech. Always wanted to do what the older kids were doing," Leon responded with a sigh.

"He thought of you and Sephiroth as older brothers or something," Cid laughed gruffly. "Worshiped the ground you walked on. 'Course, he was just a kid then. Didn't know better."

"We pulled the most awful pranks on him," Leon said, a bitter smile on his face. "He never cried, and always came back, asking us if there was anything he could do."

Riku suddenly laughed, causing Leon's eyes to flutter open to stare at him curiously. Rubbing at his forehead in an attempt to assuage his exhaustion for a bit longer, Riku said, "That sounds like Wakka and me always teasing Sora, who would gang up with Tidus and the girls to try to beat me up. Sora can't stand losing."

Cid grinned over at Leon. "See Squall? And Sora and Riku are together now. Makes me wonder how you would have ended up if that whole heartless thing never had happened."

Leon pushed away from the wall, glowering at the older man. "My name is Leon now. And Cloud was nothing more than an annoyance to me."

"Aw, c'mon," Cid laughed, "the kid must have meant more to you than that. You said earlier he was your friend. And though it disturbs me to admit it, Sora and Riku really go together."

"We are _not_ going to discuss my sexuality, Cid," Leon growled as he headed towards the door, his eyes sliding shut to indicate the conversation was over. Finished. And was _not_ going to be picked up again any time soon.

And from the corner of the room, Yami remained sitting there, his yellow eyes curiously watching Riku.

"And what about you, Yami?"

Cid's brass voice cut through the air, causing Leon to freeze on his way to the door. He wanted to hear this conversation. Rarely did anyone address Yami so directly, and no one really knew why either. Then again, even if they wanted to, the boy was hard to find, spending most of his days missing--something Riku constantly found himself speculating about. Today Yami just happened to still be there for Cid to pick on. And so Leon turned his back and pressed against the wall in a casual lean, his interests sparked.

The white-haired boy lifted his chin to meet Cid's questioning gaze, managing a short smile. As usual, he spoke elegantly, his voice soft and deep for his age.

"Usually I found myself too lost in my own thoughts to ever consider inviting romance into my life," he said quietly. But then he paused, gesturing with one hand. "No, no. Forgive me. Romance is rather a significant part of my life, however ordinary minds would probably misunderstand just how."

"So enlighten us as to what goes on in that brain of yours," Cid said, pulling the toothpick out of his mouth. He took a moment to brush it against his dirty shirt before slipping it back between his teeth. "You never say much, so here's your chance."

"As of late, the heartless have entertained my thoughts," Yami admitted immediately. "I believe the heartless, hinted from their name, take hearts. They are born from those who have lost their hearts, and thrive on the hearts seized from others. Then those hearts taken by the heartless become Heartless themselves and their victims vanish without a trace, leaving only the memories they shared with those they had known. Like the stars in the night sky, they simply wink out. Become part of the darkness."

"The darkness...?" Riku murmured, and Yami slowly turned his head to gaze at him.

"Hearts are said to have been born from darkness," the white-haired boy said softly. "Perhaps the heartless are merely returning them to their original states."

Cid suddenly shuddered. "Those stupid creatures can do that?"

"Though they obviously lack emotions," Yami continued, brushing distractedly at his bangs a little, "they do seem to have some intelligence."

"They do," Riku agreed. "They speak to each other sometimes... about their mission, though they never say what it is. And sometimes they argue over things so they won't anger their master."

"Their master?" Leon asked, speaking up finally. "Like the keyblade that fights for the light, the heartless fight for the darkness?"

"The keyblade does not necessarily fight for the light," Riku said, his brow furrowing. "There's no proof. I think it's neutral, and just does what its master wants. If the master fights for the light, then so does the keyblade."

"Then let me rephrase that," Leon sighed, waving a hand. "Like the Keyblade Master who fights for the light, there is a 'master' who works for the darkness?"

Yami said nothing, his yellow eyes staring intently at Riku.

"But, hey, what about what Yami said earlier?" Cid asked, worry crossing his face. "Riku and Sora are 'opposites' or whatever, right? So if Riku's the Keyblade Master, then Sora works for the darkness? He controls the heartless?"

There was a long silence, and then...

"Shit. But Sora doesn't know, does he?"

"If the theory is true, it doesn't necessarily mean Sora has to fight for the darkness," Leon said darkly, staring directly at Cid to assuage the man's concerns. "The boy hasn't shown any signs of leading the heartless on, has he?"

"He's scared of the dark," Riku added. "And besides, Sora wouldn't put me in that kind of danger."

"How can you be so sure?" Yami asked.

Riku turned his green eyes towards him, meeting the amber eyes with a cold glare. "Because he loves me!"

Yami simply smiled. "Perhaps the love you share will not be enough."

~~~

Elsewhere in Traverse Town, Yuffie was browsing through racks of dark clothes and handing random items to Aerith, who held them up to Sora, who was standing there, being bombarded with comments about his looks and how "this cut is too girly for him" or "this shirt is too tight--he has to grow into it, Yuffie."

When the two girls had pulled him into a looming Second District building with oddly-dressed mannequins in the display window (skimpy shorts, revealing shirts, dark colors), Sora should have known this had been coming.

He tried his best to argue with the girls--they seemed fond of shirts that would show off his still-pudgy belly, and Sora knew he would never see the end of Riku's teasing if he ever wore something like that in public. 

"Sora's right," Aerith had said sometime earlier. "He's only going to be fifteen and still has some of his baby fat."

But something had flickered in Yuffie's eyes then. "Then we need to get him something a few sizes bigger, so that when he really hits puberty, it'll cling to his newly-formed muscles." She paused there to savor the image in her mind, not noticing Sora's blue eyes go wide and his cheeks turn a nice cherry red. Nodding with a new purpose in mind, Yuffie grinned, "I'm sure Riku will love that."

"Okay..." Aerith agreed slowly, "but what is he going to wear _now_?"

And so the search for Sora's new outfits had ensued whilst Sora was also browsing, but not for himself--he had said he was going to bring Riku something back, after all. Sora constantly felt helpless as the two girls rounded on him and tilted their heads, studying him like an open book. He could only imagine what was going through their heads, for neither of them spoke, only making contemplative faces, Yuffie twisting her mouth one way as she stared at him, and Aerith biting thoughtfully at her lip.

"But Sora's so young..." Yuffie sighed, rubbing the back of her head. "I feel kind of bad."

"You didn't have second thoughts when helping me outfit Cloud when he was twelve."

"I was six at the time," Yuffie reminded her. "I thought it was a game."

"Well, Cloud certainly liked it. He thought we were saints because we were trying to help him get closer to Squall."

"Who was about Sora's age at the time," Yuffie realized, suddenly smiling again.

"Squall?" Sora asked innocently, finally speaking up, having been too lost in the clothes racks to follow much of the conversation. But the names Cloud and Squall had sparked his interest, for he could have sworn he had heard them somewhere before.

Yuffie and Aerith turned back towards Sora.

"Oh," Yuffie said, realizing they had left Sora completely out of the loop. She smiled in apology. "Sorry. Squall is Leon's old name, before our world was destroyed..."

"Oh..."

"Cloud, who was one of Squall's friends, had a childhood infatuation with him," Aerith explained.

"She tried to play matchmaker," Yuffie added, "but it didn't work out."

"Did Leon like him too?" Sora asked innocently. Frankly, he was surprised to hear this about the sullen stormy-eyed man he had begun to trust over the past two weeks. And for a moment he wondered if Riku knew about this piece of Leon's past.

Aerith sadly shook her head, her soft brown hair shifting with the movement. "Squall never showed any signs of returning interest in Cloud."

Sora blinked, confused. "Then why aren't either of you with him? You both seem to know him so well."

"He's too old for me," Yuffie laughed, "and I know Aerith has tried--I mean, who wouldn't? Half the women he's met have tried. Squall is just... not interested."

"Oh."

Silence filled the air as Yuffie and Aerith exchanged glances before they returned to inspecting Sora.

"I think Sora should stick with red or try black," Yuffie said, raising an eyebrow. "Red goes with his hair. Black will make him look more mature."

"Sometimes black can make a person seem younger, though," Aerith pointed out quietly.

"But what about my belly?" Sora asked, slightly worried as they went back to digging through the exposing shirts. "I don't want to be teased...."

"If Riku teases you about something, he probably loves it about you," the haughty ninja grinned. She suddenly paused and whipped out an article of clothing from the rack, a triumphant look on her face. "Ah-ha! How about this?!" she asked, holding it up for Aerith to see.

The flower girl bit her lip as she studied it. "I thought were shooting for sexy, not cute?"

"We'll buy him more than one outfit then, and he can choose which one to wear on his date."

Sora snapped to attention, the word "date" ringing in his ears. "D-Date? Riku and I are going on a date?" Why hadn't they told him about this before? And he was going to have to wear one of his new outfits in _public_...?

"Yup," Yuffie said nonchalantly as she held up a net-like shirt in front of Sora. "As soon as you ask him."

Eyeing the article of clothing skeptically, Sora failed to see one of the attendants of the store approach the three of them. The woman kindly smiled at them. "May I help you?" she asked, her voice tinny and accented.

Aerith immediately turned to the woman. "Yes. Do you have anything cute, yet sexy, preferably in the colors black or red, that would fit this boy? He is trying to impress his boyfriend on their date out tonight."

Sora stooped his head, feeling the blush cover his cheeks as this new woman raised her eyebrows and curiously inspected him. He could practically hear the wheels in her head turning as she snapped into Dress-up mode.

This was going to be a long day.

"Well, _this_ shirt would go nicely, though since it gets a bit chilly at night here, a jacket wouldn't hurt..."

~~~

"I think they're finally giving up," Riku sighed as he swung the keyblade around to rest on his shoulder, glancing up at Leon. "The past few days have been rather uneventful."

He knew the older man wasn't much of the small-talk type (then again, Riku wasn't either), but the boy was trying to keep his mind off other things, namely Sora--Sora's trip shopping, Sora's new outfits if indeed he got any, his and Sora's relationship, Sora's need for dominance.... The list went on. Thankfully for Riku, Leon was also trying to keep his mind off certain things (things Riku was beginning to guess at), and didn't find the inane chatter an annoyance.

"The heartless don't give up that easily," Leon commented solemnly. 

The two of them were lounging on the wall in front of the small house, their legs slung lazily over, feet kicking back and forth against the hard brick. So far, that day, there hadn't been any encounters, and they were beyond bored, just sitting there and finding comfort in each other's silent presence. Occasionally someone they knew, like one of the survivors Riku had helped settle in to a new home, would pass by and make a few random comments to try to strike up intelligent conversation with the two warriors--boring announcements about newcomers to Traverse Town, how he/she had heard about Riku defeating the heartless in a small skirmish the other day and how he had fought so "valiantly," or how the weather was probably going to take a drastic change for the worse. Boring things like that.

A few laconic responses from Riku or Leon would send the townspeople on their way, leaving them alone in sweet silence again. Unsettling silence, yes, but sweet nonetheless.

Riku would have much preferred Sora, for the boy always found something to talk about, or came up with the strangest ideas to act out. But Leon was fine--better than Aerith and Yuffie (Riku shuddered when he thought about the torture they were probably pulling Sora through), and certainly better than Yami.

Yami. Even the name painted those yellow eyes in Riku's head and made him scowl.

"We got him an entire new wardrobe!"

Leon's head suddenly snapped up and he nearly fell off the wall as Yuffie's voice rang in his ears and two hands clamped down onto his shoulders, roughly jerking him out of his thoughts and nearly causing him to have a heart attack. Riku, however, kept his calm quite well, turning around to grin over at the ninja and the flower girl, who was standing behind them.

"Should you be spending your munny on potions and armor and such?" Leon asked, irritation seeping into his normally stoic voice.

"Got plenty of defense, and I'm sure Riku will take plenty care of him so that they won't need too many potions," Yuffie casually replied, waving one hand in emphasis. "Right Riku?"

"We're going to be traveling a lot though," Leon put in. "He won't have time to flaunt those new outfits of his."

"That doesn't mean he can't wear them in the future when he's not so busy," Aerith said gently. "He's only fourteen, Leon."

"What about his red jumper?" Riku asked. "You didn't throw it out did you?"

"What?" Yuffie asked, letting go of Leon finally, her head tilting slightly in question.

"The outfit he always wears. It.... has special meaning. It's the only thing he has from home."

"Oh, that. It's already tucked into his dresser," Yuffie grinned. "Cleaned and patched up for use when you guys leave tomorrow. He said that since all his new clothes were so nice, he designated his old outfit as his battle attire."

"And where is Sora now?" Riku asked, leaning to one side to try to see behind Aerith, wondering if the boy was hiding behind her. But he wasn't. 

Mushu suddenly popped out of Aerith's ponytail to speak. "Accessory shop."

Riku blinked, realizing he hadn't seen the dragon since that morning in Cid's shop. "Oh, hey Mushu. Where have you been all day?"

"That cooky old wizard Merlin wanted me to tell him about my world," the dragon replied. "Seemed really interested in my guardian status. The crazy bastard kept me there for hours. I'm just about to go back though... Just thought I'd drop by."

"And come ooooon, Riku...!" Yuffie whined, stooping over the boy still sitting on the wall. "You _know_ you want to see Sora!!"

Of course he did! Riku slipped off the wall and straightened his back, letting the keyblade disappear from his grasp.

"Yeah, yeah," he sighed dramatically, letting the enthusiastic ninja pull him to the shop where Sora was waiting. 

Wait. Yami would be there, wouldn't he? He would have gotten to see Sora's new outfit first!

Riku suddenly felt a twinge of jealousy melding with his headache and he felt his hopeful spirit drop a few notches. Great. And sure enough, when Riku got there and entered his shop, Yami's eyes were already staring at him, an amused look on the boy's tanned face. But before Riku could glare back a small body collided with his and he fell backwards into Leon, who pushed him back into a standing position as Sora clung to him, a wide grin plastered onto the boy's face.

Riku should have known Sora would have taken the glomping approach. The boy had always been the clingy type when he got excited. But wait... 

Brown hair in the same style as always. Cheeks with an adorable red tinge. Blue eyes bright with hope and anticipation. 

This was normal Sora, though he still managed to bring a greedy grin to the silver-haired boy's lips.

"Riku, guesswhatguesswhatguesswhat!!" the boy cried, letting go of his boyfriend and leaping back.

"What what what?" Riku asked, but as soon as he did, he saw just what. 

Now that Sora had backed up, Riku had a clear look at the boy's clothes, and the reaction was immediate. Green eyes widening, Riku felt one of his hands clamp to his forehead in surprise (or maybe to hold back his bangs so he could get a better look), knowing full well and not caring that a hint of red was creeping onto his face. As Riku's eyes slowly crawled southward, he felt his heart ram straight into his throat and his mind wither down to mere hormones.

Sora, plainly put, looked _great_.

He.. He was becoming a lecher. From now on, no matter what Sora did, it was going to drive Riku mad with lust. He just knew it. But then again, that was probably what Sora had been aiming for in the first place, the devious devil.

Black choker with crown attached. Red fishnet shirt. Black fingerless gloves. Black boots covered in red buckles. Black belt hanging off one hip, old crowned chain attached. Extremely short black shorts rolled at the end.

Well, they weren't actually _that_ short, they were nice and showed off his legs very well--and what niiiiiice legs they were now that they weren't hidden beneath those large balloon-like shorts, though those Riku loved as well, it was just _this_ outfit make Riku look at him in a new perspective. Not to mention the revealing net shirt--no, revealing was an understatement--the thing barely covered any skin and didn't even cover Sora's belly! Wait. Belly. What had happened to that beloved pudge Riku had grown so attached to? When had Sora lost it...? Not that Riku minded Sora's belly now--it was still rather cute and--

"C'mon, Ri~ku. I'm hungry!" he announced, pulling his still-ogling boyfriend's arm in an attempt to pull him out of the store.

Not really in the state of mind or mood to argue or resist Sora's wishes, Riku was soon struggling to keep his balance as Sora led him to the door, Aerith and Yuffie still giggling like gossip-spreading school girls, and Yami staring at them from the corner with his amber-colored eyes. As soon as the door had jingled close behind them, Riku batted Sora's hand away.

Sora released his grip on the other boy's arm, his smile faltering slightly. "What's wrong?"

"You don't have to drag me, y'know," Riku said, already feeling a headache twinging at the sides of his skull from thinking too much while suffering from lack of sleep. Or it could have been the rush of hormones. "I'm well capable of walking on my own. If you really want to go out to eat with me so badly, you only have to ask..."

Bright blue eyes softened sadly. "I know..." was Sora's slow response. "I just wanted people to know we were going together. Since we never go anywhere, or do anything, just as the two of us..."

Of course Riku already knew this, and already felt bad enough about it without Sora reminding him. But it wasn't Sora's fault, and the boy didn't deserve any more alienation, especially from Riku.

Green eyes lowering, Riku inwardly sighed. 

He would just have to ignore his headache, mentally crumple his grumpy mood up and stuff it into the recesses of his mind, pushing aside exhaustion.

Sora, who had seen the look on Riku's face, had begun to get that watery pleading "pity me, I'm cute" look in his own eyes.

Taking Sora's hand in his, glove rubbing against glove, Riku smiled. "Holding hands is generally faster than being dragged," he explained casually as Sora's face began to light up with excitement.

Finally, after two weeks of waiting for Riku, Sora was going to have a day out with his boyfriend.

In his new outfit.

~~~

Even through the haze of the sleep-deprivation in his mind, he couldn't help staring at Sora as the boy approached the table, a tall glass cupped in his fingerless gloved hands. But this time he wasn't ogling the boy's figure--it was the drink in his hands that make Riku look twice.

"Sora? Um... What's that?" Riku asked, poking at the glass containing fizzy sky-colored water, wondering if it was poisonous. Judging by the tiny bubbles furiously swirling around and the metallic odor it gave off, it wasn't safe.

Sora set the glass down on the table and slid into the same booth as Riku, shifting a bit to settle in comfortably next to his boyfriend before he answered. "It's called a soda. Cid, supposedly, drinks these all the time. They won't hurt you or anything. He just says they give you a 'buzz'.... Whatever that means."

Riku looked at the glass, raising an eyebrow. "So who's going to try it first?" he asked, rather doubtful.

As Sora tilted his head and stared at the glass, a wide smile broke over his lips, and he turned towards his boyfriend.

Taking Sora's expression to mean 'You go first, I dare you, and you owe me _big_ time,' Riku smirked, accepting the challenge. "All right. Being the elder, more courageous of the two of us, I'll go first," he announced, his voice ringing with superfluous audacity.

Sora caught the fake tone and grinned back in response, nudging the glass towards him. "Anything Cid likes is bound to be dangerous," he pointed out, watching as Riku slowly took the glass in both hands and cautiously peered over the rim.

"Yeah..." was Riku's reply, the sound of glass sliding over wood muffling his voice as he dragged the glass to the edge of the table before lifting it to his lips.

There was a pause...

And, wanting to get it over with quickly, Riku tilted the glass and took a long drink from the 'soda.'

As his mouth exploded with thousands of those tiny bubbles, Riku slammed the glass back onto the table, sputtering as he struggled to swallow. He squeezed his eyes shut as they threatened to water, and he coughed as the strange drink burned its way down his throat. It tasted bittersweet, a bit like honeyed metal, but it was no thicker than water... so why was it so hard to swallow?

Sora suddenly pressed his mouth to his boyfriend's pursed lips, and Riku's eyes flew open in surprise. Pulling away, Sora paused to lick his lips, tasting the flavor of the soda, and then leaned back in to trail his tongue down Riku's chin where some of the drink had dribbled. Riku flushed miserably, breath hitching in his throat as the short-shorted Sora climbed into his lap, now nibbling on Riku's lower lip.

Riku slid his hands to Sora's shoulders, breathing, "Sora...You're going to get us kicked out."

"And you're not doing much to stop me," Sora replied, a sly smirk on his boyish face.

And for a brief moment, Riku saw someone completely different from the Sora he had grown up with. Not the deep, adventurously daring Sora, but a dominant devil indulging itself in Riku, trying to delve into him, burrowing itself a dark hole in the Keyblade Master's heart.

"You haven't said anything about my new outfit. Do you... like it?" Sora asked slowly, arms winding around Riku's waist, hands slipping under shirt and skimming over bare skin.

Riku managed an edgy nod, trying hard to forget the ache between his legs and dirty thoughts that Sora's touches were invoking. Of all places... in the middle of a restaurant! Riku wasn't sure if he wanted to kill Sora or rape him. The latter was getting increasingly more tempting with each fleeting second.

Sora nuzzled his way into Riku's neck, whispering gentle kisses here and there. "You do...?" he asked softly, grinning against Riku's throat. His hands began to slip under the waist of Riku's pants, cold palms sliding over warm hips, causing Riku to visibly squirm. "How much?"

"S-Sora! Stop!"

Unfortunately for Sora, one of the clean-up crewmen had passed by the table then and, with one glance at the couple, his eyes widened to the size of saucers, mouth dropping open to gape. A minute later Sora and Riku were in the street, Sora feeling a little unsatisfied and was mumbling about close-minded people whilst Riku was walking oddly, still hot and bothered from Sora's thorough flirting. Their only punishment, other than being thrown out, had been a strict warning that if the two of them ever returned to the restaurant and tried "that" again, they'd never be able to come back.

Obviously the waiter had never had the object of his lust and love sit in his lap and try to seduce him.

Sora, a bit ashamed, promised he'd behave in the next restaurant, and thus they trudged away, soda-less, Riku's arm draped around Sora's waist, and the boy's head resting on Riku's shoulder.

It had been a long day for both of them, but the night still belonged to them.

~~~

"Yami's been teaching me magic," Sora said, smiling lightly as he played with his new fingerless gloves, making them dance across the table towards his old pair. Small-talking. 

That's what he was doing. Even though they had talked all evening, Sora still had something to say. It was still early in the night (well, early by Riku's standards--he was used to staying up until dawn, scanning the streets for heartless), but the two of them had already retired to their small home. Sora had changed out of his new outfit and pulled on his red jumper and jacket, expecting to go out again later. After Riku had inquired the change of clothes, Sora had merely smiled and said that it "felt odd" when people in the street had stared at him--he felt much safer in his jumper.

After a rather peaceful dinner, they'd wandered around Traverse Town, browsing for entertainment. In the first district they had window shopped (Sora had eerily adopted an eye for bargains from Yuffie and Aerith in only one day) and stopped in the second district to go through their purchases (Sora had tried to seduce him there, on the bench, but an old couple had walked by and scared Sora into stopping). 

The third district had produced a rather comedic re-enactment of Riku saving the world and sealing the keyhole (costumes had been petty, acting was bland, and the props were obviously last-minute additions). Riku had felt rather flattered that people were taking his deeds so strongly to their hearts, but Sora had been a little disappointed that he had never been mentioned. 

In fact, while people recognized Riku everywhere, Sora, to them, seemed to just... be there. He was just another person in the crowd, not his boyfriend. Even Leon had gotten some credit in Riku's deeds.

And here Sora was, trying to keep Riku interested by striking up small-talk. About Yami of all people.

"So I've heard," Riku replied as he lazily tossed his shoes across the room.

They bounced off the wall and rolled to a stop at Sora's feet, who cast a quick glance at them before raising an eyebrow at Riku. "It's still really early... Going to bed already?" he asked, his blue eyes a little hopeful.

After all, this was the first day they had had alone together in a long while. And, even though the day had been exhausting, Sora wasn't going to let this opportunity go to waste.

Riku recognized the tone in Sora's voice and managed a small grin. "Yes, I am," he replied, pulling off his gloves and tossing them over to Sora, who caught them in time to see Riku sliding his shirt over his head and throwing that to the ground as well. "You can join me as long as he promise not to molest me. I need sleep."

Sora, whose gaze was now fixated on Riku and admiring how his silver hair fell so nicely against his pale skin, responded with, "What about our other promise though? It's been a long time since I won the bet."

He hesitated there, his blue eyes roaming over Riku's shoulders and down his finely-shaped chest and smooth stomach. Pink tongue darting out to wet hungry lips, Sora observed that Riku was, unfortunately, keeping his pants on, their waist hugging his hips as he stooped slightly over to fold back the covers of the small bed.

Sora gathered his courage and set the gloves down, his voice sounding a bit smaller. "I get to be on top, right? The number is three now."

At this Riku froze, one hand grasping the covers, one knee already on the bed. Slowly he turned to glance at Sora, his silver hair sliding over his bare shoulders to dangle past his chin. "Three...?" he asked quietly, sounding unsure.

Sora nodded as Riku resumed climbing into bed, and, taking this as a hint, the boy grinned, reaching down to pull off his socks. "Yeah, three. I saved you when the forest was dying back in the princess' world. At the time I was the only one who could get us out of there, or we would have disappeared with the world, y'know. I saved you."

Riku tensed, realizing that Sora was right yet again. That _did_ make it three times.

"Oh... Three it is, then."

Sora tossed the socks across the room and bounded over to the small bed, grinning widely and already climbing in when Riku moved to stop him, putting both hands up, one still clutching a blanket.

"H-hey! You're not getting in here with your jumpsuit thing on!" he cried, and Sora paused, blinking innocently at him.

"But I get cold."

At least he wasn't trying to sleep with Riku wearing one of his new outfits. Riku didn't think he'd be able to sleep with tight black leather rubbing up against him all night.

"Didn't the girls buy you something warm to sleep in? You're always cold nowadays," Riku sighed, managing a warm smile at the brown-haired boy. "Anyway, I don't mind. You can steal some of my body heat."

Sora pursed his lips, taking in Riku's suggestion.

Snuggling all night with his boyfriend? Alone? No interruptions?

How could he resist?

Sora grinned, already discarding his jacket, and then began trying to pull off his jumper as he quickly unzipped it, but did one a little too fast and the other too slow, and ended up stumbling over the clothes as he clumsily tried to climb into the bed where Riku watched him, holding back an amused chuckle. When he finally freed himself, he was wearing less clothes than Riku, his tanned skin glowing softly in the moonlight dancing through the window as he leaned over and smiled down at his boyfriend, his crown necklace danging just a few inches in front of Riku's tired face.

"I think that undressing was a record time," Riku commented timidly, wrapping a hand over one of Sora's wrists and scooting over to let the boy slip into bed next to him. He tugged Sora towards him, and the boy hesitated not even a moment before climbing under the covers and curling up against Riku. Riku kissed his forehead as they settled back into the pillows, wrapping his arms around the boy's small waist and pulling him close.

"Feels nice..." Sora murmured, nuzzling his face into Riku's neck and clinging closely to the warm skin of the older boy's chest. "Why haven't we done this before?"

"Life intervenes," Riku replied lazily, gently running a finger up Sora's bare spine before moving it back down to trace under the waistband of the boy's undershorts. Sora squirmed a bit at that, but said nothing, pressing his hips against Riku's and twining their legs together.

"You _are_ my life..." Sora sighed, his eyes sliding close to welcome sleep. "But I get to be on top."

________________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks to those of you who went out of your way to brainstorm up your own theories on what's going to happen in Stygian Solace. Some of you have gotten close, so I figure I'm putting enough foreshadowing and symbolism in there. Am I doing a good job?

I hope none of you get angry at me for focusing so much on the FF characters in this chapter. I surprised myself at how much detail I went into them. Also, I would have went with the Aeris spelling, but since I'm trying to stick with the FF characters' KH stories, I used Aerith instead. And Leon. I didn't go too far out of line with Sephiroth, did I?  
  
I'm relieved to hear that most of you have accepted Yami. I wasn't sure if my portrayal of him would fit with the original KH story (it doesn't, not now.... but oh well), but, judging by the lack of (thankful) adversity towards him, he was successful. And now I hope you accept my characterizations of the FF characters. ^^;; Their little side stories added a lot to this chapter. Urk... And don't worry, all will be explained later. I think. I hope.   
  
But, by all means, don't let this stop you from asking those excellent questions! ^^ It lets me know you're still interested in Stygian Solace, and that you like it, and want to know more. So ask away!


	13. Ch 12: Gemini’s Cruel Fates part one

Author Notes:

Yes, you read the title correctly. This is only the first part of the chapter. The second part will come soon, hopefully. I know what I want to write... I just need to do it. ^^ Actually, the next two chapters are sorta sketched out. Go me! Weird chapter. It's full of humor, actually, which is really odd for me.

Thanks to Yasha for the awesome gift art!! ^___^ It inspired me greatly. And of course, thanks to Lane for reminding me that I have yaoi-craving readers (and for drawing for me), and to Fumi for tolerating my obsessive e-mails and fangirl-ish squealing (phwee! thank you!!). Ah, and thanks to Sey for asking all those wonderful questions that made me get my brain back into gear. All of you are so wonderful to me. 

I've made a website!! ^^ Finally. Check my bio for the link. It's all about Stygian Solace. Maybe now I'll get more attention. Wee. I need submissions. I'm interested in kind of SS-related stuff you guys will come up with, so please submit. ^^

And don't mind me. This chapter was done in a hurry, so there are probably typos out my ears (which I will fix later), and there are probably some scenes that I totally screwed up because my brain is dead (please forgive me for my randomness!). You see, I'm going through a Spiral -Suiri no Kizuna- stupor because I overanalyzed it and I was right in the end, and when things like that happen, my brain dies for a few days. Kanone...! Why?? *cries*

A look ahead:

A dream within a dream. Who's whose darkness or strength? Hot damn!! Has it really been nine years?

____________________________________________________________________________________

__

Chapter Twelve: Gemini's Cruel Fates -- part one

  
  


The song came in a carefree tone, without a beat and without real meaning, like a lullaby crafted carelessly by a young girl dancing in her new sundress on a cloudless afternoon. The notes were pitched high and broken by small giggles, but even then the song had something about it that entranced Riku.

"_Tendi la ma~no. E'giunta l'o~ra, de-sta-ti..._"

But no little girl was singing this song, nor was it sung under the sun in a field of white and yellow flowers. This setting was grey. Dark and wet and industrial. Neon lights lit the way along the cobble-stone street, archaic statues of demons looming from the terraces above, the rain giving their bodies an eerie glistening effect. The rain, however, seemed to have no dampening effects on the singer's spirits.

"_Le porte verra~n~no schi-u-se._"

A flutter of black feathers caught Riku's attention and he turned to stare at the dark-winged Sora as the boy effortlessly leapt from scaffold to belvedere, his wings spread as he gracefully landed each time, always remaining on the terraces above Riku. The boy paused to giggle in the break of his song, blue eyes winking down at Riku before the dark angel turned to spring onto a closer building, drops of grey water sprinkling from his wet feathers as his shadow passed over the silver-haired boy.

"_Su rime~mbra tu tre-pi-da... Su sveglia! E~hi ri-cor-da._"

Sora momentarily passed out of sight behind a line of tall gargoyle statues, his song floating in the wet air behind him. Intrigued, Riku found himself standing before the statues, and not really concerned about how he had gotten on top of a roof without actually doing anything. 

This was only a dream after all.

He stepped up to the stone beasts and raised his head to glance upward, squinting as the rain poured down onto his cheeks. Sora was now draped across a gargoyle's back, humming a sweet tune and bobbing his head to its rhythm as he stared down at Riku, a smile spread over his lips.

Finally. He had a chance to speak to this strange apparition of Sora.

"Sora?"

The winged figure tilted his head curiously at being addressed so directly. Wet chocolate-colored hair framed the sides of Sora's face as he stared down at Riku with those distant blue eyes, his strange black clothes soaked and clinging to his figure and those wings drooping from the weight of the rain water.

"Ri~ku."

"Why do you always have black wings in my dreams?"

Sora sat up, straddling the statue's hunched back as he gestured down to Riku. "Even though the dream hurts me, I...." There he paused, his wings shifting impatiently as he pondered for a short moment. "I... don't change anything."

"My dreams hurt you, Sora? How?" Riku asked, suddenly shivering. Something felt off... Wrong. 

"I opened a new door."

"W-what?"

"I continue into the expanding world." Sora's smile faded a little, turning a bit sad as his arms slipped around himself and he lowered his wings so that they draped over the statue. "I could embrace this body until it hurts. I could hurt myself... in order to become just a little bit stronger..."

"Sora, you don't need to do that. I said I would protect you, remember?" Riku said, managing a shaky smile as he slowly extended his hand upward.

The winged Sora hesitated a moment, his blue eyes focused on the hand. And with a soft sound of wet feathers, Sora dropped to the surface of the roof in front of Riku, the gargoyles towering behind him. He shifted his feet as his wings arched outward, his eyes carefully studying Riku.

"I just.... keep walking on the endlessly continuing road," he said softly, taking Riku's hand. "Tell me, Riku... Have you arrived to give strength to those who have forgotten to be brave?"

Riku closed his eyes, taking in Sora's words, but his thoughts were almost immediately interrupted by the boy speaking again, only this time, it was more real. Gone was the rain and coldness, replaced by a warm bed and sleepy eyes.

"Mmmm... is lil Riku having a bad dream...?"

Riku's eyes fluttered open from his dream to find a familiar chocolate-haired boy lounging on top of him.

That normally wouldn't have been a surprise to Riku, but this time Sora was naked, a completely sated look on his face as though he had just had the best sex of his life. And, judging by the way fatigue was settling over Riku's muscles, and the soreness in the lower half of his body, Riku had just had it too.

Wait.

Sora. On top of him.

Did that mean...?

Had he just...?

Sora saw the confused look on Riku's face and grinned down at him, pleased with himself. "I told you being on bottom wasn't going to be as bad as you thought it was going to be. You were positively squirming in pleasure," Sora cooed, his fingers teasing Riku's inner thigh.

A dark blush stained Riku's cheeks as realization set in and Sora's nails traced over the curves of his abdomen, muscles tight as the caress trailed upward. His lips parted, a sigh escaping from deep within his throat.

Sora leaned down to whisper in his ear, nose brushing against silver strands and lips just barely touching the skin of his earlobe. "You're everything I wanted, Riku. Your love, your body...." 

He paused here, inhaling deeply as he tilted Riku's face toward his. Apprehensive green met cunning blue, and Sora hungrily took his mouth in his, his fingers brushing over his lover's navel to come to a stop over his chest. Then he continued, his next words explicitly emphasized with his soft voice.

"...your heart."

They struck a chord somewhere deep within Riku's soul, their true meaning slipping past his awareness as the elder boy watched Sora through eyes narrowed in lusted exhaustion. Naively smiling, he wrapped his legs around Sora's hips, relaxing as he closed his eyes, completely submitting himself to the one who had now claimed possession of his heart.

Sora's hand began to press into Riku's chest, slowly at first until he felt the pulse against his palm. Riku shifted at the strange feeling, brow slightly furrowing as he lifted his hips toward Sora's, who took this to mean approval of his actions, and further continued pressing his hand until the skin and flesh of Riku's chest parted between his fingers to allow access to his heart. Riku felt his body arc, his breath stuttering as his warm skin rubbed against the coldness of Sora's body.

What was this feeling...?

He whimpered, without words telling Sora to continue.

"That's right..." Sora purred, running a nail over the glowing flesh of Riku's heart and causing the body under him to shudder in masochistic pleasure. "Open your heart to me, Riku." With his free hand he caressed Riku's cheek, slipping fingers into that silver hair to comfort his lover. "Love me and our bond will never be broken."

"Sora..."

Riku's voice came out in a breathy sough as he raised his hand to Sora's chest, trying to feel the pulse of the boy's own heart to reassure himself. 

But he found nothing.

Nothing except cold skin.

Sora suddenly withdrew his hands from Riku and sat back, clutching at his chest as Riku's eyes flew open to assess what was wrong, all pretense of their earlier actions now forgotten. Pleading blue eyes momentarily flashed yellow and Sora opened his mouth to speak, his words strung with desperation.

"Riku, _please_ don't let me fall..."

What was wrong? Why didn't Sora have a heart?

"I won't!"

Riku was already sitting up to pull Sora into an embrace, but when he reached a hand out to grasp the boy's shoulder his fingers slid completely through Sora as if the boy was made of cold air. Like he wasn't really there.

Sora lowered his head, almost shamefully, his pretty face contorting with grief.

"I'm scared, Riku..."

"Don't slip away from me!" Riku cried, his voice wrung with desperation as he tried to hold the boy again, only to pass right through him. A familiar black void was forming behind Sora, tendrils of darkness beginning to snake out and slip around the boy's limbs--the limbs that Riku couldn't even touch.

This wasn't happening. It couldn't be happening!

But it was, Riku realized, and the darkness was reaching for him too. He reached one last time for Sora's hand, his green eyes pleading with Sora's, but again his fingers slipped through nothing. A vine of darkness shot out and grabbed hold of Riku's wrist, trying to pull him in with Sora, and both boys cried out.

"Riku, don't leave me!"

"You have to fight it Sora!"

Riku jerked his wrist free and spun around to find Sora slipping into the abyss, hands spread out, waiting for Riku to pull him free. 

But Riku pulled away from the darkness' reach and turned his head so that he couldn't watch as his lover sunk into the black embrace. A lost sob was the last thing he heard before he drifted back into the world of the living.

He was awoken by an arm suddenly flopping into his lap and five fingers unconsciously trying to grasp at covers, but only managing to dig into his indigo pants. After carefully easing his eyes open, it took the silver-haired boy a few seconds to orient himself and remember just why a softly snoring Sora was sprawled lazily across his chest, one of the boy's hands clutching the pillow that sometime during the night had been snatched from under Riku's head and was now dangling over the side of the bed. 

Oh yes. He remembered now. Sora had climbed into bed with him and they had decided to snuggle all night.

Well.

Riku should have remembered that Sora slept like a drunken dog with fleas, meaning he usually changed positions every five minutes and generally spread himself over as much bed space as he could. Of course, Riku had been in his way, so now Sora was trying to spread himself over as much _Riku_ space as he could.

Aside from the pillow-clutching hand hanging off the side of the bed, Sora's other arm was still draped over Riku's stomach and his groping hand was positioned unnervingly close to the crotch of his pants. The boy's head was resting on Riku's chest, chin tilted to the side and lips parted as he peacefully snored, the corners of his mouth occasionally twitching into a grin in response to a dream. His hair was oddly droopy (and when it brushed against Riku's stomach, it tickled like hell), both of his feet were sticking out over the edge of the bed, and the covers for both boys had mysteriously disappeared sometime during the course of the night (probably kicked to the floor). And with an amused smile, Riku did not fail to realize that, thanks to Sora's shifting around all night, the boy's loose undershorts had somehow slipped farther down to expose more than just hip bone--yes, Riku had a nice view of Sora's disappearing pudgy belly and the line of his thigh bones. Any further down and it would almost have been obscene. 

Almost. Riku doubted he could take offense to any part of Sora's body.

Though, as Sora's hand suddenly clamped down on his hip, Riku reconsidered that. He tensed, but not before letting out a soft chuckle, stirring Sora awake for a brief moment.

The brown-haired boy raised his head to blink sleepy blue eyes at the source of the noise before letting out a short yawn. Swinging his arm back onto the bed and clutching the lost pillow tightly to himself, Sora shivered, snuggling close to Riku while managing to nearly completely cover him.

There was a pause in movement, and Riku was beginning to wonder if Sora had slipped back into his catatonic state, when the boy suddenly shot up into a sitting position. He looked around, made a dive for the covers, and then jerked the material over to cover both himself and Riku, letting out a content little sigh before settling back in next to Riku, slipping one arm around him.

"Good morning to you too..." Riku murmured, and Sora made a soft humming noise in response to confirm he had heard his boyfriend. "Sleep well?"

"Mm.. Five more minutes?" came Sora's muffled voice from being nuzzled somewhere in Riku's neck. "I was having such a good dream..."

Dream. Riku could still see his own dreams in vivid memory. The dark-winged Sora humming so freely, eyes full of sorrow. Then the content, cunning Sora-demon trying to burrow into Riku's heart... And lastly the scared illusion of Sora who didn't want Riku to leave him.

"What kind of dream?" Riku asked, burying his fingers in Sora's soft brown hair, thankful that his Sora wasn't just another apparition of his mind.

The boy shifted slightly against Riku, pulling closer to him. "I could fly..." was his mumbled response, and Riku felt his heart contract, fearing that they had somehow dreamt the same dreams. But relief filled him as Sora continued. "I flew home and everyone was okay. Mom, Kairi, Tidus...."

Riku managed a smile at Sora's innocent dream, his fingers continuing to caress Sora's soft spikes of bed-hair. "Was I there too?" he asked quietly.

"Mm. We made out in your house. On your parents' bed... to make a statement."

This brought out a light laugh from Riku. "We did?"

"Hai..." Sora raised his head to smile up at his boyfriend. "You were on top though."

Riku's eyebrows rose. "Really? Imagine that... I bet my father was furious."

"Riku...."

"Hm?"

"I miss them."

"My parents? Can't imagine why..."

"No. I miss everyone else. Mom, Kairi, Tidus, Selphie... even Wakka, though I'd rather live without his Blitzball." Sora rose onto his elbows and stared down at Riku, who was still running his fingers through the boy's chocolate hair. "Don't you miss them, Riku?"

"Some more than others," Riku admitted, gently stroking Sora's cheek and managing a sad smile. "Your mom or Tidus would have been great on this adventure, but I like it the way it is... The two of us, alone, without anyone we know here to tease us..."

"Do you think what Cid said is true? That they're all either dead or have become heartless...?" Sora asked, his voice so full of concern that it almost cracked.

Riku's gaze softened as he studied the boy's worried blue eyes. "Sora... I really don't know..." he said, pulling Sora back down to rest on him. "Try not to think about it."

"Funny," the boy muttered, letting Riku comfort him, "coming from a person who used to always spend his days thinking, daydreaming while sitting on the paopu tree."

"Paopu tree..."

Riku sighed, knowing what was coming next, and dreading it.

"Riku...?"

"Hm?"

"About what Yami said... about us being opposites... You know it's true."

Silence. Riku did know it was true, but he could only imagine just how it was affecting Sora. What would Riku do if he were in Sora's shoes? Would he be as calm as Sora, knowing that he could possibly be consumed by the darkness?

Or would he even know at all?

"What does it feel like?" he finally asked, his voice soft with shy curiosity.

He felt Sora immediately tense at his question, the boy obviously uncomfortable with the idea of discussing it. To comfort him, Riku slipped his arms around Sora's waist, holding him close. It was a few quiet moments before Sora gathered the courage to answer.

"I'm always cold now..." he slowly said, one of his hands tightly clutching the covers. "Always shivering and getting goose bumps... Sometimes I think I hear whispers in the dark, and sometimes it feels as though my chest is hollow." He paused here, taking a deep breath and curling closer to Riku. When he continued, his voice was withdrawn. Sad. "Or that I don't have control over my own body. A lot of times I think things I normally wouldn't think... Like everyone hates me, or that you're ignoring me on purpose."

Riku opened his mouth to speak, feeling an overwhelming sense of pity for Sora--ignoring him on purpose? he didn't have control over his body any longer?--but Sora spoke again before he could.

"I know none of it can be true, and I'm doing my best to separate reality from... whatever it is that's in me..." he whispered, burying his face into the crook of Riku's neck and shoulder. "But lately... I don't know what to think anymore. What's real."

The shuffling of feet in the doorway caught Sora's attention before Riku even had a chance to assuage the boy's fears. Both of them sat up to acknowledge the newcomer's presence, but when Riku saw who it was, he immediately positioned himself in front of Sora to hide his nearly nude body from sight.

Yami managed an amused smile. "I hope the two of you had a nice evening together because Leon and the King's messengers are already prepared to leave. They sent me to discover your whereabouts, but..." Yami hesitated, raising a single eyebrow and giving Riku and Sora's bodies a twice-over. "But it seems as though neither of you are even dressed. What would you like me to tell them?"

Before Yami had even finished speaking, both Riku and Sora had sprung out of bed and started gathering their things, pulling on random articles of clothing and giving each other hurried commands and advice.

"Your other shoe is over there, Sora!"

"Ah, thanks! It's hard to find them now that I don't have my big yellow ones anymore. Oi! Those are my gloves!"

"Ack. Sorry! Catch them!"

"Urgh... I need a shower. How late did we sleep? I thought we went to bed early!"

"I hadn't had a decent night's sleep in a week, and your wet dream probably wore you out."

"I-It was not a wet dream, Riku! Now where did I put Einlanzer?"

"It's by your dresser. Hey Yami, how late are we?"

The amber-eyed boy studied Riku with a smile as the keyblade master slipped his shirt-vest on. Yami managed to hide the amusement in his voice as he replied, "Cid had enough time to teach Leon how to maneuver a gummi ship."

"Shit! That long? Hurry up, Sora!"

"I'm almost ready! I just need to finish packing my new clothes."

"What? You don't need to bring those!"

"But Yuffie and Aerith told me to--"

"As long as he leaves his bag in the ship, I do not see why it would be a problem," Yami politely cut in, and both Riku and Sora turned to blink at him.

Silence reigned for a moment before Riku glanced back at Sora. "All right. You have three minutes to finish packing. I'm going to run across the street and buy us something to eat."

And no more than five minutes later the three of them were sprinting for the Accessory Shop to meet up with Leon and the others, Riku carrying Sora's bag and Sora carrying their large bag of breakfast. Leon, Goofy and Donald were already outside of the shop waiting for them, disgruntled looks on both the warrior and the duck's faces. Goofy on the other hand fell into a wide smile when he spotted them.

"Uh-huck! Nice to see you again!" the strange dog-human exclaimed, pulling Sora into a hug as Riku dropped the boy's bag onto the floor.

At the sound of Goofy's voice, the rest of the team filed out of the shop to "fare thee well" Riku and Sora and Leon (and Yami too, though they weren't sure why). Aerith and Yuffie pulled Sora to the side to give him a few words of advice, leaving Riku at Cid's mercy. The middle-aged man slapped the boy heartily on the back and gave him a crooked grin.

Riku mentally groaned, hoping against all hopes that Cid wasn't about to give him a lecture.

"Ahh... Riku? Shit, I dunno how to word this," the man began, scratching at the back of his head. "Hell, I'll just say it. I know you're the savior 'n all, and ya think you're hot shit... but that don't mean you're invincible. Watch yer back _and_ Sora's, and use protection when ya have sex."

Riku managed a thankful smile. "Heh... er... thanks, Cid. I suppose this is coming from experience, old man?"

"Hey, I'm not an old man!" he retorted, pushing Riku away from him. "Try thirty-four."

From behind Cid's back, Yuffie mouthed the age _forty-two_ and winked before turning her attention back to Sora.

"And you, Squall, keep yer hands to yerself!" Cid grunted at the solemn man, who in turn glared at Cid until the blonde man retired to the Accessory Shop formerly owned by him.

"It's Leon," Leon muttered under his breath, his eyes momentarily lowering before raising to meet Riku's green gaze. "We should leave now."

Riku nodded in agreement. "Yeah. Hear that Sora? We're leaving!"

Sora pulled away from Yuffie and Aerith, a bright smile lighting his face. "To another world!" he laughed, throwing himself onto Riku, who caught him and managed to steal a quick kiss. Sora was the first to pull away, now grinning. He twirled around, pumping his fists into the air in excitement. "Finally! No more boredom!"

"Nice view?" came Yuffie's voice from near Riku's ear.

The silver-haired boy glanced up, confused at her words. But after he realized where he had been staring as Sora had begun doing his "excited" dance, Riku gave a small laugh and nodded, knowing full well she had been referring to the brunette's butt.

"Very nice view," Riku admitted with a knowing grin. "You'll take care of the streets when I'm away, right?"

"Ya!" the ninja girl replied, mussing his hair a bit.

"And we will keep watch over your household," Aerith added quietly, gently smiling. "You will take care of Sora, won't you?"

"And take care of yourself!"

Riku waved a hand at them in dismissal, nodding to get them to stop talking. "Yeah, yeah. I just heard this from Cid. You going to tell me to use protection as well?"

"Well, now that you mention it-"

"I think it's fine as long as Sora prepares you first," Aerith said calmly, cutting Yuffie off. 

Leon brushed past all of them, muttering, "If all of you are _done_, now..."

And before Riku could register what Aerith had said, and that it had actually come from her, the clueless Sora (chattering animatedly with Donald and Goofy, Yami trailing silently after them) was dragging him away into a new adventure.

~~~

After about a minute of excited bouncing around in his seat once the two ships had finally left Traverse Town and entered the pathway between worlds, Sora had gotten bored and had decided to stare out the window at all the colorful shapes of gummi blocks. After about a minute of that, Sora had gotten bored again and had decided to ask Leon if he could try driving the "rocket ship," but the man flat-out refused to hand the controls to anyone else.

"No. Never. Not when I'm here," he had said, his voice still managing to remain stone-like as he spoke to the fourteen-year-old.

So Sora had settled into his seat, whining about how he wanted to drive. Leon sent him a death glare to silence him, but the silence lasted about five seconds, for Sora had spotted strange ships approaching them. Leon had then explained what Cid had told him: that the heartless had begun to use gummi blocks to create ships to patrol the pathway between worlds, and that this was why no one traveled any longer. And then Leon had engaged the "heartless ships" in some pathetic battle that he was undoubtably going to win.

Sora turned in his seat so that he was sprawled out over the arms of the chair, his feet dangling over one end and his head resting against Riku's shoulder, who had pretty much said nothing since he had taken his seat next to Sora. The brown-haired boy sat up, leaning over the small space separating them so he could study Riku's face. The keyblade master seemed to be deep in thought, though his expression never changed from a quiet frown as he stared straight ahead at Leon managing the controls of the ship.

"Ne, Riku?"

"Hm?" was Riku's reply, immediately shifting his green eyes to glance at his boyfriend, only to find Sora inches away from his face. 

"Leon won't let me drive and I'm hungry."

Ah. Right. Breakfast. Riku had almost forgotten about the food he had bought when Sora had still been packing. Breaking into a smile of agreement, Riku nodded, reaching forward to grab the bag of food.

He should have seen the glint in Sora's eyes because as soon as they had unpacked their food, Sora had climbed into Riku's lap and decided to make Riku hand-feed him, who, of course, lovingly complied. This only proved to further irk Leon.

"Say _aaahn_, Sora."

"_Aaahn_....!" Sora said sweetly, opening his mouth wide so that Riku could pop in a piece of chocolate pastry. He chewed it slowly, making little moaning noises of satisfaction as a smile spread over his face.

"Is it good?" Riku asked, smiling back as Sora slipped his tongue out to clean his lips of sugar. "I take it you want more."

"Mmm... More, Riku."

Leon, in the driver's seat, visibly twitched.

"Alright," Riku said, tearing off another piece of pastry. "Open up for me again."

"_Aaahn_....!"

This time Sora leaned into Riku's reach, savoring the taste of Riku's fingers in his mouth. Riku smirked as he pulled his hand away, bringing his face close to Sora's.

"There's some chocolate....."

"Ne~~! Get if off, get it off!" Sora quietly squealed, bouncing in Riku's lap as he spoke.

Riku leaned in to suckle the substance off, slowly slipping his hands over Sora's neck to ease the boy into tilting his chin upward for easier access. Sora complied, giggle-moaning as Riku's lips made a trail down his throat, pausing here and there to tease the skin with his teeth and tongue. But as Riku hit a certain sensitive spot, Sora's hands clamped down on Riku's hips and he groaned, pressing closer into the older boy's body.

Leon managed to sneak a peek over his shoulder to see what they were up to. He immediately felt his face flushing.

"This is the last time I ride in the same ship as you two!"

~~~

"Well... They couldn't have been that bad, uh-huck."

"You're talking about two boys who, immediately after leaving the gummi ship, threw each other into the sand and began feeling each other up!" Leon nearly growled, his stony composure momentarily broken. "I refuse to ride with them again. I'll teach Yami how to maneuver it."

Donald and Goofy exchanged looks before glancing over at Yami, who was waiting in front of the double doors to the Coliseum and staring at Riku and Sora, who were cuddling in the sand after wrestling with each other for a minute or so.

"Fine. Yami rides with them on the way back," Donald huffed, waddling past Leon and not even bothering to turn his head as he passed by Riku and Sora. "And you two! Get up and try to look normal."

Riku rose both eyebrows and grinned at his boyfriend. "Sora, we just got told to be normal by talking duck."

And with a loud *crrrack* in the air and sudden electricity shooting through his body, Riku discovered that Donald was a short-tempered magic-user with very little sense of humor, and that he knew how to cast thunder spells.

Inside the actual Coliseum, after persuading the local man-goat (named Phil) to let them enter the tournament (he had refused until Leon had given him a death glare), the six of them found themselves standing before a small entryway with a rope strung across it.

"So how many teams are going to enter?" Phil asked gruffly, and for some reason, he reminded Sora of Cid. With less hair on the head, but more hair on the arms. "Some of the groups participating in this tournament are much larger than usual, but they don't seem very experienced."

"Much larger? How so?" Riku asked.

"Ah. They just appeared one day. All ugly and creepy. Some call them the heartless."

Leon and Riku glanced at each other before Leon nodded solemnly. 

If there were heartless here, then there was a keyhole somewhere. It was Riku's decision. He had picked who he had wanted to accompany him, so it was his choice to break up the six of them into groups.

"Donald and Goofy are in one team," Riku began, giving quick looks at the dog and duck, who nodded in agreement. Phil jotted the names down as Riku spoke. "Sora and Leon will join as another team with me," he continued, and then quickly added, "My name is Riku," when Phil looked at him expectantly. Leon nodded again to acknowledge his decision. But then they all paused, sensing something missing. Riku simple finished with, "Yami enters alone."

"What?" Sora asked, his brow knitting. "Isn't that a bit unfair?"

"Yami doesn't have to enter if he doesn't want to. I think he's well capable of making his own decisions," Riku calmly stated, waving a hand in Yami's direction.

The yellow-eyed boy smiled at the statement, not letting Riku best him. "I will join the tournament alone," he said quietly, his smile spreading as he glanced at Sora.

"All right. Let me close the sign-up and tell the boss to start the tournament," Phil said, tapping over to another entryway and disappearing into a long hallway.

"Sora, Riku."

Both boys glanced up at Leon at the sound of the man's voice. 

"No fooling around. This world has a keyhole," the man said, his deep voice level and serious. "Winning this tournament isn't a must, but I will not forgive either of you if we lose to the heartless."

Sora held up the sheathe to his Einlanzer and grinned. "Yes, Mom."

"Oh, don't worry. The heartless are the least of our problems," Riku said, pulling Sora close to him. "I'm more worried about what kinds of fighters have made it through the pathway between worlds just to get here."

"Still, Leon's right," Donald spoke up. "Don't underestimate the heartless."

"Some of them may be weak, but in large groups they can be really dangerous, uh-huck," Goofy added.

"Aa, we know, we know," Riku sighed, waving his hand nonchalantly. "Just be sure you're there, Leon, Sora, if I need help."

"All right Mr. 'I'm fighting alone' Hotshot," Phil said as he tapped back into the small entryway. "You're up first." Everyone turned to glance at the goat, who gave Yami a once-over and sneered. "You sure you're ready?"

Yami simply nodded.

"Right. The rest of you can watch above and come down when your names are announced, or you can stay in here and prep."

Before Riku could say anything, Sora grinned, grabbing his hand and pulling him to the stairs that led to the stands above. "C'mon, Riku!"

~~~

Yami's first fight lasted a total of two minutes, almost exactly. Sora was bouncing around in his seat, cheering for the white-haired boy at the top of his lungs as Riku just sat there, intently studying Yami's fighting style. Unfortunately for Riku, there hadn't been much fighting to study.

Just as Riku and Sora had made it to their seats, a male voice other than Phil's had rung out to announce the beginning of the tournament. A few introductions were made, one or two badly-constructed jokes, and then the first fight was introduced as _Yami versus Twin Mirage_.

"A difficult opponent for a beginner, and that's what our first challenger is. This is his first tournament, but don't let his inexperience, size, or appearance fool you. The kid's got the eyes and audacity of a heartless! Ooo, I get the chills just thinking about it."

Riku idly wondered what that was supposed to mean, and then decided to ignore the announcer for now and focus on Yami. 

Yami entered the field quietly, his back straight and his chin held high, no sign of worry or anxiety anywhere in his body language. Just one foot in front of the other until he came to a stop a fourth of the ways towards the center of the fighting arena. Curiously he glanced up to see how many spectators there were--not many--and with a satisfied smile, his attention focused on the empty space in front of him where his enemy was to appear. Slowly he raised one hand, fingers together, and held his arm across his chest, almost like he was ready to swat an annoying fly.

"Weird fighting stance," Riku mused quietly, but Sora heard him and replied, his boyish voice filled with excitement.

"Yeah, but he looks so cool like that!"

But where was the opponent? Riku narrowed his eyes, following Yami's gaze and studying the air in front of the boy where the other team was supposed to be. Twin Mirage. Just what kind of opponent was that?

"All right! Let the games begin!" the voice from above crowed. "Ready...? Go!"

The last word reverberated throughout the open-aired coliseum, signaling the beginning of the fight. Riku turned his attention back to Yami, but the boy hadn't even twitched.

But there was something. Yami was staring at something.

And slowly, the air shimmered. Yes, shimmered. As though something invisible was moving through it, but was having trouble staying unnoticed.

Actually, there were two somethings, and they were both very large.

The sound of rough skin--scales?--against sandy stone filled the silence in the air as the invisible creatures moved, blurring the empty space before Yami and revealing where they stood.

Yami lifted his hand, spread his fingers, and then made a wiping gesture. The space above the creatures darkened and static electricity filled the air, and Riku, having felt the effects of a thunder spell before (thanks to Donald), knew what was coming. He wasn't surprised to discover, however, that Yami's version of the spell was much more advanced and powerful. Lightning struck the creatures and an ear-splitting screech rang out to confirm that the boy's spell had hit its intended targets. Then slowly they faded into existence, their dumb round eyes rolling in primal anger, reptilian tails thrashing madly and their clumsy talons grasping for nonexistent tree trunks.

They were overgrown lizards.

Well.

Yami wasn't impressed, and neither was Riku.

One of the creatures hunched up, preparing to lash out, and the other reared up onto its hind legs to prepare for a charge. Riku watched as Yami took a quick calculation of their distances and what their velocity would be when they moved in the next split second, and then the white-haired boy thrust one hand towards the hunched lizard, sending a wave of fire spells crashing into it, just as the second creature leapt at him. As the first lizard was collapsing onto the ground, defeated, Yami turned to face the remaining one that was almost upon him, its talons stretched forward and its maw open to reveal a jagged jaw and a long pink tongue. The boy casually waved his hand through the air before lunging towards the lizard, a dark sword now grasped in his hand as he ducked under the beast, slicing upwards.

At almost exactly two minutes, Twin Mirage was defeated, and the first battle of the games was over.

Yami had won, leaving Sora cheering and whistling at him. But Riku had won as well. Now he knew for sure that Yami was holding back, and that they had truly known nothing about the boy with the eyes of a heartless--until now. Riku was learning his fighting style.

However, neither of the boys had time to congratulate Yami on his win, for their names and their opponent's were called, and they were climbing down the steps to begin their first fight in the tournament.

Riku knew, without a doubt, that this was going to be a very long day.

~~~

Their ninth fight. And Sora was just now feeling the effects of the tournament on his body.

Sora dug the blade of Einlanzer into the hard stone floor of the coliseum, using it to keep himself upright as he struggled to breathe, brown hair damp and clinging to the sides of his face as beads of sweat rolled down his cheeks. But his eyes remained on the fight before him as the heartless swarmed around the three of them. Leon, he saw, had noticed his sudden absence in the fight, and had worked his way over to where Sora was now to keep the creatures from reaching the boy. The man failed to realize, however, that Sora was still in no danger, that the heartless were only after Leon and Riku--especially Riku--and that Sora's exhaustion had nothing to do with fighting so hard, nor anything to do with the heartless, for they had not touched him, and would not.

No, this exhaustion stemmed from something much more serious--something he was afraid to mention. The darkness was slowly eating away at him, and while its power made him stronger so that he could fight along side Riku and the others, he could feel himself slowly succumbing to its sullen embrace. As these fights dragged on, the darkness only seemed more tempting. While he still refused to use it to enhance his power, dark thoughts had begun to entertain his mind, jealousy and greed surrounding his love for Riku.

Riku... who, even as Sora remained stooped over his blade to hold himself up, was still dancing among the heartless--dancing, swirling around them, wielding his keyblade of the light, disposing one creature after the other, even as they endlessly kept surfacing. Leon barely had to fight any more, for Riku was everywhere, and when he wasn't, his weapon was twirling and slicing through the heartless like a dolphin through water, always returning faithfully to his hand when he reached for it and dove in for another attack. He looked human no longer, with his silver hair fanning out behind him as he leapt and spun through the air, tossing the creatures with him using that keyblade.

And soon Riku had even Leon standing there watching him in an awe-filled daze, the man now beside Sora, his gunblade settled against his leg.

"Has he always fought this well...?"

Sora barely heard the question, blue eyes distant as Riku waltzed through the horde of darkness, the shining keyblade almost an extension of his hand as he plunged and swiped it through the black demons before leaping into the air to inscribe the blade into another beast. When he landed, it was gracefully, keyblade crossed over his chest, his silver hair shifting with his movement, bright green eyes fluttering closed as the heartless surrounded him on all sides. And then he was spinning in a wide arc, shoulders rolled forward and arm extended to lead the keyblade through the crowd of heartless, swiping completely through them as if they were made of spider web and Riku was the hand to brush them away. 

So he did.

"He's like a demon," Leon commented quietly, grey-blue eyes fixated on the sight before them. "The way he moves so effortlessly... Like life has no hold on him."

Sora slowly shook his head, gently smiling as he straightened his back. "Nn. You're wrong," he said, brushing at his wet bangs a bit. "Demons have things to hide, so they move cat-like, quietly, only exposing their true powers when they're desperate. No, Riku fights without boundaries. He's an angel."

But a guilty angel. Beautiful, without boundaries, but not pure. Riku still kept holding his strength back, and fought his worries away instead of rectifying them.

Yes, Riku was an angel... but then what did that make Sora?

____________________________________________________________________________________

Hai, hai. The next part will come soon. Sorry this took so long. ^^;

Yes, I used _Destati_ in this chapter (and will reuse it again later), and I disclaim it. Also, Gackt owns the _Lapis_ lyrics that Sora said in this chapter, but Mina-P translated them. What? You can't tell I used them? ^^ Hehe. I know nothing about songs in languages I don't know (like Italian or French), so forgive me if I broke the syllables up incorrectly. 

I keep getting a lot of questions about the FF character's ages in Kingdom Hearts. Just visit the official website--it has all the character's ages except Aerith and Sephiroth, so I assumed they were around Leon's age. Now, I hope that cleared up confusion. Yuffie is 16, Leon is 25, Cloud is 22, Cid is 42, etc etc etc.

Other than that, I hope you enjoyed the first part of chapter 12. Hee! And I hope you all enjoyed the random things I inserted in here (all the fluff and hints and such). Some of them I could have lived without, but they were too tempting to delete. Remember, this is the first part of the chapter, so the Coliseum is the entire second part too--so expect to read many new interesting scenes--and more hints about who Yami is (thought it's obvious). The dreams were especially fun to write, with all of their imagery and symbolism (I happen to like my dark-winged Sora!). Wee. And I can't wait for the next two chapters because that's when everything starts happening. XD

See that review button down there? Click it. Clickclickclick. You know you want to inspire me. You know you want the next part of this chapter faster. Ne~~! Feed the starving writer!


	14. Ch 12: Gemini’s Cruel Fates part two

_Author Notes:_

Wee. Thanks for the reviews! Almost 200! Rejoice! ^^ Reviews make me happy (and they make me write more... u.u;;). Thanks to Yasha, Jay and Calvin for their awesome gift art, and to Lane, of course, for drawing yaoi for me, even though you seriously need better commentary skills ("I like it" or "It's fine" is NOT sufficient--drawing yaoi only distracts me). Drawings and art are up on my website now--sorry to those who can't access it. I'm too lazy to make a non-frame site.

^^;; Ahhh. I dread the future chapters, but I also can't wait until they come! They're going to be so good. Or at least, I'm going to try to make them good. x.x;; Make sure you catch the hints swarming around Sora! By the way, I'm still in a brain stupor from watching Spiral--I blame random foreshadowing moments on that. As always, please please please please review, because I need them to feed the brainstorming monsters that come up with my ideas. The more I get, the more fun ideas I get. Plus, I love answering questions.

Ah, and I wrote much of this in a big hurry, so forgive me if I overlooked some things.

_A look ahead:_ Again

A dream within a dream. Who's whose darkness or strength? Hot damn!! Has it really been nine years?

____________________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Twelve: Gemini's Cruel Fates_**_ -- part two_

The day dragged on and the opponents became increasingly more difficult with each new fight, but no one in the three teams from Traverse Town had given up or tasted defeat yet. It was only a matter of time, it seemed, before they would be pit against each other.

They all had their different tastes of opponents. Sora, of course, preferred the large enemies--the ones where he didn't have to worry about why they were so strong because their size was massive enough to make up for their teeny brains. Leon preferred the large groups of heartless--no one really had the guts to ask why he held such a grudge against them, but Riku supposed it had something to do with what had happened to his world nine years ago. Riku himself took a liking to the small groups of small, seemingly weak enemies because they were always the most difficult, and always held the most surprises and gave him the most trouble--and Riku loved the challenge.

Yami had breezed through his own fights, never having to put up much of a fight on his behalf. He never spoke about his wins, but he always managed a kind smile when Sora bounced up to him to give him congratulations. Donald and Goofy on the other hand were struggling through their fights--whether their weapons were too weak, or they themselves were, Sora couldn't tell, but they were nonetheless struggling.

So after a particularly difficult round when Riku and Sora were sitting down for a nice lunch under the statues guarding the entrance into the Coliseum's entry hall, they weren't surprised when Yami approached them to announce that Donald and Goofy had finally lost. Sora froze at the news, his sandwich halfway to his open mouth.

"They are speaking with Phil at the moment," the amber-eyed boy solemnly said, unfazed by the sudden glare that Riku was giving him, "but the tournament will, naturally, continue without them. Donald refuses to accept his defeat and is approaching Phil with the suggestion of a rematch."

Sora glanced over to exchange serious looks with Riku, wondering just what kind of creature(s) could defeat the King's messengers. Yes, the dog and duck had been struggling through their last few fights, but Sora had estimated that they would have least entered the semi-finals. Even if they got Phil to listen to them, there was no way the gruff goat-man would let them have a rematch. He would probably say something along the lines of, "Rule number 37: No unfair rematches!" But then again, the duck was rather stubborn. Sora offhandedly wondered when Donald would come to terms with his loss.

"What kind of opponent defeated them?" Riku asked, voicing Sora's original thought. Neither of the boys had been keeping up with roster of fighters in the tournament--well, not as much as they had originally hoped. So far they had been fortunate enough to face enemies that they had earlier studied when watching previous fights, or ones that basically had no fighting style or styles easy enough to decipher on a whim.

"They said it was a heartless with one wing," Yami replied quietly. "The fight lasted just over a minute."

Sora's eyes widened in surprise. "One minute?" he asked, his voice filling with excitement. "I bet we could beat it in half the time!"

Riku grinned, ruffling Sora's hair with one hand as he finished off his lunch.

"I'm serious, Riku!" the boy brightly said, waving his sandwich around for emphasis. "If it's a heartless, we'll definitely kick its ass! Not only would Leon rather die than get beat by one, but they don't even come after me. Even if you were put out of the fight, I'd still be there."

Yami smiled at Sora's statement, amused. "So you have decided to look at the positive aspects of your destiny?"

Riku shot Yami a dirty look, obviously uncomfortable with the change of subject. As if it wasn't bad already! Yami didn't need to go around reminding them that they had "conflicting destinies" or whatever.

But surprisingly, Sora merely shrugged. "As long as I'm not hurting anyone I love, or if it's to help Riku, I'm fine with it." He turned to grin at his boyfriend to reassure him. "Besides, it's not like I'm doing anything. I'm just using what's already there. If the heartless don't want to attack me, then fine, but that won't stop me from attacking them."

"Which is a huge help already. You're always there to Cure me, ya goof," Riku smiled half-heartedly, leaning over to kiss Sora on the cheek as he stood up. "I'm going to go check the line-up and find Leon. Don't get too comfortable."

Sora nodded silently and took a bite of his sandwich, watching Riku as he hopped down onto the sand and turned towards the main hall. He sighed, realizing that he had been holding his breath, as if anticipating something. Or dreading it. A part of him twitched in jealousy that Riku had momentarily left him just after such an important confession. Riku had accepted it without voicing any concern, only commenting on how Sora's power benefitted _him_, not _them_--as if Riku's strength was the only thing that mattered.

And then there was his little routine escape excuse, "to find Leon." How many times had he used that since he had met the man? How many times had he used that when Sora wanted to talk, but Riku only wanted to escape? Leon. As if Leon held the answers to Riku's needs.

Sora swallowed quickly, brow furrowing in petulance, and took a rough bite out of his sandwich, harmlessly venting his anger.

"You two seem happy," Yami mused, settling next to Sora, knees together as he sat on the high step. "But something is bothering you. Care to talk about it?"

Focusing his gaze on the white stone in front of him, Sora chewed in silence, hoping Yami wouldn't press further.

But he did.

"Riku seems to be spending more time with Leon, does he not?" Yami said softly, staring intently at Sora. 

Sora stiffened, clenching his teeth. 

Not another one of these talks. 

He didn't need Yami to express the fears that filled Sora's mind every time he heard Riku's name. He didn't need Yami to console him, try to be a good friend... He had done enough of that back in Traverse Town when Riku had always been away 'heartless hunting' with Leon, and Sora had been left alone to wonder. Yami had given him advice, kept him company, and asked his own questions--and while it was nice of the boy to do such things for Sora, Sora always felt like Yami knew exactly what he was thinking, and knew Yami would eventually bring up his silly fears. But despite Sora's uncomfortable silence, Yami continued.

He always did.

"Granted, Riku is paying more attention to you finally now that we have left Traverse Town, but it was there before. And it is here again."

"What's here?" Sora asked quietly. But he already knew what. 

Yami's intent yellow eyes softened a bit as he frowned. "Your weakness, Sora. Your doubt about Riku protecting you, wanting you. Your suspicions about him and Leon. The darkness. It is all here."

~~~

After reviewing the progress of the tournament on the board in front of the main steps, Riku sighed, pushing his silver hair behind his ears and turning his green eyes to gaze at the clear sky above. He hadn't seen such a blue sky since he had left Destiny Islands, and it filled him with a bit of unwanted nostalgia. Mulan's world had a grey sky during the day, filled with tocsins of snow, while Traverse Town's days were generally dark. A day with sun there was a rarity to behold, which made the strange castaway city always seem as though it was shrouded in gloom. Riku had liked those stars though, even though every evening there would be even less that the night before. Those stars had given him comfort that there were still other worlds out there.

Squinting slightly at the bright sky, Riku finally lowered his gaze and turned to climb the steps into the main hall of the Coliseum, silver hair falling back over his ears as he approached the doors that had been propped open earlier at the start of the tournament. 

At first he ignored the man slumped against the doorframe who was blocking nearly the entire entryway, and simply assumed the man would move out of the way as he approached. But when the man didn't, Riku paused, hesitated in mid-step, and blinked. Curiosity struck him before irritation had a chance to set in.

Riku had seen many strange men since the tournament had begun, a lot of which were currently lounging around like him and Sora waiting for their names to be called. To Riku they had almost been fodder, almost a waste of a fight. But this man... He held an air of silent power that intrigued Riku. 

The boy took a few more steps to get a better look at the stranger--why hadn't he seen this man around before?--and was genuinely surprised to discover that the man was quite handsome. Well, from what he could see anyway, because the man's beautiful blonde hair and garmented hands (was that a claw?) were covering much of his face as he slouched on the floor, elbows propped onto his legs and palms holding his chin up as he stared out at the blue sky. And for the space he wasn't taking up in the doorway, his humongous weapon was (a sword with gauze around it?).

Riku realized he must have been staring because the man suddenly took an interest in _him_, turning his startling blue eyes to study the boy standing before him. Riku, afraid he'd offended the man, already had his mouth open to apologize, but the man lifted his head and straightened his back, his eyes narrowing as he spoke before he could.

"What do you want?"

Riku hesitated at the man's soft voice, not really sure what to say.

"I haven't seen you here before," the man said solemnly, and this statement nudged Riku into speaking. 

"This is my first tournament. You're a regular?" Riku asked.

The man nodded.

Riku was vaguely reminded of Leon's taciturn ways, but he continued with another question anyway, interested. Maybe this man knew where the keyhole was. "So you must be good, right? Have you won any of the tournaments?"

"The last three," the man answered, and Riku was amused by the lack of gloating his words held. Something drastic must have happened to this man to make him so aloof from the world that he held no heart in his words. At least, that's how Riku saw it. "I couldn't kill Hercules though... so Hades broke my contract."

"Well, isn't that a good thing?" Riku asked quietly, recalling the many rules Phil had listed to him, Sora and Leon earlier. Something was definitely different about this man. "There aren't supposed to be casualties, unless they're heartless, right?"

The blonde man lowered his gaze, taking in Riku's words. "Hades said he would help me find someone if I killed Hercules for him. But Hercules, even after I defeated him, was the one who rescued me from Cerberus. Hades was probably trying to get rid of me because of my failure."

Riku rose both eyebrows, curious as to why this man was sharing so much information with him. He had heard about Hercules from Phil, but the formidable half-god hadn't entered the tournament this time around--something about visiting Olympus. And Hades... Hades was one of the people who ran the Coliseum, if Riku remembered correctly. Shaking away the swirl of thoughts that had invaded his mind, Riku turned his attention back to the handsome stranger in front of him. "But you're still here. And you're fighting in this tournament, right? Maybe we'll go up against each other."

"Maybe."

"So who were you looking for?" Riku asked, and the man lifted his head again to stare. Again, those startling blue eyes. "You said Hades was supposed to help you look for someone."

"More than one person, actually..." the man admitted, carefully studying Riku, who had a hard time controlling his stare. "I don't know why I'm telling you all of this... Perhaps because you resemble one of them."

The boy tried to hide his sudden surprise, but failed, his eyes widening as his curiosity was piqued again. He realized that this man was giving him the same stare that _Leon_ usually gave him, as if he were looking for faults in any of the small actions Riku made, as if he was comparing him with someone. Someone he used to know really well.

And, as if on cue, before Riku could ask anything about this new revelation, Leon appeared behind the man from inside the hall, apparently irked that he was blocking the doorway so that Leon couldn't step outside.

"Hey you," Leon called out, and Riku looked up in surprise at the other man's deep voice. "It's not polite to block public doorways. Mind letting me by?"

There was a silence. The blonde man's shoulders tensed but he made no sign of moving or acknowledging Leon's presence, which only further annoyed Leon. The stormy-eyed man raised his gaze to find Riku standing there and he sighed.

"Who is he?"

"Er... He's the current champion of the last three tournaments," Riku lamely explained, and realized he didn't even know the man's name yet. And what was this? Leon could ask the man himself who he was instead of assuming Riku knew. "I just met him. Says he's looking for someone who looks like me." The silver-haired boy paused there, an idea striking him. He turned his stare to the older man, narrowing his green eyes accusingly. "What do you think, Leon?"

Leon froze, and Riku could have sworn he saw something flicker in those cold eyes--suspicion, maybe. "Someone who looks like you?" he repeated, giving Riku that damn _look_--it made him feel vulnerable, naked, and like he was, again, being compared to someone.

Suddenly tired of being stared at like he was some freak of nature, and not getting any answers, Riku narrowed his eyes and glared at Leon. "Who the hell are _you_ always comparing me to? Don't lie to me, because I _know_ there's someone, Leon, Squall, whatever the hell your name is!"

"Sephiroth."

Riku's head snapped down at the sound of the soft voice to find the blonde man now staring up at Leon, something akin to disbelief in those glowing blue eyes. Leon's stormy eyes immediately widened at the name and he focused his own gaze down on the other man, finally recognizing him.

"He's comparing you to Sephiroth," the blonde man continued, eyes hardening in anger. "Isn't that right, _Squall_? Or is it Leon now?"

Leon reached for the gunblade hooked to his belt just as the blonde man leapt to his feet, wielding his giant weapon, his frayed maroon mantle shifting behind him as he turned to Leon. They looked like two wild cats circling each other, sizing each other up before a battle for dominance. 

"Sephiroth?" Riku asked, stumbling backwards so as to not get hit by the buster sword, shock clearly written on his face, confused as to why these two men were suddenly preparing to slice each other's heads off. 

Sephiroth. Wasn't that the man Cid had said was Leon's friend? But if Sephiroth looked like Riku, why hadn't Leon said anything? And if this man knew who Sephiroth was, then did that make him who Riku thought he was?

"Hey! What the hell are you two doing?" Riku demanded. "Your name is Cloud, isn't it? I thought you two were friends!"

Cloud brought his sword up and rammed its flat side against Leon's chest, pushing the older man against the nearest wall before he could bring his gunblade up to defend himself. Sapphire eyes glared into grey-blue, already speaking volumes without words. But the desire to kill wasn't in either of them. Not yet, at least.

"So your name is Leon now," Cloud stated sharply, pushing his nose close to Leon's face, who glared back in return. "So I shouldn't have been searching for Squall all this time, but rather his ghost?!"

"My name is Leon," the brunette growled in reply, roughly pushing Cloud back and lifting his gunblade, anticipating another attack. "And it's been nine years! We were just talking about you a day ago, and now you're suddenly here, and alive, and..." He paused there, his gaze momentarily softening. "...and all grown up." But his brow furrowed again and he shook his head as though banishing some foreign thought. "It seems too coincidental to me!"

"But I've been searching for you!" Cloud cried, swinging his humongous weapon towards Leon, who already had his gunblade held up to block the blow. "_And_ Sephiroth!"

"Sephiroth?"

"I tracked him here!" Cloud explained through clenched teeth as he pushed against Leon's strength. The two got nowhere, blades shoved against the other, both men's feet planted firmly against the sandy stone floor, clothing clinging to tensed muscles. "Hades said he would help me find you if I worked for him, but I failed, so now I'm stuck here to search on my own!"

"So Sephiroth's alive as well...?" Leon asked, his grip faltering just a little as he shoved back against Cloud. His voice lowered as his will to fight was replaced with concerned curiosity as to what his old friend was doing here. "Wait. Hades? We have reason to believe that Hades is working with the heartless."

"Well, I suppose that would make sense for the heartless to be connected to him," Cloud said, his uncalled for anger diminishing as he heard Leon's tame voice, "considering there are hundreds of heartless participating in the tournaments."

"We're fighting the heartless," Riku said, finally speaking up now that the two older men had calmed down.

Leon glanced over at the silver-haired boy before returning to stare at Cloud, lowering his gunblade just as the blonde man was retracting his buster sword.

"A foolish task," Cloud nearly laughed, brushing a hand through his hair. "No one can defeat the heartless."

"The kid is the keyblade master. We came here to seal this world," Leon explained. There was a pause... And then his eyes focused on Cloud's pretty face, deciding to cut to the chase. "How did you end up here and when?"

"I'm not sure," Cloud replied, his voice void of any positive emotion. "I tried to exploit the power of darkness and it backfired. I fell into darkness and couldn't find the light." He hesitated, lips falling into a thin line and sapphire eyes peeking up at Leon through his bangs, obviously intently studying Leon as though looking for some answer. He finally raised his head all the way, eyes hopeful. "Ah, tell me, Squall, do you have it?"

"Have what?"

"My other wing."

Leon's brow wrinkled, and Riku glanced up at the older man in confusion, but Leon seemed just as lost as he was. Riku opened his mouth to inquire about his "wing" but the question came out as a cry as someone leapt onto him from behind and he fell face-first onto the stone floor. 

"Hiie Riku! Yami got called in to fight so I came to see what was taking you so long!" Sora said happily, sitting atop his boyfriend as Yami calmly walked past all of them (glancing at Riku and Sora in amusement) and entered the Coliseum. Riku stared after him before shifting irritably. 

"Ergh, Sora, please get off."

"Aww, but..." 

Leon calmly reached down and pulled Sora off Riku and the boy pouted for a moment before his eyes brightened again. A familiar pair was just approaching them as Riku was climbing back to his feet. Well, rather, Donald was waddling and Goofy was ambling along after him, the duck complaining the whole time. When the two of them saw Riku and Leon standing there, Donald huffed in irritation.

"The goat said we're out of the tournament!"

"Well," Goofy inserted, "that's what happens when you lose. Uh-huck."

"Aw. I'm sure you'll do better in the next tournament," Sora said, smiling at the two of them before turning to grin at Riku. But then he finally noticed the newcomer. "Hey, who are you?" he asked, his blue eyes widening as he looked from Cloud to Leon to Riku.

"That's the guy that beat us!" Donald suddenly squawked angrily, shifting from one foot to the other.

"I thought you were defeated by a one-winged heartless?" Sora said accusingly before blinking up at Cloud. "He doesn't look like a heartless to me."

"My name is Cloud."

"Cloud?" Sora echoed, his lips pursing as he fell into deep thought, the name sounding oddly familiar. And then it clicked. "Hey! You're the guy that Aerith told me about! The one who had a mega-crush on Leon!"

Everyone shot Sora shocked looks before turning to gape at Cloud and Leon. The blonde man looked surprised and humiliated at the same time, while Leon had simply turned murderous. But before anyone could break the tension in the air, Cloud shifted his glare to Leon, his eyes narrowing even more.

"So Aerith's here too?" he asked coldly, his voice tight with what seemed like resentment. "Who else? Cid? How about Ansem?!"

"Ansem's presumed dead," Leon responded in an odd calm, though his eyes spoke differently. Whether he was on the verge of killing Sora or Cloud, Riku wasn't sure, but either way, he was getting a very bad feeling. "Some of the others are alive, but not here."

"So why were Sephiroth and I the only ones separated from you?" Cloud demanded. A shadow of some dark emotion had passed over his face, something akin to betrayed grief or anger stemmed from many years of isolation. Leon didn't overlook that emotion, but he didn't show any signs of acknowledging it either.

"We thought you would know," Leon replied.

"I can't remember!"

"Cloud, Leon," Riku suddenly spoke up, not wanting the two men to fall into another argument or fight that they would later regret---especially if there were sensitive issues involved, and a nine-year difference between them. As he had spoken both of their names, the men had spun on him, their glowering and bitter emotions focused now on him. He stared back at them, his eyes unimpressed. "There is a keyhole in this world. Settle your differences quickly so we can get on with the mission."

"Yeah!" Donald cried, and Sora and Goofy nodded in agreement.

Leon and Cloud exchanged quick glances, absolving the problem momentarily.

"Fine," the blonde man sighed in resignation. "We'll talk later."

Yami came back through the Coliseum entryway then, obviously already finished with his fight. Phil came trailing after him, talking excitedly as though Yami was his new idol, but Yami looked unhumored, his amber eyes immediately locking with Riku's as he approached.

"That was amazing, kid! When you first entered I had no idea--" But Phil cut himself off, seeing the large group of people in front of him. He placed his stubby hands on his furry hips and scowled. "So, our next fighters have already assembled and met. That's great, but I need you four to get the hell into the arena."

Everyone blinked at the man-goat.

"Um, what?" Sora asked, cutely blinking.

"What I'm saying is that Team Riku versus Team Cloud is up next, so get in there so Hades can start the fight! We don't have all day!"

"_Cloud_? We're fighting _Cloud_?" Sora asked, his young voice laden with excited surprise.

"But he's been the champion for the past three tournaments," Riku stated quietly. If Cloud really was the champion.... then this fight would be their most difficult to date. Even with three of them, and one of Cloud, doubt began to seep into Riku's hope of winning first place.

"Rule number 23: If you doubt your strength, you've already lost!" Phil asserted almost angrily, one hand on a hip, pointer finger wagging disapprovingly at the two boys.

Cloud silently nodded. Then, swinging his buster sword over a shoulder, he turned to enter the coliseum, his gelid blue eyes following Leon from under soft blonde bangs. Leon watched after him for a moment as if contemplating something, and then, as though coming to some complicated decision, he stalked forward to follow after Cloud.

"Are you ready, Leon?" Sora amiably asked as the man brushed past him, a feral gleam in his eyes.

There was no hesitation or faltering in his step. Riku saw the man's stature and, immediately catching on to his intentions, made a move to confront him, but Leon paused to grab the silver-haired boy's shoulder to silence him before he spoke.

"Don't follow me. I'm fighting alone."

The finality of his voice almost daunted the boy, but it seemed Phil was still a step ahead. The goat-man planted himself in front of Leon and shoved a finger pointedly at his chest, one worn hoof tapping impatiently against the sandy stone floor. "Rule number 40: Teams fight together unless the resources aren't available! Seeing as how your other two teammates aren't even injured, and want to fight this round, you can't go solo, pal."

"Then they quit. I'm fighting alone," Leon stated simply, his deep voice silencing Phil's tapping. But the goat wasn't going to hear it without putting up a fight first.

"That's illegal, pal! And you're breaking another rule by lying to me!"

Yami cut Leon off before the man could speak again, his brazen voice startling everyone in the room as he spoke from his solitary corner of the group, amber eyes smiling kindly.

"Excuse me gentleman, but may I suggest a split?" He hesitated to make sure they were listening, and this was when everyone stared, waiting for Yami to continue. "Leon can separate from the group to create a new team. Or, rather, since he will be fighting this round alone, Riku and Sora will become the new group to add to the tournament," Yami explained gently, pausing to glance at Leon and Riku. "That way Leon can act separately from Riku and Sora without causing any problems. After all, you do not want to lose two of your best new challengers, do you?"

Phil didn't even have to think about it. "Impossible! That would add another group to the list (room we don't have!) and would throw the entire line-up off the cliffs of Sciron!"

Yami simply smiled. "Not if a current team forfeits."

Phil hesitated, one of his large hairy hands cupping his chin as he considered Yami's suggestion. "That would leave open a spot for a new group to squeeze in, but only if the forfeit took place before their next fight..." he mused. "But what are the odds of that? After working so hard to get so far in the tournament, no one in their right mind would forfeit just like that."

"It has already been done."

"What? Come again?" Phil said.

"It has already been done," Yami repeated, and as if on cue, a loud voice rang out through the corridor, causing the goat-man to flinch.

"PHIL!!"

Phil immediately excused himself and hurried away to see what his boss wanted, leaving the rest of the group staring at Yami in wonder. 

"What do you mean, Yami? Who's forfeited?" Sora asked. "It wasn't you, was it?"

The amber-eyed boy raised both eyebrows at that, genuinely surprised at Sora's question. "Me? Forfeit? Heavens no, I am enjoying this little tournament far too much."

Riku snorted at that, but said nothing. Meanwhile Donald crossed his arm-wings over his chest and began tapping his foot, a little "harrgh" disgruntled noise and his narrowed eyes telling everyone without words that he didn't approve of Yami. Perhaps the duck was just irked by the fact that Yami had gotten further in the tournament with just himself than Donald and Goofy together had.

The clunking of hooves on stone and loud voices announced Phil's return, but this time he wasn't alone. The man (was it a man?) he brought with him had grey-blue skin and wore a long, deep-black tunic; his long chin set off his rather small eyes, and to top it all off, literally, was a dancing blue flame for hair. Phil and the man were conversing heatedly about something as they approached.

"--two of our best new fighters!"

"--no rule that states otherwise...!"

"--heartless just disappeared--"

"Team Riku can take their place!"

"--never said anything about this. Maleficent's brat--"

"Maleficent probably has a bigger plan then."

"That old hag would have at least sent a messenger!" the strange man huffed and suddenly stopped in front of Leon and Riku, one black lip turned upward as he studied them. "So you want to become two different teams, eh? What? Too easy with the three of you? Fine. The last heartless team has disappeared so the new team can take its place. Pretty convenient timing if you ask me."

"What happened to the heartless?" Riku asked, his eyes narrowed as he stared at this man. Something about him was... off. Chthonic, almost. He wasn't a heartless himself, but he was giving off a similar feeling--not like how Riku had known Cloud had been strong, but almost the same concept.

The man saw the stares he was getting and laughed. "Ah, sorry. I'm Hades. I own this joint, but Phil runs it," he said, flexing one hand and cracking a few bones. "The heartless team that just won, right after your--" here he pointed at Yami, "--fight, just suddenly vanished and left a hole in the roster. I was going to have to go in there and fight if you three hadn't decided to split into two teams."

"They just disappeared? A minute ago?" Goofy asked. "Uh-huck, Sora and Riku must be pretty lucky then."

"Or Yami isn't telling us all he knows," Donald grumbled, shooting a glare over at the amber-eyed boy.

"Yeah, but now that's over with, so Team Leon can head into the arena now, just like he wanted," Phil grunted, scribbling something down on a stone slab that marked which teams were currently fighting.

Leon, who had been silent this whole time, left without a word, passing by Hades without so much of a stare. Riku immediately made a move as though to follow him, but then hesitated, turning back towards Sora.

"I'm going to go watch the fight, Sora. You coming?"

"Nn. I think I'll stay here," the boy replied, managing a smile. 

Riku nodded and then left to follow Leon, Donald and Goofy trailing after him, not wanting to miss the fight. Hades watched them depart before he dryly chuckled, rubbing his forehead with one hand.

"This tournament sure turned out to be a spectacle. Can't believe there's only a few fights left."

Sora blinked, startled. "What? How many are there?" he asked.

"Well... There's this fight, part of the semi-finals. Whoever wins it goes to the finals to fight another team who wins in the semi-finals, and whichever two teams win those fights go to the winner's circle, which is the last battle."

"Oh..." was Sora's resigned response. So the tournament would be over in a few fights. Idly wondering how many more times he had to fight, he sighed and slumped against the large stone block near the center of the room to wait for the current round to end.

Leon and Cloud. 

Staring blankly at the ground, Sora lazily drew the names against the sandy stone, absent-mindedly admiring how the names went so well together. Certainly better than Leon and Riku, Sora mused, but not quite as perfect as Riku and Sora.

A tiny smile twitched at his boyish lips as the thought passed.

"Hey, kid." 

Sora's head rose at the sound of Hades' voice, his blue eyes blinking innocently up at the strange man, who continued to speak once he saw he had the boy's attention.

"I saw you fight out there," Hades stated simply, a grin crossing over his face as he punched the air. "Woo-wee! You've got some power in ya!"

"Yeah. He's pretty strong for a rookie. So is that other kid," Phil added brightly. "Riku, right? Never expected ya to get this far. I won't be surprised if Cloud even loses to ya."

A proud smile spread across Sora's face and he opened his mouth to brag, but caught himself almost immediately, that smile faltering. What did he have to brag about? Riku did most of the fighting... while Sora was just there to bring in a few hits and to Cure Riku when he was falling behind, which was uncommon. Why were they complimenting Sora, if Riku was the hero? So instead of reenacting a fight to entertain his small audience, or elaborating his few deeds like he would have done for Kairi or Selphie or one of the girls back in Traverse Town, Sora instead settled for a self-disparaging, shy smile.

"Th-thanks..."

"Hey, why do you look so down?" Hades asked, planting a hand on Sora's shoulder in a friendly gesture. The boy stole a quick glance at it but said nothing, so Hades continued. "I mean it. That bratty Cloud just might lose to you."

"You mean he might lose to _Riku_," came Sora's withdrawn voice. "I'm just there as backup."

"Pah! Nonsense!" Phil spoke up. "Stop making yourself feel bad. Rule number--"

"If it bothers you so much," Hades cut in, squeezing Sora's shoulder in assurance, "then fight your own fight and ignore what that Riku kid tells you to do. I guarantee you'll find new strength."

"Yeah. You have great potential kid."

Sora glanced at both of them with awe-filled eyes. At home, only Kairi had paid attention to him, cheered him on from the sidelines, supporting him while Riku always managed to steal the fight, and everyone else's praise and attention. Even on Mulan's world, and in Traverse Town, it was always Riku Riku Riku. What about Sora? He was from another world too! He was as strong as Riku, he was as smart as Riku, he was even Riku's boyfriend! Shouldn't he be envied? Shouldn't _he_ be praised along side Riku?

And now here he was, receiving that attention and praise--attention and praise from two people that had probably seen more fights in one month than Sora had seen in his entire lifetime. Experts were complimenting him when he had done practically nothing. Their words seemed genuine and Sora believed them, a sudden warmth enveloping his heart, his blue eyes filling with relieved tears. 

These people understood. They had noticed him. And they weren't comparing him to Riku.

As a wide grin broke out over his boyish face, the tears leaked out from under shivering eyelashes and rolled down his cheeks. And from the corner of the room, Yami smiled.

~~~

When the fight began, the crowd immediately sensed that this was one to pay every ounce of attention to--that this was a sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat battle, that this fight would be the one to remember. The first opponent held himself proudly, regally; he knew he was good, and he had somehow managed to break off from his previous team to fight the rest of the tournament alone. His name was Leon, and, true to his name, he had entered like a lion, his hard gaze carefully sizing up his enemy as he gracefully strode forward, unafraid, chin held high and mane tossed back. On the other side of the arena stood the challenger, the current champion, and obviously an expert swordsman. Rumored to be a demon in the fighting ring, Cloud held the respect of many other fighters, many who had learned the hard way by having to face the blonde man themselves. He watched Leon through focused blue eyes, but the gaze, while intent and prepared, was unimpressed and unfrightened without a trace of arrogance. Cloud knew his own strength, but he refused to be ostentatious about it. Both of the men seemed equally matched in both brain and brawn (and looks too, in Riku's opinion), and from the way they exchanged knowing glares, it was clear to the audience that there was an underlying story behind them; perhaps they had a bitter past together, or maybe there was a stolen love somewhere.

Oh, if only they knew the truth.

When the fight began, the crowd immediately fell silent, drawn into almost a hypnotized daze as they stared with awe-filled eyes. Neither man moved with humanlike qualities, with Leon prowling tediously, taking a defensive stance while Cloud suddenly leapt forward, gliding across the distance between them in barely a second. His enormous buster sword came crashing down upon Leon's gunblade, who had easily brought it up to defend himself, but Cloud's feet didn't even touch the ground before he pulled off another wide swipe. Leon ducked this one and sprung up to slice his gunblade through Cloud's vulnerable belly, but the blonde-haired man had already took to the air again in a flip backwards, his belt buckles clinking together as he landed in a crouch, the maroon mantle fluidly settling around him like flowing lava.

Riku watched from the seats above, never tearing his eyes off the pair as they moved to confront each other again, and again... And again. The fight had started impassively, both men showing neither hurt nor despair--just a sense of underlying anger or loathing. But as a minute passed, their resolves began to crumble, their moves turning desperate, a new emotion flitting across their faces with each block and parry. In the beginning Leon had been testing Cloud, Riku realized--sort of like analyzing his abilities, what he was capable of and how fast he could deliver it. But now that he knew, or could guess at Cloud's strength, the man had truly begun the fight, his gunblade moving quickly and precisely, the afternoon sun reflecting off its polished surface and giving it a transcendental aura. But Cloud had also been testing Leon, and from the start of the fight it had been obvious both to him and Riku that Leon hadn't taken Cloud's skills seriously, not even with the knowledge that Cloud was the current champion of the last three tournaments. That had been the first crack in Cloud's emotionless mask.

It didn't take long for the rest of his impartial veil to slip away.

Leon lifted a hand and aimed, preparing a weak fire spell as a distraction, when Cloud's facade suddenly shattered and he vengefully lunged forward, his maroon mantle flapping after him like a pair of wings. The spell shot out, but Cloud easily brushed it away with a swipe of his buster sword, the magical fire barely scalding the gauze wrapped around the blade. The flames parted like liquid as Cloud passed through them, the fire briefly casting infernal shadows over his face and giving his blue eyes an inhuman gleam. Leon didn't have time to raise his gunblade, for Cloud was there in an instant, and the next thing the man knew, he landed sprawled on the stone floor, gunblade over him and shielding an attack from the buster sword that could have taken his head off. Cloud crouched over Leon, one leg on either side of him in a straddle, his sword mercilessly pushing against the gunblade and crushing Leon's body into the arena floor.

"You _never_ took me seriously...!" Cloud managed to ground out between clenched teeth, his watery blue eyes dark with revenge, his brows arched together in furious desperation. "_Never_!" he cried, and for a moment it sounded like he was choking on a dry sob.

Whether Cloud was speaking about his unrequited love for Leon or his overlooked fighting skills, Riku wasn't sure. It was probably both. Leon had probably refused to acknowledge Cloud's strength all those years ago, and he had probably mistook the boy's love back then as a mere infatuation. So now Cloud was setting both misunderstandings straight, his bitter malevolence fueled by nine dark years of isolation. Leon seemed unfazed by Cloud's outburst though, the man's attention fixated more on Cloud's emotional face and untamed eyes.

"Just because I was younger than you...!" the younger man hissed, the buster sword and gunblade grounding against each other and sending a hair-raising screech of metal-on-metal through the air. "It was Sephiroth wasn't it?!"

Leon's eyes narrowed dangerously, his hold on the gunblade so tight his knuckles were bone-white. "What are you implying?" he growled back, his voice slightly strained as Cloud's weapon brutally pressed against him.

"You didn't need me back then because you had Sephiroth!" Cloud choked out, desperately forcing his eyes shut. "And you don't need me now because you've replaced him with that... that _kid_!"

By now Riku had risen from his seat and was staring out at the combatants in the arena with wide, transfixed green eyes, his fists clenched at his sides. He had no idea why this fight was affecting him so much, but he wasn't the only one that had been frozen into a fascinated silence. The men's voices rang out clearly through the silent air as they fought, the tension so thick that the audience was too frightened to cheer or even utter the most minute of sounds.

"Listen to me, Cloud!" Leon snapped, and the blonde man's eyes slid open to meet the man's wild gaze. "Sephiroth was, and Riku is, my companion! That's it!"

"Liar! I saw the similarities between them!" Cloud cried as he madly shook his head, enraged. "Why didn't you just tell me back then instead of letting me wonder all this time?! You didn't need me! You hated me!"

"Cloud! That was almost a decade ago!" Leon shot back as Cloud turned his head. Taking the other man's inattention to his advantage, Leon pushed upward with all the strength he could muster as he raised a knee to shove Cloud off him. The blonde man stumbled backward into a standing position, pulling his buster sword into a defensive stance as Leon lunged forward, grounding out, "Stop acting like a child and finish the fight!"

"That decade was hell for me!" Cloud cried in indignation as Leon's blade struck. He shifted his weight to his feet, using the ground as leverage to drive Leon back, his sword outdoing the man's smaller gunblade. "Unlike you, who got to live with the comfort your friends gave you, I suffered!"

"I thought you couldn't remember what happened?!" Leon demanded, voice strung with anger and resistance. One of his gloved hands slid to grip the blade of his weapon to control it more efficiently, the heels of his shoes planted firmly against the stone floor to keep from sliding backwards. Had he known Cloud had this much hidden strength, Leon would have chosen a different fighting stance. And even then, he could tell Cloud was still holding back.

"I can't!" Cloud cried, jerking his buster sword away. Leon shifted to attack, but Cloud was faster, and with a swipe of his hand, his gold claws tore Leon's shirt and ripped through a layer of skin. "All I remember is the pain! And the gift it gave me is an everyday reminder of the life I should have had!"

"Gift?" Leon echoed, ignoring the red weeping from the tear in his shirt, his eyes focused on Cloud and anticipating another attack. But something was wrong. The crowd could feel it even from their distant seats. "What the hell are you babbling about?!"

None of them were expecting what came next.

"**_This_**!"

Cloud's maroon mantle launched upward as something beneath it suddenly unfolded and flung open, the sound of leather against bone sliding over cloth drawing Leon's eyes from Cloud's face to his "gift." An obsidian wing, like a demon's, was arched over Cloud's bowed head, stretched out to its harrowing length. It was shuddering as the man's body shook with angry sobs, and Leon felt his eyes widening in appalled horror.

Only one wing, it made him neither human nor heartless. Forced into alienation because of his strange appendage, the only way Cloud could feel accepted and comfortable around people was when the wing was covered, which was probably why he hadn't flaunted it around like a prize. It was a curse. Cloud must have had to live through that isolation for so long, never being able to hold anyone close for the fear of later being rejected for what he now was. With sudden self-loathing, Leon realized that this was why Cloud must have clung so desperately to his past. As the demon society saw him as, he had no future. So if he couldn't move forward, all he had left, aside from his present stature as a fighter, were his scattered memories.

"Why did you choose _him_?" Cloud asked weakly, his voice tinged with defeated anger. "Why was I separated? Why can't I **_hate_** you....?"

Before Leon even had a chance to respond or defend himself, the flat side of Cloud's buster sword cracked over his head. As the haze of pain flashed before his eyes and cast Cloud's crying image in red, Leon dropped to the ground of the arena, his gleaming gunblade clattering against the stone floor next to him, defeated.

  
  


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Erk... Chapter 12 is STILL not finished. ^^;; Part Three will be coming as soon as I can write it, so please review in the meantime. Review lots of times. *nodnod* There's still lots of fun stuff to write in this chapter, so don't worry... There's more of the Coliseum and Cloud. Speaking of that...

I hope all of you accept my characterizations of Cloud and Squall. I must have come up with a dozen ways (with help, of course) for the two of them to finally meet each other at the Coliseum, but most of them were just too... Boring. Non-Stygian Solace-esque? Anyway. Their meeting came to me on a whim, and I picked at it until it was to my satisfaction. So how did you like it then? The fight was funfunfun to write. ^^ Hee.

I know, I'm focusing a lot on them right now, but that's because the next few chapters will be mostly about Sora, Sora and Riku, and of course the mystery behind Yami. As for Sora... Did you catch the hints this time?

Review and bug me until I update! Really, you have no idea how much reviews help me. There can never be too many, and they can never be too long!

**Review button:** _Feeeeed me._


	15. Ch 12: Gemini’s Cruel Fates part three

**ANNOUNCEMENT**

Chapters 1-6 are being rewritten. Please go back and read the new chapter one and two! That's right, I haven't been sitting on my butt these past weeks. I've actually been writing. ^^ Soo... Go reread the first two chapters, and over the next few weeks I'll update Ch 3-6. They're so much better now! Go read! Go read! Lots of new stuff! AND review! Review even if you have already (just log out and sign in anonymously)! I want to know how much better they are now. ^^ Thanks a lot!

_Author Notes:_

Thanks to all of you who have reviewed!! ^^ I love you guys. Since so many of you reviewed the insert I was going to delete, I'm going to turn it into something... like maybe an intermission or something, I dunno yet.

I kept the majority of this chapter a secret to even my beta, so this hasn't been read by any second opinion. If it mortally sucks, then I apologize. If it's appalling, I apologize. If something doesn't make sense or is way out of place, I apologize. I do tend to get carried away sometimes. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy it. Stygian Solace is, as you can tell, finally taking its expected dark turn. And yes, I'm aware that the first paragraph is one huge fragment---it's intentional. This chapter is... painful? Bloody. I felt bad for picking on Cerberus, but... well... This IS rated R. Ah yes, and a warning about the changes in Sora. ^^; They're a bit... extreme?

You know the drill. ^^ Leave some reviews! C'mon! I write nice, loooong chapters with plot (that cause me much planning and grief). Gimme some feedback! Please?

_A look ahead:_ Again (again)

A dream within a dream. Who's whose darkness or strength? Hot damn!! Has it really been nine years?

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**_Chapter Twelve: Gemini's Cruel Fates_**_ -- part three_

  
  


The clang of metal and stone, sword and soft flesh and fang; the stench of decayed meat on breath and sweat-drenched skin; the feel of power humming between palm and hilt, of one's insides turning numb with premonitory cold darkness; the taste of dry air and parched throat, of the sweet sugariness of a Cure spell; control, trust and love laced delicately around fingers and balanced feet. 

The first of the two fights of the finals couldn't have commenced any other way. _Team Riku versus Styx_ had Sora and Riku pit against a gargantuan three-headed dog and a team of wraiths---undead souls. Sora, true to his nature (as he did prefer the large enemies), immediately had gone for the dog, but he had soon learned that Cerberus was, unlike previous fights, no brainless titan. Quite the contrary actually, with six eyes and three equally-sharp snapping maws. The dog had a mean demeanor, and its drool was utterly vile. However, the trait that almost (just almost) made Cerberus seem like a formidable opponent (aside from those teeth) was its massive paws that had, as soon as Sora had approached it, slammed down to crush him.

Sora had smiled then.

Riku could take care of the wraiths. The dog was _his_.

As the right head came swooping down to snap at him, Sora ducked between its two front paws and cast an Aero spell, the eddy of warm wind surging around him, his hair and old jacket shifting with the current of air. Its strength filled him with the confidence he needed and, gripping Einlanzer tightly in his hands, he grinned, feeling the beginnings of battle-induced elation.

Einlanzer was a different sword. Sora had known as soon as he had seen it in the Moogles' synthesizing shop (whether the creatures had made it, he didn't know). Unlike the sticks Riku and he had fought with back at home, which were pretty much blunt objects used to crack people over the head with since they were in no way sharp or pointed, Einlanzer had an elegant, long blade made of light, sturdy metal. At first fighting with it had been a challenge, for Sora had to adjust his fighting style to better suit this blade. Instead of the old forceful, heavy swings, he practiced with quick, small slashes aimed where they would hurt the most. The edge was sharp and long and could deal a hefty amount of damage to an enemy with a third of the effort he would have used with his old wooden sword at home. Now that he didn't have to drag it around, Sora could also play with his stances and footing. Evading attacks was easier now, as was delivering his own blows, and Sora marveled at his swift improvement.

This dog here, for instance, would hardly be a challenge, even with three brains and a size advantage. All he had to do was maneuver the beast to his level and the fight would be his.

Or that's what Sora told himself, at least, as the maw opened to snap at him and he slipped the blade through the air and sliced into the first neck of the beast, pressing the edge into the black fur as firmly as he could before the blade slid away. A stream of red spilled down the creature's torso as it reared back, the other two jaws angrily snapping. When the front paws came falling back, they crashed into the sandy stone and sent a small tremor through the earth, causing Sora to stagger for a moment.

The blood was further proof that this creature was unlike what he had fought before. Heartless had no blood; as soon as they were defeated, they disappeared into a black mist or dissipated into fragments of magic. Cerberus was a living, breathing creature with blood pumping through its veins. Riku's keyblade, Donald's staff or Goofy's shield (all blunt objects) would have made a clean job of this fight, but Sora had his sword, a real weapon with real destructive power, a tool used to kill, to rip skin and taste blood. Sora couldn't keep this fight clean, not if he was going to defeat this dog. Not if he was going to show Riku and the audience what he was capable of.

Riku. 

As he regained his balance, Sora quickly stole a glance away from Cerberus to see how the silver-haired boy was fairing. Not to his surprise, Riku was weaving in and out of the crowd of wraiths, the keyblade shining a heavenly silver against their lifeless bodies of cold, black cobweb and shapeless, tattered cloth. The creatures emitted an eerie, skin-prickling sensation, as if they were the embodiment of all that the living feared: death, soullessness. Ironic, actually---wraiths were undead souls. Both the wraiths and Cerberus were creatures from the underworld, never meant to be seen by the eyes of the living, but the three-headed dog had a disadvantage: it was still alive, and could feel pain.

Long, spindle-like, knotted and crooked wraith fingers grasped at empty air, wanting but not finding Riku's effervescent light, his strength, his soul and life-force. Or perhaps they wanted his heart, as it seemed everyone else did. But Riku brushed their twisted hands away with his weapon of purity and cast aside their gloomy shadows and stench of musty earth. Their dismal, haggard aura had no effect on the silver-haired boy as he spun around the screeching creatures and drove his keyblade into each of them. They fell away from him like ashes; they stood no chance, it seemed, even as they tried to pollute his soul, rip at his body and rape his heart. 

Show off.

Ah, so what if Riku was finishing off the wraiths pretty quickly. Sora could fight just as well! 

Sora's brow furrowed as he turned his attention back to _his_ fair: Cerberus. The fastest way to bring down this titan would be to use magic as well as his physical attacks... The problem with this beast was that it was so tall, and the only time Sora could plant an attack on his three targets was when one of the heads swooped down for an attack.

Setting his jaw into a determined line, the boy thrust his palms into the air (red-stained Einlanzer in one hand) and summoned a Gravity spell, trying to focus all of his novice magical power to strengthen it as Yami had taught him back in Traverse Town. He doubted a spell of regular strength would have much effect on the massive dog, but perhaps if he tried to concentrate it....

Two of the dog's heads glanced up to sniff at the spell as it came down as a massive sphere of darkness over its body and gravity's invisible arms began to pull it towards the ground. Knees wobbled, ears flicked in annoyance.

_Come on...!_ Sora silently cried, squeezing his eyes shut and jutting his palms outward to help manipulate the spell. _Focus!_

Cerberus' front legs suddenly gave out and the mass of black fur and bones crumpled to the dusty floor of the arena, the beast's three heads turning this way and that to snarl at the nonexistent hands that held it down. The spell had worked! Now Sora could easily continue the fight.

But as soon as he leapt at one of the dog's heads, sword raised high above him to cleave into the beast, the snout thrust outward and struck him hard, throwing him back with such momentum that he went sliding across the rough stone towards where Riku was fighting. The blow had fazed him so much, actually, that it took him a moment to realize that he had actually been thrown so far, and that Einlanzer was no longer in his grasp. When Sora sat up, the pain settled in, his ribs aching from Cerberus' unexpected head-butt and his back burning from where his clothes had not protected it from his grounding slide over the sandy stone.

Never mind the wounds. He had to find his sword and get back to the stupid dog.

But where was it?

Stumbling back to his feet, he cast his glance about, keeping it lowered to the ground to search for his weapon, knowing well that his Gravity spell probably wouldn't keep Cerberus occupied for long. It was because his mind was focused on these things that he didn't notice the prickling cold on his skin or the fading of sounds in the arena or the growing shadows in front of him. Somewhere in the recesses of his mind Sora had noticed the stench of the undead and its distinctive melancholic aura, but by the time he saw that they were upon him, it was too late. A group of wraiths had surrounded him, and even if he had Einlanzer, there was no way his sword could affect such massless, chthonic creatures.

When the first one reached through him, he thought he was going to die. He was almost overtaken by the overwhelming sensations that followed--like being entirely covered with live spiders, their prickly legs tickling his sensitive skin and leaving it aggravated, itchy--but as the wraith passed through him entirely, it was as though he was plunging stomach-first into a vat of ice water, the painful coldness fiercely spreading throughout his body before segueing into a soothing, silk-like numbness that caressed his suddenly lethargic limbs and lulled him towards an untroubled sleep. 

It felt like death.

_Do not be afraid._

It felt not too unlike the cold darkness that had so adamantly taken root in his soul.

_Choose this sanctitude._

Sora hated it. He hated feeling so weak, so helpless, so... 

_Give in._

So broken. Consumed.

_Embrace this freedom._

As soon as the creature had passed through him the sensation evanesced, and Sora staggered forward as though he had been stabbed, his nerves feeling as if on fire as they fought to awaken from their brief slumber. Somewhere behind him he heard a familiar voice call out his name, but all he could do was stare, blue eyes wide with fear, as another wraith glided effortlessly through him.

"Sora!"

Something cold, something decrepit but as soft as light brushed against his heart, jerking him out of his would-be stupor and throwing him into a frantic feat to escape that feeling again. His arms flailed out in panic and he crashed backwards into the ground, one hand grazing against something metal and hard: Einlanzer. Without hesitating he plucked his sword from the stone and clambered back to his feet, screaming to let himself know he was still alive, that the wraiths hadn't stolen his body, that this fight was still his. He screamed himself hoarse as he raced back to Cerberus still bowed under the weight of the spell, and arched his weapon high over his head.

The first strike hit the middle head's neck, slicing clean into it, before the blade was pulled back to deliver a new blow, this time striking the eye. The dog howled in pain as the other two heads came down to snap at its attacker, but Sora was faster, fueled by his fear and hope. The boy fell into a roll to escape the jaws that closed just where his head would have been and quickly leapt back into his fighting stance, stabbing Einlanzer into Righty's neck right over him. 

He wrenched the blade out and plunged it in again before the dog could retract, and when it did, the sword slid along the front of the neck and cut it open, dark blood spilling onto Sora, staining his hair and face and making him shudder as he backed away. The center head grimaced, but Lefty was growling and hissing in anger and took no time in seeking revenge. One paw came slamming down in front of Sora, but the boy had anticipated the attack, and had leapt aside to avoid it. He charged forward again as Lefty was lunging towards him, and this time his sword passed through something soft and wet before it struck something hard; Einlanzer had cut so deeply into the throat that it had sliced through the tongue and hit the roof of the mouth. The jaw closed upon reflex and Sora's blade dug deeper into the brain cavity. Blood and fur were covering his hands now--he was sure he was covered with them. But the nauseating feeling that came from that knowledge didn't stop him. 

No, it encouraged him.

The only head left was the center one. Before attacking again, Sora paused to brush his red-drenched bangs away from his forehead, and when he had wiped his hands on his sticky pants, he was ready to continue. He was already springing forward when two hands grabbed him from behind and jerked him backwards. Sora's raw back hit a solid form and he cried out, spinning around to punish whoever dared to hurt and insult him so.

A gloved hand caught his wrist as he raised his sword, preventing him from even laying a blow, and, turning his angry blue glare towards this new enemy, he met worried green eyes.

Riku.

Riku was worried again. Why did he look so sad?

"Sora, the fight is over. Let's get you cleaned up."

The fight was over? But it had only just begun, hadn't it? Sora still had to deliver the final blow to Cerberus, he still had to wreak revenge upon those wraiths that had raped his soul. He still had to....

Had to...

"Sora. We won," came Riku's gentle voice again. Sora let Einlanzer get pulled from his grasp. He let his friend's hand brush against his crimson-smeared cheeks. "We're going to the final fight in the Winner's Circle. Let's go get ready..."

A hand was held out for him as Riku released him. Unsure of what to think, Sora did the only thing he could do. He took Riku's hand and let himself be led to the entryway.

The next few minutes passed in a blur, most of it not even registering to Sora as Riku led him from one place to the next. He remembered people he didn't know congratulating him on his wonderful display of ability, and people he did know cautiously encouraging him to do his best in the last fight, but he took none if it to heart. He remembered Yami's yellow eyes smiling at him, Leon glaring at him, and Cloud watching him from the side as he was led past Phil, who was blathering with Hades about needing a strong Curaga spell to heal Cerberus, but Sora didn't understand why Cerberus was wounded so badly. He even remembered Riku gently checking him for wounds and sighing that he couldn't see anything under all the drying blood.

What he didn't remember was Riku asking where he could find a bath and then dragging Sora there. Sora awoke from his daze when he was pushed into a shallow rectangular pool of water; it was an open-aired, public bath it seemed, though no one else seemed to be present except the two of them. The pool, which stretched under several archaic arches, was surrounded by marble columns and statues of perfectly sculpted naked men and women, some of them holding vases or horns that spilled more water into the pool. And then there were a few shrubs and small trees dotting the area, finishing the whole picturesque, romantic scene. And it would have been, if the situation hadn't been so tense.

Sora shot out of the water and spun towards the person that had shoved him, completely clothed, into the freezing water. Streaks of red water ran down the sides of his face, his hair a mop of maroon and his clothes feeling like loads of wet sand meant only to weigh him down. Cerberus' blood had quickly contaminated the clear water, little tendrils of red snaking out over the surface to dissipate into nothing. 

Riku calmly faced his boyfriend. "We fight again in a little while, if you didn't hear earlier. Yami and Cloud are going up to fight in a little while after they clean up the arena."

"Where's my sword?"

Riku's green eyes narrowed upon hearing that question. He had expected Sora to inquire about Cerberus or maybe Riku himself, but his sword...? "Leon said he would take care of cleaning it," Riku replied, not letting anything through his facade. Slowly his arms crossed over his chest as he stared down at Sora kneeling in the pool. "Anything else?"

Sora met his gaze with confused blue eyes. Inside he was screaming again, demanding to know the answers to questions he knew he would never ask Riku. Questions Riku would probably take the wrong way... Questions Riku himself probably didn't know the answer to.

"No. There's nothing else."

_Liar,_ Riku mentally sighed. "And what about you, Sora? How are you?"

"Fine."

Riku reached out and tightly grasped Sora's shoulders, leaning down to meet Sora's empty blue gaze. "I saw what happened, Sora. You're not fine. But I'll be here for when you do want to talk about it."

The boy said nothing in response then and instead lowered his eyes to stare at the red spreading through the water. The next half-hour passed rather uneventfully, with Riku helping Sora wash himself and tending to the scrapes along his back. At one point, when Riku was scrubbing at Sora's hair, they heard Hades' voice announce throughout the coliseum that the next fight was commencing, which meant someone had managed to clean or cover up Cerberus' blood. Which meant Yami and Cloud were about to fight. 

"You're not going to go watch it and study their fighting styles?" Sora had asked quietly, resentment dripping from his voice. 

Riku had said nothing, his fingers gently massaging Sora's scalp and easing the boy's head back into the water to wash those lovely brown spikes of hair. The bath had finished rather quickly after that, Sora's anger only building up through the silence. It wasn't until they were both outside the coliseum's entryway in the early-evening sun that Sora's impatience finally got the best of him. They were standing on the single high step under the statues very near one of the towering white walls, drying themselves with rags. After furiously rubbing his rag through his damp hair, Sora threw it to the ground far below and suddenly spun on Riku, who watched him, only half startled.

"You never let me finish!" Sora accused angrily, stalking towards his boyfriend. "You always steal the fight! Are you that addicted to fame that you won't let even _me_ share it?!"

Riku's green eyes softened as he stared at the younger boy, disbelieving that this was his Sora. That his Sora was reprimanding him, yelling at him... That his Sora apparently hadn't noticed how appalling his fighting had been. Reaching a hand out to cup the boy's cheek, Riku said, "Didn't you notice the way you were fighting? I was only trying to protect you."

"I don't need your protection!" Sora shot back angrily, slapping Riku's hand aside. His watery blue eyes were filled with a hardness, a defiance Riku had never seen in him before. "I don't need your strength! What I need is _you_!"

"But you _have_ me!"

"Then stop brushing me aside!" Sora cried, his hands clenched into tight fists, his small body trembling with a confusing melange of emotions. 

The silver-haired boy took a step forward, feeling a sharp pang of compunction, sorrow, self-hatred. Riku had no idea. This wasn't right. Sora wasn't like this... Riku's voice came soft, seeking affirmation. "Brushing you asi--?"

"Yes!" Sora choked before Riku could even finish his sentence. He forced his eyes shut before they could fill with anymore tears. He had to say it. He had to have Riku confirm his fears. "For Leon!" Here his voice wavered and he had to take a deep breath to calm his shuddering heart. "For fighting!" Yes, surely a moment in battle was far more important to Riku than a night with Sora was. But the last fear... It came from nowhere, the aspect of it too frightening for him to raise his eyes. "For Yami!"

He kept his face turned, unable to meet Riku's incredulous stare. He had done it. Riku would probably never forgive him for saying such things, for doubting him so inclemently without thoughts of the consequences. Bracing himself for a bitter truth, or maybe Riku's wrath, Sora lowered his head even further.

"What the--- Sora, you can't be serious!"

There it was.

_Here it comes,_ Sora thought, mentally cringing at the prospect of what would happen. 

He was not expecting the warm embrace that followed, or the soft voice in his ear that lulled his eyes into opening, a few tears escaping down his cheek. 

"Sora, listen to me."

It took him a moment to find his voice. "I'm listening..."

Riku's soft hair brushed against the boy's cheek as he eased Sora to the wall with his own body, the older boy's palms pressing against the warm stone and trapping Sora between his arms, who, with wobbling knees, grabbed hold of Riku's arms to keep himself standing. 

Had it only been that morning when they had last been this close? It felt like such an eternity ago after countless fights and the never ending stream of strange thoughts swirling inside his tired mind. Riku had said he was his, and it certainly seemed true, now that Sora was back in his arms, even if it was for the wrong reasons. Riku's smell was tainted with sweat, sand and Sora's magic, even though they had just gotten out of the public bath, but it was still there. Riku's smell. Sora breathed it in while he still could, letting the older boy gently caress his cheeks.

"I would _never_ leave you for someone else, _especially_ Yami," Riku softly said as he leaned forward to kiss Sora's brow, causing the boy's eyes to flutter shut again. "Leon would kill me if I even _looked_ at him suggestively," Riku added with a hint of a smile. But then it fell. Riku pulled away slightly and lifted Sora's chin with his hand to silently tell him to open his eyes. He did slowly, sad blue eyes studying Riku's serious green. "Do you even know how long I've loved you?" he asked quietly, emphasizing his words by delicately running a finger over Sora's pink lips. "How long I stared at and yearned and waited for you to return my feelings?"

"...you never told me..." came Sora's withdrawn response. He began to lower his gaze, but Riku's sudden rise in tone quickly stopped him.

"_Years_, Sora!" Riku softly cried, slipping his arms completely around the younger boy, who momentarily tensed at the loving gesture. "I love you, Sora, and _only_ you." The embrace tightened. "Kairi, Tidus, Yami, Leon... None of them are worth losing you," Riku continued with a tired sigh. Sora's eyes slightly widened as a strange smile pulled at Riku's mouth. "How could you even _think_ something so absurd, Sora?"

"But the tournament..." Sora began, trying to pitch another doubt.

"Is almost over," Riku replied, finishing the boy's sentence. He loosened his hold on Sora and stepped back, slipping a hand into the boy's messy brown hair. "I have a responsibility to find the keyhole and seal it. You know that, you goof."

He was right, Sora realized. Riku wasn't really being selfish... He was just doing his duty. The boy suddenly felt foolish for even thinking those things, for doubting Riku when he so obviously loved him.

"And when it's over," Riku added, pausing to press his lips to Sora's cheek, "I'll again be completely yours to snuggle all night in bed with. Does that sound good?"

Sora found himself smiling at that. "Yeah..."

"Good. Now stop worrying."

Riku's arms fell away from Sora and something suddenly occurred to the boy. Brow wrinkling in thought, he turned his questioning blue eyes up at Riku.

"...how was I fighting?"

"Hm?" Riku blinked, his smile slowly fading.

"Earlier you said you were trying to protect me because of how I was fighting," Sora explained. "Why did I need protecting?"

For a moment Riku looked pensive, as if unsure whether to tell the whole truth or not. In his mind's eye, Riku was again witnessing the Cerberus being sliced into, over and over and over again, its blood washing over black fur and creating a large pool beneath its paws as it continued to hiss and snap at its unrelenting attacker, unable to see Sora through the haze of blood in each of its six eyes. And then there was Sora, arms, torso and face covered with red, lips pulled back into a crazed, satisfied grin.

Riku blinked a few times to erase the image, his jade eyes slightly narrowing as he frowned. "To be honest, Sora... You frightened me," Riku began in a soft, antagonistic mutter. "I never knew you could fight like that... All the times back on the islands, you never showed that kind of power."

"Have I improved that much?" Sora asked in a small voice. 

He didn't understand why Riku suddenly looked so angry. Was it jealousy of his power? Was it because he was afraid of losing Sora to the darkness? Or was it actually just a bitter facade to hide what Riku truly feared?

"_Improved_?" Riku repeated in a mocking voice. "Sora, that's not improvement. That skill is unnatural." The older boy shook his head, forehead furrowing as he spoke again. "I'd rather have you sitting on the sidelines than fighting if you're going to harness that sort of power. It's..." Here he hesitated, lowering his gaze in uncertainty. "It's not _you_ Sora. I don't want you fighting like that anymore."

"But I'm weak any other way."

Riku shook his head again, his eyes raising to meet Sora's with a scolding glare. "Sora, your only weakness is _that_ strength. I don't know why you're being like this. You used to be the one to cheer me on, not the other way around."

"Well." There was a pause, his voice suddenly turning indignant. "That was back when you were just Riku."

"What's that suppos--"

"Sora. Riku."

Riku gave a short sigh of irritation before he turned to face Leon standing there in the entryway, knowing Sora would as well. Even though he put on the mask of anger, he was actually relieved Leon had interrupted them when he had. Riku didn't want to fall into another argument with Sora. Not another one. They had almost had their second argument a few minutes after their first. The frustrating sorrow that followed that realization was quickly replaced with concern when he saw the incensed look on Leon's usually emotionless face.

"What happened?" Riku asked.

The older man's cold blue-grey eyes hardened. "Cloud has lost." His deep voice was ground out between clenched teeth, startling Sora. The icy Leon was angry yet again in just one day. 

But wait. If Cloud had lost, that meant.... 

From the corner of his eye, Sora saw Riku bristle in dawning realization. "Shit. You can't be serious," was Riku's assertion, staring at Leon in disbelief. 

Leon spoke again with a nod, his voice hollow and contained. "Yami's your opponent in the final battle."

"He defeated even Cloud?" Riku asked, almost demanded, his eyes thinning in anger.

"The kid seems to have some sort of barrier around him," Leon said. "As soon as Cloud found a way through it, Yami finished him off." There was a pause as Riku exchanged surprised looks with Sora. Leon continued quietly. "The kid feels... familiar. I don't trust him."

"Familiar?" Riku asked. 

It was the one word out of Leon's sentence that had caught his attention; he could easily discard the rest. Riku didn't trust Yami either, and to get through so many difficult fights, Yami would have had to have had some sort of magical barrier. And the part about finishing Cloud off so suddenly was also to be expected when one took Yami's fighting style into account. Yami had probably toyed with the mysterious man during the fight until Cloud had finished off the kid's expendable resources and it became a hazard to Yami to let Cloud do as he pleased any further, at which time the boy had probably finished Cloud off to let him and the audience both know that Yami had controlled the fight since the beginning.

There was no need to even watch such a fight. Riku mused that Yami would probably handle the next battle against Riku and Sora in a similar way. Yami would immediately dispose of the weaker of the two challenges, Sora, then try to slowly wear down the stronger, Riku, and then finally finish the fight with an advanced spell he probably hadn't revealed yet.

"I don't know why," Leon replied.

"What about Cloud?" Sora suddenly asked, his voice quiet, as though afraid to speak to Leon after accusing Riku of liking him more. It seemed so childish now. He was grateful to the man, of course, for helping Riku for the past few weeks, but the jealousy had taken too deep a root in Sora for him to appreciate it. Cloud on the other hand was too much of an enigma to the boy for him to form much of an opinion yet, but if Leon showed interest in the blonde man, Sora wouldn't have to worry about Riku and Leon any more.

Leon's grey-blue eyes focused on Sora with a hard stare. "Cloud is resting in the spectator stands. He refused to talk to me. And as for your sword, I cleaned it and it's waiting for you for when you check in with Phil. He's expecting you two any minute now."

"You coming to watch the fight?" Sora asked.

"Cloud defeated me," Leon replied solemnly. "Yami defeated Cloud. Now the two of you are going to fight that kid... The three of you are only children. I really don't know how you've gotten so far. To answer your question, yes, I'm going to be there. You two better go get ready."

That said, Leon calmly turned on his heel and strode away, his brown mane swaying and his many belts jingling with each step he took. Sora and Riku stared after him for a while before they glanced at each other, the earlier tension between them no longer present. The two of them were going up against Yami, but Sora seemed almost excited about it, no trace of anger or resentment in his demeanor at all.

"You ready?" Riku asked, his voice reflecting his serious face. Something already didn't feel right. He felt like he was overlooking something about the upcoming fight.

But when Sora gave him a reassuring smile that lit up his bright blue eyes, Riku's doubt faded. The younger boy casually nodded his head in affirmation. "Yup. I'm ready!"

~~~

Yami entered much the same way as he had during the first fight of the tournament. His stance was calm, his yellow eyes were intently focused on his two targets, and one arm was held, fingers together, across his chest to his opposite shoulder, as though he was about to backhand someone he disliked. His black attire hadn't suffered any during the course of the tournament, not like Riku and Sora's, who would have to find a tailor to mend their clothes whenever they got back to Traverse Town. Riku took a moment to study the outfit, searching for any scratches or tears. 

But no, Yami's high-neck, sleeveless long jacket that stylishly cut into a flair at his waist didn't have any imperfections. Nor did his black tie-belt that hung off one hip, which was probably used only for decoration, as it wasn't needed to hold up his plain-looking black plants. There was no sign that Yami had even participated in the tournament, let alone mutilated half of the heartless on his way to the finals.

That amused look was still on the boy's face too, his amber eyes smiling at Riku from across the arena, that white hair tidied perfectly atop his head. 

Riku hated everything about him, from his flawless suede-like lace-up boots to his delicately arched eyebrows. 

Actually, the only hint for the audience that these competitors knew each other were Riku's malicious glares and the shadow of a smirk at the corner of Yami's lips. Did the creepy kid take pleasure in knowing Riku hated him? Or was it mockery?

Riku and Sora had entered the arena side-by-side, Riku's green eyes focused solely on Yami. Sora meanwhile had glanced up at the stands to take in the large crowd--where had all these people come from? Well, it was to be expected, considering the final fight was between two amazing rookie teams that no one had expected would progress very far. 

When they came to a stop at their designated spot, Riku immediately summoned the keyblade, its magic filling him with encouragement he needed, aside from still having Sora at his side. Sora already had Einlanzer in his grasp; earlier he had marveled at the beautiful job Leon had done cleaning and sharpening the blade--his sword looked brand new, like it had never even touched Cerberus' flesh or occasionally clattered to the coliseum stone's floor. Yami carried no weapon. Yet. Riku remembered the strange wing-like sword the white-haired boy had conjured during the first fight that had so easily cut down the last giant lizard.

Neither Riku nor Sora listened to Hades' introduction and final speech. The only thing they heard, aside from the crowd's cheering, were the words "And let the final battle begin!"

This was it.

The last fight that would decide the new champion and prove that Riku and Sora were heroes. Then they could seal this world's keyhole and return to Traverse Town to rest. The only person in way of that was Yami.

Yami.

Riku gripped the keyblade more tightly, his eyes narrowing as he watched the white-haired boy simply stand there, waiting for him to make the first move. 

"Riku, the fight has started..." came Sora's whisper. "We can't just stand here and watch each other all night."

The boy was right, of course, but it didn't seem as though Yami was going to take the offensive just yet, which meant Riku had to attack first. Letting the powerful hum of the keyblade reassure him, Riku nodded to show Sora that he had heard. And as an afterthought, he whispered back, "Be careful."

"I'm sorry about earlier, Riku."

"I am too."

"Then we're on equal footing?" asked Sora quietly, his blue eyes studying Riku for a moment before turning to stare at Yami again, who was watching them, that amused smile still on his face.

"Yeah," Riku replied. He nodded his head in Yami's direction. "Ready to kick his ass?"

"Aa."

"Good. We'll do it together."

Easier said than done.

Riku broke into a run towards his enemy, Sora's awkward footsteps following suit beside him, but even as he approached the yellow-eyed boy, Yami simply stood there. Was he mocking them? Sora's blade came gliding through the air towards Yami, and at the same time Riku was bringing his keyblade down to strike him. It was only then that Yami moved. Einlanzer never hit its target, however, rather it struck something hard and invisible inches above Yami's head, and Riku took this to be the barrier that Leon had mentioned. 

The white-haired boy didn't even acknowledge Sora's presence, his yellow eyes focusing on Riku and his arm coming up to block the keyblade. His arm. As though Riku's weapon was a pillow or something! Whether or not Yami's actions were meant as an insult, Riku growled and moved to swing again. Yami's smile widened.

"You fight like a madman, keyblade master," came the boy's delighted voice as he easily brushed the giant key away with his arm again. "I find it amazing that you have made it even this far with that lack of skill of yours."

The keyblade barely even touched Yami.

Sora meanwhile was still desperately trying to lay an attack on the white-haired boy, only to have his sword's blade bounce harmlessly off the barrier, each failed blow adding to his frustration. Yami wasn't even paying attention to him. It as if he wasn't there in the arena. Hadn't Riku just said that they would fight together? Well, Sora's actions hadn't gone unnoticed by Riku, who was also quickly becoming frustrated by Yami's antics. 

"What the hell are you doing?" Riku demanded as once again his keyblade was easily blocked by Yami's bare hands. He pulled the weapon back and twirled it around, changing his grip on it before lunging at Yami again, just as Sora was trying to plunge his own blade into the boy's stomach.

Yami spun away from Riku's attack, his yellow eyes smiling at him. And as quickly as it took Riku to realize what was happening, Yami had already thrust his hand out towards Sora and cast the spell. The ghost of a clock faded in and out of existence in front of the younger boy and Sora froze in mid-strike, his arms raised and his face locked with failing determination.

A Stop spell. Riku's eyebrows drew together in anger and he shot Yami a death glare, which only proved to entertain the yellow-eyed boy further. He hadn't even looked at Sora when casting the spell--no, his eyes had been on Riku, even though his body was facing Sora's direction. Ignoring Yami's growing amusement, Riku hissed, "Why are you ignoring Sora's attacks?"

"Afraid for him, Riku?" the boy replied in an arrogant voice, lowering his hand and gracefully turning his entire body back to face Riku. "Or is it that you are afraid _of_ him? I would not worry if I were you. Not about him, at least."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Riku demanded, his eyes narrowing further. Dozens of questions ran through his mind and he couldn't understand why Yami wasn't fighting. How did Yami do the things he did? How did he know the things he knew? Why had he focused on Riku first, not Sora? What was he trying to accomplish by infuriating Riku?

"Sora's destiny is already being masqueraded," Yami said smoothly, "and now the audience has its eyes on you, Riku."

Ah, so that's where this was heading. Riku shifted his feet and gripped the keyblade tightly between his two hands, defensively leveling it in front of him. "Planning on manipulating me with your delusions like you are with Sora?" he sneered. "It won't work with me! I never trusted you!"

"I do not need words to acquire what I desire from you, boy."

"_Boy_?!" Riku echoed in disbelief, his voice dripping with disdain. He sprung forward, keyblade arched over his shoulder, and as he came into range, he jerked it down to cleave into Yami.

Yami's wing-shaped sword came up from out of nowhere to meet it, the boy leaning dangerously close to Riku as he said, "Your weaknesses are such a beautiful contrast to that facade you display for everyone to see. But I know you. I know your fears, your hopes, your suspicions..." He hesitated there, watching Riku's pretty face fill with disgusted anger. Yami's lips formed an innocent smile. "You do not know who I am, do you? It unsettles you, does it not? Boy."

"Don't call me that!"

"What would you rather have me call you?" Yami asked, gradually adding more force behind his weapon to drive Riku backward. "Beloved? Doll prince...?"

The only two people who could spur such an angry reaction from Riku were his father and Yami, and it was frustrating, this hatred was. Yami seemed to exist just to irk him.

"Stop!" Riku cried, retracting his keyblade before he again swung it at Yami's head. But this time Yami grabbed it in his two hands--his sword had disappeared as quickly as it had appeared--and jerked it towards himself, in turn tugging Riku with it. Caught by surprise, Riku didn't have time to stop Yami's hands from gripping his arms and pulling him close. Those green eyes widened, but not in fear or anger.

"Or how about kitten?" Yami whispered, leaning in close to Riku, his white bangs brushing against the other boy's forehead. "The truth of the matter is, kitten, that you have no power to stop me, even with that _infallible_ keyblade of yours." Riku opened his mouth to speak, but Yami stopped him with shake of his head, those yellow eyes narrowing as he frowned. "Do not worry about Sora or that destiny of his. I will contest to both myself."

Here he paused, watching Riku's silent reaction, the keyblade master's face filled with wonder and curiosity, which brought a smile back onto Yami's face. The Stop spell was wearing off and Sora would be awakening from his frozen state soon, which meant the real fight could finally begin. Casting a quick glance over at Sora, who was beginning to stir, Yami smirked before turning back to Riku, who was giving him another glare. 

Yami released Riku from his grasp and shoved the boy back, cheerfully saying, "And I do hope you have a pleasant sleep!"

Before Riku realized what was happening, Yami's sword had reappeared and the boy was relentlessly attacking him, the blade sending dozens of cuts and slashes to Riku's body in a matter of seconds. The keyblade proved to be no shield, as he could only manage to block one attack out of the many Yami was now inflicting upon him, his hands moving too fast for Riku to calculate. The silver-haired boy was soon blocking aimlessly, backing away from his attacker and crying out whenever a blow cut into his bare skin. The assault was brief, however, though it had been long enough discourage Riku, who didn't see Yami's hand descending upon him. Five bare fingers brushed against his forehead and, just like that, Riku crumpled to the ground, the keyblade still clutched tightly in his grasp.

Sora staggered forward and threw a confused look around the arena, the Stop spell finally wearing off, only to discover Riku sprawled out on the stone floor, unconscious. Sora turned his blue gaze towards Yami, frightened. Yami had already defeated Riku? When had that happened?

"Yami? What happened?" Sora asked, eyes wide.

"I merely told him that I am ashamed of his encumbrance in your fighting progress," Yami replied as he stepped over Riku to approach Sora, reaching one hand up to smooth out his white bangs. Sora immediately tensed, bringing his sword up, ready to defend himself, but Yami only spoke again, his voice soft. "Why do you let him censor your actions so?"

Sora said nothing, feeling his pulse quicken as Yami slowly approached him. He didn't know what to say. He only knew that he was the last one standing against Yami, and that he had to win. He couldn't let Yami defeat him.

Yami came to a stop in front of Sora, yellow eyes serious as he extended his free hand, the wing-shaped sword clutched in his other. "Show me, Sora," he said, eyes narrowing. "Show me that he has no grasp on your power."

"But..." was all Sora could utter.

"Do you wish to disappoint him? Do you wish to fall in defeat and have him pity you even further?" Yami said before the boy could question him. "You do not deserve him then. No, you can trudge back to that dismal world of yours and let him grow into the hero he is so intent on becoming without you."

"No!" Sora cried, gripping his sword tightly as he squeezed his eyes shut. "Riku says he needs me!"

"Perhaps he does need you," Yami said lightly. "The question is whether or not you have the courage or strength to fulfill those needs. You cannot even hit me."

_He's right... I can't,_ Sora realized, a hopeless fear suddenly filling him. _What am I going to do?_

"Where is that amazing power of yours, Sora?" Yami sneered, throwing his hand up in an urgent gesture. "Show me!"

"Stop mocking me!" the boy screamed, Einlanzer suddenly slicing through the air and striking Yami's barrier. This time it didn't bounce off, and, failing to notice the satisfied smile spreading across Yami's face, Sora plunged his sword in deeper, cutting through the invisible shield and shattering it.

_That's it. Embrace the power._

"Better, Sora. Better!" Yami laughed as he leapt back, bringing his sword up to block Sora's as the boy attacked, elated with his sudden success. "But is it enough? You are too weak."

"No I'm not! I'm not even close to giving up yet!" Sora cried, drawing strength from the knowledge that he had just broken Yami's shield. _Cloud broke through your barrier like I just did and got defeated! I'm not even close to giving up!_

_Do not be afraid. Open the door to your cage._

"I'm not afraid!" Sora exclaimed, Einlanzer gliding through the still air and striking Yami's blade, stroke for stroke. They were evenly matched, it seemed. Sora was pushing Yami as Yami was pushing Sora. "I can beat you!"

_To please the Master... Give in._

"You still do not possess the strength!" Yami yelled, forcefully shoving Sora backwards, throwing the boy off balance.

"Yes I do!" Sora retorted, lunging back before he even regained his footing. No good. Yami easily blocked his attack. There had to be some way to beat Yami. He couldn't give up now...! He had to have the strength!

_Give yourself to Master and you shall be free._

"Then show me!" Yami urged, throwing his arms out as though to welcome whatever power Sora had to throw at him. 

_I have it... I know I do!_ Sora quietly cried. He had it. He had it. Yami couldn't win.

_Spread your wings and escape your prison._

_I can't fail Riku... Yami can't win!_ Sora inwardly screamed, forcing his eyes shut again as he wound his arms around himself. _Someone give me the strength!_

_Open your heart to the darkness, new Master..._

There.

It was there.

He could feel it inside himself, waiting to be used. It was like shadow, only it grew instead of receding as Sora reached inside himself to grasp it. A sudden warmth filled him, spreading throughout his bones like green envy, only this time he was the one with something to be jealous of. He had it. He could feel it. He could feel it woven around his fingers, threaded in his muscles and throbbing deep within his tired soul.

_Give in,_ it whispered. _Just give in._

So Sora did.

He spun on Yami, his blue eyes hard with confidence, and this time he saw the pleased look on his enemy's face. He didn't care. Yami could smile all he wanted. Sora sprung at the other boy, fueled by his dark power, and swung Einlanzer. The blade struck flesh and, not hesitating to check for how much damage he had dealt, Sora pressed a hand to Yami's chest and focused. What he was focusing on, he wasn't sure, but somewhere.... he felt a new magic.... unlike any of his others. It was like Cure in that it affected a person directly, but it was dark... dangerous. His shadow suddenly burst out of the stone floor and stretched through the air like some sort of demon, only it was under his control. Feeling a smile twitch at the corners of his mouth, Sora shoved Yami backward. The shadow shot through the air and struck the yellow-eyed boy, sending him hurtling across the stone floor. With a flick of his fingers, Sora retracted the living shadow and gathered it in his hand.

And for the first time since he had learned about his destiny, Sora loved the darkness.

~~~

"Come on!"

Black feathers brushed against his cheek as the dark-winged Sora spun towards him and grabbed his wrist in his small, delicate hands, a genuinely happy smile crossing his boyish face. He gently pulled Riku past the line of statues, gargoyles and angels alike staring down at the duo as they suddenly tore across the roof, feet barely touching the cold stone as they ran. Riku squinted away the rain as it stung his face, musty water pricking his tongue when he gasped as the winged boy spread his wings and threw a grin back at him.

But then the two of them were sprinting down the entry hall of a run-down chapel, rain and dark sky absent and replaced instead with an evening sun that set the window and statued walls off in a rainbow of colors as it shone through the stained glass. The stench of rotting red velvet struck the back of Riku's throat and he grimaced, his silver hair dripping grey water onto the moth-eaten rug-covered floor. The winged Sora danced ahead, his image faintly flickering as though non-existent as he passed through the incandescence of colorful light from the windows, his wings creating a soft susurrus of sound as they brushed against frayed sheer curtains. And as suddenly as the scene had changed, Riku's hand was released and he was pushed back onto a long, cushioned bench covered in that decayed crimson material that spewed dust as he fell onto it. He landed with one leg on either side of the velvet cushion, palms pressed into the padding to keep himself from falling completely.

"I can feel it."

Riku's eyes widened, not at the winged boy's words, but at his actions as he crawled onto the bench between the older boy's legs and leaned precariously close to his face, wet brunette bangs brushing against Riku's forehead. Those dark, wet wings stretched out, shivering from the effort, and cast a warm shadow over Riku's body as the sun poured onto the younger boy's back. Riku's fingers tore into the velvet seat as his worried jade gaze stared up into the apparition's smiling blue eyes. There was something there in those eyes that vaguely worried Riku. But the dark-winged Sora gave a strange amenity to him, surreptitiously banishing any discomfort that had begun to eat away at his trust. This illusion, this projection of Sora's image seemed so compassionate that it almost had Riku convinced it was real.

"You can too, can't you?" the dark-winged Sora said in a hushed whisper, warm nose brushing against Riku's. His shadow stretched past the older boy as the sun slowly sank behind the line separating the earth and sky beyond the stained glass window. Riku's eyes darted from the sheer curtains billowing in the evening breeze to the ruffling of Sora's feathers, taking in the boy's suddenly seductive stance. Shoulders arched forward, Sora slid his body up his prisoner's until they were parallel, and as he slowly thrust downward to grind their hips together, he lowered his soft lips to caress Riku's, urging them to respond. Mouth instinctively parting, Riku let out a gentle sigh, lusty green eyes returning to watch Sora. 

This was too different.... 

This Sora was almost acting like the devilish one that had tried to bury his nails into Riku's heart. What had happened to the sadly smiling winged Sora who spoke in riddles? When had he turned into such a cunning Siren?

The boy gave Riku a reassuring smile and leaned in for a deeper kiss, coaxing his fair into a pleasure-induced stupor, whose eyes slid to a close as a warm tongue met his. The feel of hard fingers pressed into Riku's thigh as another caress slid over his taut stomach, causing him to groan into the kiss. Sora took this as encouragement and dove deeper into Riku's mouth, pulling and sucking on his tongue as Riku began to fight back for dominance by reaching a hand up to cup one of Sora's cheeks to urge him closer. More fluid touches to his hips and thighs--could hands be so strangely graceful?--sent him into an Appassionata of kissing, stroking warmth with warmth and lips endlessly melding together and parting to breathe, the trickle of saliva down chins the last thing of importance to either of the boys. When at last Sora pulled away, Riku's back fell against the cushioned bench, no longer possessing the strength to remain in his previous position.

"It's taking me, Riku..." 

Between labored breaths and a flighty grin, Riku just barely noticed the boy above him shifting slightly to run his hands between Riku's legs. Wait. Weren't Sora's hands stroking his thighs, stomach and waist as well? How could he do all at once?

Curiously Riku's jade eyes slid open. His breath cut short with a startled gasp when he saw Sora. 

Not Sora. No. Not even dark-winged Sora.

Tendrils of darkness were curling around a familiar bronze-skinned boy whilst whispering against Riku's own body. Those hadn't been hands touching Riku. With horrifying realization, Riku tried to jerk away from the hold the darkness had on him, only to find that he couldn't move. The boy on top of him grinned with satisfaction, those amber eyes gleaming in the shadows now enveloping the quiet chapel. 

"Ah, poor, helpless kitten. Or is it doll prince? You are beautiful enough to be either," came Yami's soft, amused voice. "Which do you prefer?"

"What happened to Sora?!" Riku demanded, trying once again to break free of his restraints, forcing himself to ignore the caresses he was still receiving from the spidery arms of darkness and Yami's own hands.

"Hmm. Scared to admit you enjoyed my ministrations, little kitten?" Yami teased, sliding a palm to rest on Riku's chest. But then those yellow eyes narrowed dangerously, lips forming a serious line. "It was your fault. He left because of you."

"I don't believe you."

"You do not have to, even if I speak the truth." Yami applied pressure with his hand to Riku's torso, and for a second Riku looked frightened, as though he thought that perhaps Yami's fingers could reach through his skin and tickle his heart. Yami noticed. That amused grin returned and he spoke again. "Ahh. Afraid I am a heartless?" he practically purred, leaning down to brush his lips over Riku's, who flinched in disgust. "Worry not. I do not need to use magic to obtain such a prize."

But before Riku could ponder those words, the darkness around him suddenly burst into a cloud of black feathers, swimming and swirling around him until they dissipated, and when they did, Riku found Sora once again above him, only this time it was really his Sora. Riku was laying on the coliseum's arena floor, keyblade in hand, his clothes shredded and frayed in the most peculiar places. Yami was sprawled out, unconscious, on the stone ground not too far away, the boy's face turned downward. Riku's brow furrowed upon seeing the creepy boy, and, lifting his eyes to study Sora, he couldn't help wondering what had happened while he had been passed out, dreaming those strange dreams. The darkness of the night sky couldn't take away from the brightness of Sora's smile when he saw that Riku was finally awake.

"Riku!"

And then it came back. The fight. Riku had been wrong when assuming Yami's fighting... Yami had gone straight to _him_, not Sora, as he had originally predicted. But why? Why had Yami focused in on the stronger of the two boys? And why had Yami said those things?

Hissing through his teeth from the pain now coursing through his body, Riku forced himself into a sitting position, a shudder suddenly racking his nerves as he pressed a gloved hand to his forehead, trying to focus through the confusion in his mind. His gloves were torn, much like the rest of his clothes, which had survived the tournament rather well. He could feel the cold skin of his hands pressing against the warmth of his forehead through the material of the gloves--did he have a fever?--and it reassured him that at least he was still whole. Some of Yami's other battles had ended much worse.

But Yami... Yami had finished Riku off first. Did that mean Yami considered Riku less of a challenge than Sora? Or had he wanted Riku out of the way so he could force his delusions upon Sora again?

Riku must have seemed ragged and depressed, for Sora's happiness faded as he watched the emotions flitting across Riku's face as the older boy fought drowsiness away. Leaning forward, Sora tilted his head to study Riku's face.

"Riku?"

Riku met his concerned gaze with confused green eyes. He must have looked pathetic and lost. Pitiable and defeated even. At the moment he didn't mind showing such weaknesses, however, not when there was a question burning at the tip of his tongue.

"What happened?"

Sora's bright smile returned, both in relief and from remembering what had happened. "I beat Yami!" he exclaimed, his chirpy words like daggers to Riku's pounding head. Those three words brought so many things into perspective even though Riku had already deducted them through reasoning. However... the real questions were How Sora had done it, and Why Yami had let him. So Riku asked the more simple one, his voice sounding small and crushed.

"How...?"

Sora immediately opened his mouth to reassure Riku, to assuage his tired mind, to tell him of the strength he had felt, the pride that had warmed his body upon realizing that he had defeated Yami. Yami. Yami, the boy with the eyes of a heartless, with the skills of a demon. 

Sora found himself wanting to throw himself onto his friend, embrace him and express his happiness and celebrate with maybe a kiss or two, but Riku's wide jade eyes stopped him. 

Was that a look of defeat? Of fear...?

How silly. Riku wasn't afraid of anything, right? Riku never even cried.

So Sora opened his mouth to reassure Riku, to tell him he was alright, that the darkness had nothing to do with winning the tournament. To reassure Riku, and himself, that his body wasn't being consumed from inside and that the numbness settling over his heart was nothing to worry about.

He opened his mouth, but no words would come.

____________________________________________________________________________________

YES! Chapter 12 is finally finished! I had so much trouble trying to squeeze all of this into one last part. As you can tell, it was extremely long, even for my writing style... I could have easily split it into two more parts, but then you guys would have had to wait another two weeks or so. And I do need to get moving onto other chapters. So there you have it... One long last part to Ch. 12: Gemini's Cruel Fates. Onto chapter 13!

Review? ^^;


	16. Intermission Interlude Thingy 2: The Lig...

_Author's Notes:_

Okay, so I lied. XD There's just one more part to Chapter 12, turned into an intermission! I came up with this on a whim. I figured that if I start Chapter 13 where I left off at Chapter 12, a lot of things would be left out, especially in the Leon/Cloud and Yami areas---things that I would like to put in to explain things, but couldn't put in since Stygian Solace is told from Riku and Sora's experiences, not Yami, Leon or Cloud's. So, to touch on those "things," I decided to write a little insert for Chapter 12. It's not meant to go very far in the plot, it's just to clear up a few things that would have been left out at the start of Chapter 13.

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**_About Stygian Solace: Uzumaki's Decisions and Plans Pt. 2_**

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**Yami – who is he?**

One of the most controversial topics in all the reviews I get. So many of you love him, so many of you love to hate him. He's just one of those characters. So, who is he? _No_, he's not an original character... Yami is just an original view of him. Yes, you will absolutely, positively know who his true identity is when I reveal it, so don't worry about him being some random character in some random video game that no one knows about.

Doubts cleared up? Good. But, as you no doubt think, I obviously chose Yami's name on purpose. "Darkness." He is not born from the Yu-Gi-Oh character (as I do not watch or follow that series), but from what I've heard, he's quite similar to him. Oh well. This is purely coincidence.

As for what he looks like, because so many of you want more details than what I gave, visit Stygian Solace's website to view Lane's sketches (link in my profile). All of his pictures are marked as spoiler though... The outfit is supposed to be black, but I settle with dark-grey, and his hair is an off-white, and his eyes are amber yellow.

Now, to address the theory that Yami is Ansem. I'm not going to confirm, nor will I deny that he's Ansem, but I will give you something to think about. Ansem, according to his reports, cast aside his body. So in KH, Ansem didn't have a body, and in the end had to use Riku's body to get things done. However, **Yami** has a body. So my point is... Can Yami really be Ansem? Yes, no, maybe. It's slightly more difficult than that. Some of you are musing that he's a past version of Ansem, or perhaps he's another Unknown, or maybe he works for Sephiroth, or someone along those lines. Hey. Those are great theories! But like the Ansem one, I won't confirm nor deny anything. Not until the time comes.

Now that that's said, theorize all you want. I really love hearing from you guys. But from now on, my lips are sealed until Yami's chapter is up and all is revealed. That means I won't be giving any more hints (aside from what's already in the fanfic), and in the replies to your reviews, I won't be addressing Yami as much as I used to.

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**Sora, Riku and Sora, and Sora's darkness**

Haha. I just had to touch briefly on this subject again.

Hai, hai. It must be done. Sora must be this way. Sora must show this weakness of his. And it's not just because I have a tendency to write main characters like that... I meant for Sora to turn out this way. In the beginning he was a little too weak, but along the way I tweaked it, and now here he is, ready for chapter 13. Chapter 13... oh boy. It's going to be a long one. x.x;;

Riku, on the other hand, is also acting exactly the way I meant for him. It could be argued whether or not Riku is being stupid... Yes, he's focusing a lot on the situation at hand, so without realizing it, he's pushing Sora into being his second priority. It's the way Riku would be, I think... And Sora, under normal circumstances, would probably be fighting right along side Riku without care, but since Sora confessed his love, and because of his destiny, and because Yami is there, Sora's straying from his normal personality. However, if you take a moment to notice how Sora tries to cover it all up under a smiling face (several times), it's understandable that Riku is so quick to believe that Sora is handling his situation well.

And as you can see at the end of Ch. 12, Sora's giving into the darkness now. They both made the wrong decisions: Riku for believing Sora's façade, and Sora for not trusting Riku.

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**Boy/boy Couplings**

Well, obviously the main coupling is Riku and Sora, ne? However, so many of you are wondering if Yami is going to be tossed in there somewhere. Well, keep wondering; there won't be any revelations yet. I know exactly what I want to do.

Aside from them though, there's the FF characters. Hai, I do hint at Leon and Cloud. But will anything happen between them? Hehe. Well, that's in the second half of Stygian Solace, and I have yet to decide yet. And as for Sephiroth... wow. So many of you want him with Cloud instead. That conflicts with my plot a little, but I do love that pairing as well so I'll keep it in mind.

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**Where the heck do you get your information?**

_Dates pre-KH_

No, I didn't make up that Leon and everyone else's world was destroyed nine years ago. I snagged that number from the conversation Sora has with Cid and Leon in the small house, right after he sees Riku in Traverse Town.

_Cid: You guys ever hear of Maleficent? I hear she's in town._

_Sora: Who is she?_

_Cid: A witch, man, she's a witch!_

_Leon: She's the reason this town is full of Heartless. Don't take her lightly._

_Aerith: She's been using the Heartless for years._

_Leon: We lost our world, thanks to her._

_Cid: One day, a swarm of Heartless took over our world!_

_Leon: That was nine years ago._

_Character ages_

No, I didn't make these up either. The KH official site has a lot of useful information, and that's where I found nearly everyone's ages. The only two characters out of the FF roster that don't have known ages are Aerith and Sephiroth, so I simply assumed they were around Cloud and Leon's ages.

_The heartless and Ansem and the darkness_

This gets a bit more analytical. Many of the theories in Stygian Solace are either taken directly from Ansem's reports, or they're slightly altered from KH to fit the SS storyline. Yes, even the bit about Riku being the true key bearer--that was mentioned in one of the cricket's journal entries about Riku.

However, some of the things I've used you can't just find on a website (or maybe you can?) or pick it out of the storyline. You need to dissect what's given to you. For those of you who think KH's storyline was simple to understand because it was crafted for people (children) of all ages, think again. When you dive a bit deeper, you'll find a whole new storyline. It's to be expected, of course, considering who was behind the storyline… XD

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**Frequently Asked Questions**

_Sephiroth_

Yes, yes, yes. Sephy will be making an appearance in Stygian Solace, but it won't be for a long, long while until he's needed in the plot.

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_KH2 Trailers - Special Secret and Deep Dive: Another Side, Another Story_

Yes, I've seen both of them.

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_Anime influence_

Well, I've already squashed the question with Yami from Yu-Gi-Oh, but to repeat it... No, Stygian Solace's Yami is not in any way related to that Yami, considering I don't even know who the Yu-Gi-Oh Yami is...

As for the suggestion that Stygian Solace is very similar to X/1999 the anime/manga by Clamp... Bingo! The whole "opposites" and Gemini thing is true in both, same with the whole destiny/fate motifs and the characters themselves. The theme was already obviously there in Kingdom Hearts; I simply made it more prominent.

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Finally, here's the intermission! Enjoy.

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**_Intermission Interlude Thingy #2:_**_ The Light In Eyes_

Ants. A trail of them. There was a tiny trail of ants in a tiny crevice curving around the not-so-tiny rectangular stone stadium seat he was perched on. Even though it was dark out, he could still see them. The ants no doubt led to the arena floor where so much blood had been spilt today. The little demons would probably feast on the blood spatter and scattered hunks of Cerberus fur that the clean-up crew had missed in their haste to prepare the arena for the final two fights of the tournament that had officially ended two hours ago.

Two hours ago. Had it really been that long?

Cloud had been sitting there since the start of the last fight. He hadn't even moved when Squall had sat by him and stoically watched the conclusion of the tournament, or when Squall had gotten up without a word and had left to meet with the new champions.

Cloud had lost. Cloud was no longer the champion.

The tournament was over. Would that mean Squall would leave with the three battling prodigies? Those three children? Of course he would. Everyone left Cloud. No one truly cared about what happened to him.

He was like the bloody mess Cerberus had left behind... He was trash shed from the darkness, left to be picked apart by society's metaphorical mandibles. The humans, ants, whatever they were---the innocents... They didn't truly care about what they worshipped. In the end they would throw it away like they did with him. He was a magnificent fighter, but who was he if he wasn't the champion? Just another face in the crowd.

And show them your one wing and they shun you as a freak. Demon in the fighting ring. Hah.

Well, Cloud didn't need society either.

He idly wondered how long it would take someone to find his body in the stands, being feasted upon by the ants, if he were to stay here long enough to die. If a child could defeat him so easily, he didn't deserve to fight, let alone be the champion. Two hours had passed already. How many more would it take?

How many more hours before someone noticed?

"Hey."

Well, that was fast. He hadn't even had time to die yet.

Pressing his wing close to himself in an unconscious defensive gesture, Cloud's body tensed upon hearing that familiar deep voice. Slowly he raised his head, blonde hair shifting slightly in the night breeze and his blue eyes narrowing to study the man who had spoken to him.

"..."

Leon stood a good distance away with one hand on his hip, his icy eyes focused on Cloud's upturned face. Other than his distant stance, Leon seemed normal. Same stoic body language as before, same unconcerned, unimpressed facial expression. Cloud hadn't heard him approach, which lowered his spirits even further. Was he so far gone that he couldn't even sense _Squall_ approach?

Wait. What was that supposed to mean?

"Riku has sealed this world," Leon said, his voice reserved and concise. To Cloud, he seemed uncomfortable somehow, even though nothing in his demeanor gave it away. It was like just being around Cloud was unsettling, like starting a conversation with him was taboo. But Leon continued anyway. "The keyhole was in the entry hall the whole time, hidden behind that large stone. I had to help them move it."

Cloud let the man's words register. Riku had been successful in saving the world. The heartless were gone from here... There was no reason for Squall to stay. He was really going to leave him again, wasn't he?

Lowering his eyes to stare at the mindless, marching ants, Cloud quietly asked, "So does that mean you're leaving?"

There was no hesitating for Leon. "Aa. Soon. Back to Traverse Town to stock up and talk with Cid and Aerith."

"Aerith..." The name slipped out before Cloud even realized what Leon had said. That's right. Leon had the freedom to see whomever he wanted. For a moment, Cloud was surprised that he did not feel as bitter as he thought he should have been. Or jealous. But jealous of whom?

And Aerith...

"She'll be glad to know you're safe," Leon said in response to Cloud's little slip. It seemed forced, though. And it wrought the opposite reaction it had intended to from Cloud. The blonde man immediately rose from his perch on the stone seat, his maroon mantle curling around him as he stood to his full height, towering over Leon. He almost unfolded his wing, but he stopped himself before he could make that mistake. Narrowing his suddenly hard eyes, Cloud frowned down at his old friend.

"Don't," he almost growled. "I'm done being her personal knight in shining armor." Then, as though realizing what he had just said, he hesitated. He had loved the woman, no doubt, and still did, but not in the way one would expect. She had been like his sister, actually, sweetly supporting his dreams and goals, while also providing a sort of damsel-like figure for him to protect as he grew. And he _had_ protected her, from street thugs and unwanted partisans alike, in exchange for her help. Well. What good that did. Looking away to fight back a self-deprecating scoff, Cloud muttered, "I was such a child back then..."

There was an unexpected hesitation before Leon spoke again.

"We all were."

Cloud returned his gaze to study the older man, taking in his words with curiosity. It wasn't like Squall to admit something so blatantly, especially if it dealt with such a tender subject. Perhaps Cloud's earlier judgement about him had been false... Yes, Squall had considerably grown up, but that arrogance of his.... Perhaps it was just a mask.

But even so, Cloud felt he needed to emphasize his meaning. "I'm done following someone else's orders," he said, making a wiping gesture with one hand. "It ended with Hades."

"And Sephiroth?"

Cloud bristled defensively at the name. How dare he bring that up, especially now...! Leon didn't know, didn't care. How dare he pretend to! "That's my own mission. It's none of your business!"

"I think it is."

Cloud's eyes angrily narrowed, his wing slightly unfolding and peeking out from under the mantle. He opened his mouth to scold Leon, to scream at him and tell him what an asshole he was being, but he stopped himself, realizing that... Well.... How could Leon know? Leon couldn't... Not unless Cloud told him. Leon was only trying to help Cloud, to somehow reinsert himself in Cloud's empty life. Leon was actually caring for him. Leon cared. Isn't that what Cloud had wanted? For someone to care? So why was he being angry about it?

Maybe it was because it was _Squall_....

"...Sephiroth was the only one, besides myself, that fell into such darkness after our world was destroyed," Cloud said quietly, sounding defeated. "I need to find him... Ask him a few questions."

"How do you know he suffered as much as you did?" Leon asked in a low, direct voice. "Perhaps he and a few of the others that are presumed dead are actually alive and as sane as all of us in Traverse Town. Maybe they're just trapped on another world."

He did have a point, Cloud realized, but he refused to be wrong, especially when it came to his own life. "Sephiroth is here! I know he is!"

"Then why haven't you seen him yet?" Leon nearly demanded, stepping forward and grabbing hold of Cloud's arm. The blonde man stared down at him, blue eyes wide in outrage as though appalled that Leon had dared to touch him so forcefully. Leon didn't care. He pulled Cloud off the stone bench so that they were on equal footing, so he could stare directly into those softly glowing blue eyes. "How long have you been here, Cloud? How many tournaments has it been since you've begun searching for him?"

"Shut up!" Cloud cried, squeezing his eyes shut and jerking away from Leon.

He was right. Leon was right. Cloud had asked himself the same questions countless times before. Where was Sephiroth? Was he chasing an illusion? A ghost? Like he had been chasing Squall, who no longer existed, who had left behind this mere shell of a man who he thought he had once loved.

There was a difference, though. Cloud refused to give up. Not yet, at least. He had to know.

Forcing his anger aside, the blonde man eased his eyes open. He was still a child, even after all he had gone through. He was still a brat, wasn't he?

"I didn't expect you to understand, Squall..." he murmured, raising his sapphire gaze.

But what happened next surprised him.

"...I'm sorry."

Cloud's eyes hardened again, disbelieving what he had just heard. "What?"

"You're right," Leon sighed, turning slightly away from the younger man as if to hide his concern. "I don't understand. I just don't want you to get hurt more than you already are."

Squall... admitting to being wrong? Where was his arrogance? Where was that regal manner of his, his way of always being right even when the world screamed at him otherwise?

Cloud's brows drew together as he studied his old friend. Who was this Leon?

"You've grown up," Cloud said, sounding slightly awed.

Leon managed a shadow of a smile at that comment, and immediately replied, "So have you."

"No..." Cloud shook his head, silently cursing himself for getting himself into this conversation. "Not as much as you. I can tell..." He wasn't even sure what he was saying was true. But it certainly seemed like it: Leon's concern, his unwilling display of emotion... Restrained emotion could either mean strength of personality or weakness of esteem. Cloud hoped in Leon's case it was the former. "You hold a high amount responsibility now. I'm sure a lot of people look up to you."

There was an uncomfortable silence after that, and Cloud had a feeling he knew what was going on behind those stormy blue eyes of Leon's. Leon was trying to disprove Cloud's words to keep on a facade of modesty, but when he found Cloud's words true, he would quietly gloat them to himself, and to cover it up in front of the other man, he would change the subject. The blonde man also had a feeling he knew what Leon would change it to. After nine years and already three heated conversations, the subject was bound to come up.

"Come back with us."

Cloud sighed, sadly shaking his head as a false smile spread across his lips. "I knew you were going to ask," he said, his amusement quickly fading away. "No. Not yet, Squall. I'm not ready to face everyone."

But Leon wasn't ready to give up yet. "I could use your help explaining some of the new developments that have occurred here," he said, and even though it was in an even voice, Cloud could sense the worry and desperation behind the words.

"You're talking about those boys," he inserted. The three children who had made it to the last fight.

"Yes," Leon confirmed. "Riku and Sora, and Yami."

Ah, Riku and Sora. That's right. And Yami.... Yami was the one who had defeated him.

"I can guess Riku and Sora's story just by looking at them..." Cloud said, gesturing casually with one hand. "They're best friends." Actually, those two boys weren't very unlike Leon and Cloud, which was rather tragically ironic. "Looking for someone," Cloud continued, and to himself he noted that this would be the Sephiroth part of his own woeful tale. He wondered what sort of person those two boys were looking for. "One of them is the keyblade master," Cloud continued again, but suddenly found himself at a loss as he remembered what had happened during that last fight. "And the other..."

"Right." Leon nodded, crossing his arms over his chest as he spoke. "Yami seems to think that the boys are opposites. Because Riku chose to fight for the light, Sora's destined to become part of the darkness, no matter what." Destiny. Such a harsh woman, Cloud noted. She didn't give any breaks, did she? "At first I didn't think it possible," Leon went on. "Sora just seems too... innocent, I suppose. But you saw that last fight, just as I did."

He did. That kid, Sora...

Nodding in agreement, Cloud replied, "The theory seems to be correct, unfortunately. The two of them obviously have many issues, and they're only getting worse."

And they were, judging from what he had seen when the two boys were together. They seemed like good friends, but there was something there, beneath it all... Some worm gnawing at their friendship and forcing them apart.

"Any suggestions?" Leon asked.

For a moment Cloud was caught without anything to say. Leon seemed genuinely worried about them, and that in itself was rather... odd. Leon just wasn't the type to... Oooh. Wait. This was interesting. So Leon trusted Cloud enough to let down that stony mask of his?

He felt his mood getting better already. Even if Leon left him now, he would be back. That he was sure of.

Drudging up something from his scattered memories that sounded like it would work as advice, Cloud said, "You know them better than I do, but... I would isolate them together so that they can work out their issues. Outside influence is confusing their relationship." That made sense.

"That doesn't sound like your kind of advice," Leon said, eyeing him strangely.

"It isn't," Cloud admitted, raising a hand to brush at his bangs. Hopefully Leon wouldn't close up on him again and raise that mask of his... "It's Aerith's... about us."

"There is no Us."

Damn. That had been a bit too fast for comfort. Cloud mentally kicked himself for bringing that up again when there were more important issues on hand. So Leon showed up out of no where after being absent in his life for nine years... That's no reason to lose sight of his personal mission, or his grief or bitterness or general hatred of society now. That's no reason to try to patch up loose ends and reconcile as friends...

"...No... There isn't, is there?" Cloud sighed, shifting his wing irritably. So much for that good mood.

"I thought you couldn't remember that much?" Leon inquired, watching the strange appendage slide against the red mantle, wondering what that gesture meant.

"I remember from before nine years ago," Cloud said flatly, "not what happened afterward..." And to quickly change the subject, Cloud decided to bring up the new thorn in his side. "Squall. Who is Yami?"

Judging from the way Leon narrowed his eyes, the man didn't care for that particular boy either. Or it could have been Cloud's use of his real name.

"I don't know," Leon admitted, sighing. "Riku and Sora met him on a dying world and he came with them."

"How?"

"Riku said that Sora could use the darkness to pass the two of them between worlds."

"And Yami?"

"Tagged along."

Cloud slumped back onto the stone seat, shifting uncomfortably and not caring that his wing was showing. "Then he must have a part in their destiny as well..." he said quietly, raising his clawless hand to rub at his forehead. "He's very powerful. I'm not bragging, but... Not many people can defeat me as easily as he did. Sephiroth used to be able to. You too."

"Who do you think he is?" Leon asked.

Cloud let out a short sigh as he leaned back, digging his claw into the stone as he crossed one leg over the other as he stared up at Leon, who looked unperturbed that Cloud had suddenly decided to lounge so casually. The blonde man raised his free hand and said, "Hades, lately, has been working for a strange woman somehow linked with the heartless."

This elicited a reaction from the quiet lion. The man's grey-blue eyes narrowed dangerously, a four-syllable name dripping with disdain from his thinned lips. "Maleficent."

"You've heard of her," Cloud stated simply, raising an eyebrow.

"I remember now. At the time it didn't occur to me, but before the two of us went up to fight, I heard Phil and Hades arguing about Maleficent," Leon explained, and Cloud could tell he was silently fuming that he hadn't pieced it together sooner. When the older man saw the half-amused look on the blonde's face, he calmed himself and said, "So Maleficent let Hades use the heartless in the tournament."

"Yes."

"She's taken over our world, Cloud, and the castle," Leon said, and even though his voice remained steady, Cloud sensed that those words weren't just meant to carry the information, but to affect him, convince him of something, perhaps. But the feeling was gone in Leon's next sentence. "We believe she has Ansem's reports."

"That would make sense," Cloud replied. "And she's done more than that... Regardless, I think Yami is also working for her."

Leon nodded slightly, taking a step closer to the seat the other man was lounging on. "Actually, now that I recall... During that argument between Phil and Hades, before we went up to fight..." he paused here, giving Cloud a meaningful look, "...they mentioned a 'Maleficent's brat.'"

That was it. It fit!

"Yami."

But Leon didn't stop there. He moved around Cloud and took a seat next to him, setting his elbows on his thighs as he leaned forward and spoke again, his voice hushed, but eager. "Also, when I separated from Riku and Sora's team, Yami was the one who came up with the solution so Riku and Sora could stay in the tournament," he said, turning his head to glance at Cloud's back. During that pause, however, the blonde man shifted, turning his body so that he was sitting side-by-side with his old friend, who continued a bit more slowly. "Then the final group of heartless conveniently disappeared so Riku and Sora could take their place in the tournament, and Yami had immediately known about it..." Leon fell into deep thought after that, his eyebrows drawing together, putting a furrow in that scar of his. Scar. Cloud didn't know how he had gotten that scar... "He probably had fabricated the tournament that way from the beginning," Leon said, coming to a conclusion. "He's pulling a lot of strings to get what he wants."

"Do Yami and Sora spend much time together alone?" Cloud asked, tilting his head and leaning forward to study Leon's face, searching for any hint at what would have given him that scar, for there were no others.

"All the time," Leon replied, his lips thinning to an angry line as he fit Cloud's question into the story. He knew now, but it was too late, wasn't it? "I knew I didn't trust the kid."

"Now you know why," Cloud stated, lowering his blue eyes before Leon could catch him staring. He hated to bring it up again, but he had to... "So Aerith's advice is right, then."

"Aa. Maybe if Riku and Sora spend time alone, they'll clear their differences up."

"But it might be too late for that, seeing what happened during that fight..." Cloud sighed. "Sora is already harnessing dark powers. The more he uses them, the harder it will be for him to return..." Cloud knew from experience, though he couldn't remember what exactly had happened. He hoped Leon wouldn't try to ask about it again.

Leon didn't. No, actually, he said rather bluntly, "Then we'll restrict him from fighting as well."

Blue eyes widened at that, but Cloud quickly fell into a smile, letting a soft chuckle escape. Leon turned to him, settling his glare on the younger man; he hadn't said anything humorous, so he was a bit confused about Cloud's sudden mirth. It was a relief, actually, to hear him laugh, even if it was restrained and quiet.

"What?" he asked.

Cloud raised his head to smile at Leon, blue eyes soft with silent laughter. "It sounds like you're grounding him."

Much to his own surprise, Leon found himself suddenly smiling back. It was small and only stretched a corner of his mouth, but it was still a smile, and he simply watched as Cloud slowly raised a hand to it and brushed two fingertips over it. The gesture was harmless, innocent and almost child-like, but Leon found himself pulling away from it anyway.

"So when are you going to tell them?" Cloud asked after a moment of uncomfortable silence.

"As soon as we get back to Traverse Town," Leon replied. His stony mask had slipped back into place so quickly it saddened Cloud, whose eyes widened as the older man quickly rose to his feet. "I should be leaving now."

"Wait!" he said, his voice only slightly rising in pitch. He couldn't scare him away now, not now... He had screwed up, hadn't he? One happy moment ruined by one stupid, careless touch. But Leon did wait, his brown hair brushing against his neck in the gentle night breeze. Realizing that he couldn't keep his old friend from his new companions for too long, Cloud quickly said, "I mean... You'll come back, right?"

This time Leon turned to look over his shoulder. "It might become dangerous for you to stay, Cloud. But I will return for the future tournaments, though I might be forced to drag Yuffie along...."

Of course. Yuffie would want to come and fight, and even though Leon would refuse letting her, Aerith would somehow convince him in the end. Cloud inwardly smiled at that, softly asking, "Are you going to tell them? About me...?"

"Do you want me to?" Leon asked, turning completely to face the younger man.

"No..." he immediately replied, but then hesitated, lowering his eyes and catching sight of the ants again, marching in almost a perfect single file as they trekked down to the arena floor. The ants. Cerberus' blood. Society. Him. What a strange metaphor. He came to his conclusion. "Yes... Tell them I'm still looking for my light. I'll return when I find it."

"Sephiroth, right?" Leon said, more than asked as he studied Cloud's lowered face.

"No..." Cloud replied quietly. "Sephiroth is my darkness."

Leon took a step back towards the blonde man and suddenly kneeled before him to meet face-to-face. Cloud reluctantly stared into those cold grey eyes, forcing himself to remain calm as Leon spoke, his voice a dangerous whisper. "You're not telling me something. You remember more than you're saying, aren't you? What happened between the two of you?"

"I told you before," Cloud sighed, turning his head away. "It's none of your business."

Leon's hand shot forward and cupped his chin, forcing him to meet his gaze. "And I told you that it _was_ my business."

Those eyes were narrowed, boring into him so deeply that Cloud almost thought Leon was searching for something there, like a lost treasure amongst all the blue. It made him feel unpleasant. So he closed his eyes, took a stuttering deep breath, and forced himself to say it. "Go back. Warn Riku and Sora about Yami and save the worlds. I'll be waiting for you at the next tournament."

The hand retracted from his chin and he heard Leon's boots scrape across the stone as he once again stood. He couldn't see the disappointed look on the older man's face, but he knew it was there, just like he knew Leon wouldn't try to hide his anger as long as he remained on this world. "Fine," he said, his voice solemn and hiding that bitterness and concern. "If you want to escape the subject that badly, then fine. I'll leave."

And when Cloud opened his eyes again a minute later, Leon was gone, leaving him in the dark once again.

"Leon, what's wrong?"

Riku had been staring across the sand at Sora's solitary figure when Leon had suddenly rudely brushed past him in the doorway and headed towards the coliseum's exit, where Sora was currently curled up in the shadows. The large ground torches lining the entrance gave off a fair amount of light in the dark, but it did not reach where Sora was.

"We're leaving," was Leon's laconic response as he paused and turned back towards Riku, his eyes narrowed in anger.

They were leaving. Finally. Riku was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he took a moment to wonder why Leon was so infuriated. Wait. Cloud. Where was he?

"Is Cloud staying?" he asked.

Judging by the way Leon suddenly shifted his weight onto his other foot and then curtly turned to leave again, Riku's assumption was correct.

"He can do whatever the hell he wants," Leon practically growled. He tensed when he felt a hand resting on his shoulder to keep him from walking off. About to shoot Riku a deadly glare, he hesitated when he heard the boy's concerned voice.

"Did you get into another fight?"

Why was Riku caring? Especially when he had more important problems of his own?

"Yes and no," Leon replied, forcing his emotionless mask back on as he glanced down at the boy. "We think we know who Yami is." It was Riku's turn to frown. But before the boy could say anything, Leon continued. "I don't trust him to ride alone with the King's messengers, and I know you and Sora can handle him together, so he'll be riding with you in the gummi ship. Don't complain. When we get back to Traverse Town, we need to hold a meeting. Without Yami."

"And Sora?" Riku asked quietly, shifting his green eyes to cast a worried glance at the younger boy.

Leon took note of the look and sighed. "How is he?"

"He was acting cheerful afterward..." Riku said, raising a bare hand to his forehead. He had discarded his gloves soon after the fight, and it was a bit odd seeing him without them. Leon could tell he was exhausted---more than exhausted, actually, from the way he kept feeling his forehead. Riku was falling ill, but refused to say anything about it. He probably wouldn't either, not until he knew Sora was safe. When he had been escorting Sora out of the arena, he had even refused people from treating his wounds, and through the tears in his clothes, Leon could see the cuts matted with dried blood and sand. Riku lowered his hand after a moment of silence and he raised his green eyes to stare at Leon. "But he still won't tell me what happened during the fight."

"I thought he would have told you by now..." Leon admitted, his voice solemn and betraying nothing.

"Well, he hasn't," Riku replied, frowning. "During the celebration afterward he didn't say a word to me, and now he's curled up like some sort of lost kitten." Riku suddenly froze, as though startled at something he had just said. "Lost kitten..." he repeated quietly, and, drawing his eyebrows together in determination, he asked, "What happened, Leon?"

He couldn't lie to Riku. He didn't want to tell the truth, but he couldn't lie either. "That theory of Yami's..." he began, hesitating to make sure he had the boy's attention. "It's true. And during the fight Sora used dark powers to win."

Riku lowered his eyes in understanding, clenching his fists tightly at his sides. Leon knew this wasn't a time to console the boy. Actually, any sort of comfort would bring out the opposite result from Riku. So Leon waited, letting Riku handle the pain of frustration by himself. Soon enough, Riku spoke, his voice sounding withdrawn.

"I already knew it. I knew immediately after I woke up on the arena floor... but actually hearing it from someone who saw it..." he began quietly. He stopped himself and took a steady breath before he continued. "We had an argument, you know, after the fight with Cerberus... At that time I was so sure Sora wasn't himself, but he assured me he was alright." Here he let out a bitter laugh, drawing his arms around himself as though to fight back the cold night air. "I'm so stupid. I shouldn't have let him fight, Leon. I had a feeling that Yami was going to try to do something to him, mess with his mind some more... But I let him fight anyway." Riku hesitated, turning his face away, his body shuddering, and for a moment Leon wondered if he was going to cry. But no. When Riku spoke again, his tired voice was even. "What kind of friend am I? Let alone _boyfriend_...! I couldn't protect him, even though he told me I was ignoring him, even though I knew Yami was..." At the mention of Yami's name, Riku paused, stealing a glance over at Sora again, those green eyes narrowing sadly. "I don't deserve him... I put the keyblade and fighting in front of love. Is that wrong?"

Strong kid. At only age fifteen, he was going through this nightmare, but he wasn't ready to give up. There were no tears, no questions of Why him, Why Sora, nor was he asking for anyone else to take such a burden. No, he was asking for advice, for more confidence. For hope.

If Leon were in his shoes... Would he have been as strong? He wished he could say yes, but he couldn't.

"Saving infinite lives versus your own happiness," Leon stated solemnly as he shook his head. "I don't know, kid. You have to make that choice."

"But I'm not happy!" Riku quietly cried, careful to keep his voice from carrying over to Sora. His eyes hardened and, raking a hand through his hair, he forced himself to calm down. "Before I thought I was, but Sora... He's suffering, Leon. _I'm_ making him suffer, and no matter what I do, I make it worse."

Leon knew he couldn't come close to feeling what the boy felt, having dilemma stacked upon dilemma with practically no one to understand or appreciate it. He didn't even know what to say to let Riku know that he was there to help. He couldn't find his own words, so he used Cloud's advice from earlier. The advice Aerith had given to him about him and Squall. Leon just hoped it had a better result with Riku and Sora than it did with him and Cloud...

"I think if you spent some time alone, without sword or keyblade or Yami, you two can work it out."

"And if he doesn't want to talk?" Riku asked coldly, raising only his eyes and not his face.

"Do other things."

Riku returned his gaze to the sand below. Now that it was dark out, the floor was an odd mixture of blue and orange from the torchlight fighting with the shadows of the night. Leon... He seemed so serious about it.

_Do other things._

It had blatant inner meanings.

"You said that so bluntly..." he sighed, taking the advice to heart.

"It's that simple," Leon stated. "He thinks you're ignoring him, so don't."

"But I wasn't!" Riku suddenly said, raising his head and glaring at the other man. "I was just concentrating on the tournament and finding the keyhole." He stopped himself, realizing something. With another sigh of defeat, he let his eyes lower again. "Shit. We're back at that duty versus happiness thing, aren't we?"

"And as I said before, you need to make that decision," Leon said, grateful that the conversation was over and Riku had found no excuse to discard the advice. Stepping forward, the man reached out to touch Riku's shoulder, indicating that he should follow. "Let's get to the gummi ship before it gets too late in the evening."

"Aa."

With that, the two of them turned and crossed the sand side-by-side towards Sora, relieved that the day was finished and they were finally heading home.

But from the flickering shadows behind the torches, two narrowed amber eyes watched them, studied them. And waited.

"It is time."

But as soon as the words had been spoken, the amber-eyed one was no longer alone, another figure stepping out of the deep shadows nearby. There was no need for names. They knew each other well enough. The smaller figure, the one with the yellow eyes, turned towards the newcomer and politely dipped his head in greeting.

"What brings you here, Madam?" he asked, his voice casual and warm.

"You didn't kill the keyblade master." This voice was cold, regal, yet hollow-sounding, and something about it resembled a spider running up one's spine.

"It was not my intention to," he replied easily, gesturing lightly with one hand. "When I requested his fate be left in my hands, I did not mean I was going to take his life."

"The longer he remains alive, the more of a threat he poses to my plan, Dark Child," the second voice almost hissed, but it was not in anger, rather a part of her voice. Concise, yet serpentine. "Have you located the last two Princesses of Heart?"

"Yes, I have. I will gather them after I deliver your present, Madam."

"So the plan was executed properly?"

"Yes," he said again, though he showed no indication of irritation. He seemed proud of his labor, all those plannings... "The other key bearer has discovered his new powers, and he will be yours to toy with."

"And the keyblade master?"

"He will not arrive at the intended world," he said, his voice curling with amusement and satisfaction. But then he paused, gravity taking root in that arrogant voice. "I do hope you will call me by my new name and not give away my role in the castle?"

As the second figure stepped back into the shadows, a smile curved at her painted lips.

"As you wish, Yami."

---

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Thanks to Lane, who actually gave me lots of sound advice this time! I was so impressed! She was out-thinking even me, and asking me all these in depth questions I didn't know the answers to. Though, she did admit that she wouldn't have been able to write this chapter, because half-way through it she would have somehow gotten both Cloud and Leon's shirts off and they would have been making out already. And there the plot would have went.

That's it. See you next chapter!


	17. Ch 13: Caged by Fealty

_Author Notes from Uzumaki:_

This is yet another plot step, but it's a 'blah' chapter that I forced myself to write, which is why it's short and crappy. I cut it off from the original Chapter 13, which has turned into Chapter 14. I hope you enjoy the nekkie bishy. Don't forget to review! ^^

Ah, chapter 2 of 180° is up, and so is the rewritten chapter 3 of Stygian Solace. **Please** review those too, because I worked very hard this past week to get all three of these chapters out today. There probably will never be another huge update like this, so enjoy it while you can. ^^; And I didn't really have someone look over this chapter a second time, so I'm sorry if it really sucks at the end! ;.;

_Beta Notes from Lane:_

It isn't easy being a Beta. You must give inspiration in the dead of night or in the wee hours of the morning, and sometimes, even write a portion of the story to keep the juices flowing for the writer to please all of her adoring fans, no matter how small. In my case, it's all of that. I'm on the constant watch for typos and tripped-up sentences. Hell, I don't know a lot of crap about metaphors and alliteration, but at least I can draw. Yes, the most important factor for a Beta of my caliber is to keep the writer entertained and satisfied with visual aides and often interesting future possibilities for the story on paper. With a flick of my wrist, the characters I draw are mine to command, in any pose I want, in any scene I want. Bwahahaha! *ahem!* Well, I'll let Uzumaki here get to the story. Be thankful she's giving you plot with the yaoi tie-ins. If it was me writing, It'd be a porno by now, and as I recall correctly, FF.net banned NC-17 stuff long ago... *mumble* I sulk off to draw in a corner until I am called into Beta-Mode once again. Caio!

_A look ahead:_

Is that Kairi, or is he having a nightmare? Three bishy in a bathtub! Eeeehh?! Riku puts his trust in Yami?!

______________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Thirteen: Caged by Fealty_**

  
  


Riku felt a shiver course through him as he huddled in his seat in the small gummi ship. The air in the vessel was nearly petrifying, or at least it was to him; it seemed that the other two occupants of the ship didn't mind it as much. And even though Yami was piloting the ship, he found that he didn't particularly care. Through the exhaustion of his mind, the twitching of his empty stomach, and the aching of his worn muscles and wounds, Riku found that the only thing he really wanted was to curl up in his warm bed in Traverse Town with Sora snuggled at his side. Like they had last night.

Had it really been only last night?

Shuddering again, he lifted his head to stare ahead at Yami maneuvering the ship before he turned to glance down at Sora, who had his head resting lightly against Riku's shoulder, half of his body out of his seat and settled next to the older boy. Sora had been silent on the way to the gummi ship, but hadn't objected to Riku's gentle voice or his guidance. He hadn't told Sora about his conversation with Leon yet, who had left with the king's messengers shortly before they had boarded their own ship. But then again, Sora hadn't told Riku about the fight with Yami either.

And even though Leon had been so worried about letting Yami ride in the same ship as Donald and Goofy, Riku couldn't see why. Granted, he didn't know yet what Leon and Cloud had discovered about Yami, but the amber-eyed boy sitting in front of them seemed perfectly tranquil, his attention solely focused on piloting. Riku, of course, knew better than to believe the facade---he remembered perfectly well how Yami fought, and how well he had distracted Riku by bringing up what Riku considered to be his worst weaknesses. His only fears.

But still. It wasn't like Yami was going to suddenly attack them or something while in the ship, right? Leon was just worrying too much...

Sora stirred a little at his side, bringing Riku out of his thoughts. He reached out to gently run his fingers through those soft brown spikes, and when Sora felt the other boy's hand, he lifted his head to blink up at Riku with tired blue eyes.

"Are we there yet...?" he asked in a low, slow voice, obviously trying to stifle a yawn. He lost the battle and his mouth opened wide, his eyes momentarily closing as he made a soft whining sound, quickly shaking his head to fight off the aftereffects of the yawn. When he looked up again, his eyes were glistening.

"No..." Riku replied, lightly smiling as he leaned down to kiss Sora's forehead. "We just took off from the Coliseum about two minutes ago, silly."

"Oh yeah."

There was a long pause after that, both boys searching for something to say. Riku finally decided to bring up what Leon had said, choosing his words carefully so as to not bring Yami into the conversation.

"Leon says he has something to tell us when we get back," he said quietly, leaning close to Sora's ear. "It seems like he and Cloud had a long talk about things. I don't think they settled anything though."

"Well..." Sora sighed, closing his eyes as he clung closer to Riku. "They should just forgive, forget, and then make out. Cloud shoulda come with us."

"Aa. Well, it would have done Leon some good," Riku admitted. "But anyway, we need to hear what he has to say when we get back to town. It's important."

"Can't we just go straight to sleep...?" the boy faintly grumbled, nuzzling his face into Riku' arm, his lower lip sticking out.

"I know you're tired..." he sighed, wrapping his free arm around himself to fight back another shudder. "I am too."

"Mm... You're burning up," Sora murmured, already half-asleep again.

"Don't see why... It's freezing in here."

"You should take better care of yourself," came Yami's assertion from the front of the ship, and Riku was glad the other boy hadn't turned around to stare at him. He didn't know if he could stand the sight of those horrible yellow eyes. When Riku didn't reply, Yami added, "Cure spells do not work well against illnesses of the body. Only wounds."

"Good. I didn't want your help anyway," Riku said, nearly growling as he shifted in his seat to get closer to Sora, feeling the faint need to protect him. He suddenly grimaced when his muscles ached in protest, the dull pain signifying that he indeed had a fever.

So much for being the perfect hero... Save one world and then get sick. That wasn't supposed to happen.

Staring at the floor of the vessel through narrow, distant eyes, Riku absent-mindedly rubbed at his arm as though to reassure himself he was still awake. He knew it was important to remain conscious to watch Yami, to protect Sora, but all he really wanted at that moment was his warm bed.... To go to sleep without any interruptions.

And just as his eyes were drooping to a close, Yami's voice cut through the peaceful silence.

"We should be arriving in Traverse Town soon," he said, his voice soft, calming. Riku was too far-gone to notice the 'should' instead of the 'will be arriving.' He did manage to open his eyes as Yami spoke again. "But there seems to be a mysterious portal opening close to us."

"Just go around it," Riku murmured before laying his head back and sighing, struggling to remain awake.

"I shall do my best," Yami said. "The controls were not hard to learn from watching the king's aides, but I do not have much confidence against the heartless ships."

Riku would have rolled his eyes if he weren't so tired. "Just shoot at 'em..." he managed to mumble before his eyes slid close again.

But the next thing he knew, the ship was being bombarded with space debris, shaking the vessel so much that even Sora sat up to find out what was wrong, the boy's eyes sleepily blinking.

"Huh? What? What's going on?"

"Yami, what're you doing?!" Riku demanded, nearly shooting out of his seat to peer over the boy's seat to stare out the main view screen.

Through the scattered rocks and clouds of meteor dust they were headed straight towards a massive asteroid, nearly fifty times their size, and there didn't seem to be any way around it. Never mind heartless ships! Where the hell had _that_ come from?! He felt Sora grab hold of his shirt; whether it was meant to comfort himself or restrain Riku from yelling at the pilot, Riku didn't know, but it didn't work.

"Yami! Do something!"

"Shooting at it does not seem to be effective," was Yami's calm reply. And as though to further his point, he added, "Perhaps if we had another weapon aside from these weak particle lasers."

"No shit! Try finding a way past it then!" Riku yelled, not really concerned at how Yami knew what kind of weapon their ship was equipped with, so long as he got them to Traverse Town alive. 

"There is still time to veer left, but that is where the portal is," Yami explained, seemingly unfazed by the fact they were about to crash into an asteroid the size of the arena at the Coliseum. "There may be a gravity pull, and this ship could be drawn into it. Should I risk it, dear keyblade master?"

"Unless you come up with a better idea, it'll have to do," Riku said grimly, willing to overlook the sarcasm in Yami's last sentence.

Perhaps Leon's ship had gone past the portal too, and had been drawn into it.... It didn't seem likely though. They were probably already back at Traverse Town by now, impatiently waiting for Riku and the others to arrive. But Riku soon wished he hadn't listened to Yami's suggestion, for as soon as they scraped past the asteroid, the 'portal' he had mentioned finally appeared, swirling in an malevolent cloud of purple and black. 

For a moment Riku was reminded of the mass of darkness that had been hovering over Destiny Islands before he and Sora had left. The same colors... The same crackling energy and feeling of ironic hopeful helplessness. Back then, Riku had been hoping just for a way off the islands with Sora, but he had known he would be helpless to whatever forces were responsible for that darkness. And now, Riku was hoping for a way back to his warm bed, but knew that he could do nothing as their tiny vessel began gaining speed as it drifted helplessly in the gravity pull towards the spiraling portal.

"We are losing power," Yami said quietly, turning slightly in his seat to glance at the two boys behind him, his amber eyes glinting strangely in the dim light. "We will just have to hope the ship survives to deliver us to the next world."

Riku felt Sora's fingers tighten around his shirt, and that was when he realized what the gesture meant. Sora was afraid. He wanted someone to tell him it would be all right. He wanted comfort.

"Sora, get over here," he said, reaching a hand out for the boy to take as he himself settled onto the small floor space between their seats and Yami's. 

Sora took the hand immediately, letting himself get pulled onto the floor, quickly wrapping his arms around the silver-haired boy. "I thought today couldn't get any worse..." he sighed quietly, his voice unwavering, and for a moment Riku was impressed with his silent strength. "I just wanted to go to bed..."

Riku pulled his boyfriend closer, managing a tiny smile. "Well... We can sleep wherever we end up."

"Unless it's like that one foresty world."

Foresty world? Oh. He must have meant Snow White's world.

...that seemed like such an eternity ago.

"It won't be," he replied gently, but somewhere deep within himself, he had the feeling that it wasn't true. He didn't have a hold on this situation. He couldn't really protect Sora, only provide him with some comfort.

And before Sora had a chance to speak again, the ship lurched forward into the warp hole, for that was what it was, and Riku desperately wrapped himself around the smaller boy, his hands clutching at the Sora's head as the darkness overcame them. Squeezing his eyes shut as the ship violently quaked and rattled, he was aware of someone crying out, and then being thrown against something hard... 

But afterward, all was utterly still.

~~~

"_Laa... lalalala... la la la laa~laa_..."

Spinning and spinning...

Eyelids covered peridot as flecks of light passed over his face, his arms flung out wide to welcome the salty breeze between his long fingers. The wind blew quietly, the rustling of palm leaves against bark and coconuts a hushed kiss of sound to his ears as he finally dropped, limbs flailing out as he fell backwards and sank into the warm sand shaded by the cliff of the cove. He quietly giggled, listening to the euphonious singing drifting to him on the salty breeze, knowing to whom the voice belonged, and loving it.

"_Lala la la~la... Hee._"

He was home. He could feel the warmth of it. He knew he was home. And he thought he could never stop smiling at the knowledge.

Home.

But was he really that happy to be there, when he had been so desperate to leave before? What was this new illusion his mind was conjuring up to fool him? Ahh... But the only thing he could be certain of was the warmth. And the voice, Sora's voice, that had been singing.

But the voice had stopped.

Sitting up in the sand, his smile actually falling, Riku glanced over at where the music had been coming from. For once he didn't really mind the sand getting everywhere---Sora was more important. But it wasn't Sora anymore.

"Kairi?"

Auburn hair shifted in the breeze as the familiar figure turned to greet Riku, her pretty eyes closed as a warm smile spread across her face. Her hands were clasped behind her back as she stood there, happy as could be. "There you are, Riku!"

_                   Riku....                                  Riku.... Wake up.                               Please._

Her voice was sweet and innocent, as always, and even though he knew he should be concerned about where this dream---for that was what this was, he knew---was heading. If it was like any of his other dreams, it wasn't going anywhere pleasant.

But... It _wasn't_ like his other dreams.

There was no dark-winged Sora carelessly dancing about or staring at the setting sun. There was no conniving Sora-demon trying to seduce him, or reach into him to steal his heart. There was no Yami taunting him, calling him a lost kitten.

This was Destiny Islands. The figure now was Kairi. The Kairi he knew. The Kairi that had been missing ever since they had left Destiny Islands behind. They had assumed she was gone... dead, or become a heartless.... But she was here, in his dream that felt so real, like it always did.

"Kairi?" Riku tried again, his voice sounding a little more convinced this time. 

"Hee. Riku, you're such a bum!" she giggled as she skipped up to him, kneeling down in the sand and placing one hand on her own leg, those violet eyes carefully studying him. Had her eyes always been that color?

"Kairi... Where's Sora?"

_           It's true . . . ha . . haha . . .                Failure of a human . . ._

_                                                                                                   Maybe I'll make a decent heartless._

"Sora went away," Kairi sweetly replied, reaching down to draw absent-mindedly in the sand. "Sora doesn't like you anymore."

"Don't be silly, Kairi," Riku said, his voice taking a stern tone as he stared at her. "Now---"

But she interrupted him. "You're not even bothering to look for me. You only care about your stupid hero status."

"You're wrong! We _have_ looked for you! But we haven't been on that many worlds, so there hasn't been much to go by."

"You hate me," she said softly, her voice barely carrying over the salt breeze. It sounded withdrawn. Dark.

"Nobody hates you, Kairi!"

For a moment he wondered why he was even bothering with arguing with her. This was only a stupid dream. She wasn't here, she wasn't really talking to him. When he woke up, he'd feel empty and confused again.

But wait... Why was he sleeping? Wasn't he in the ship with Sora?

And before Kairi could even speak again, Riku felt himself gaining consciousness, the sounds of the island fading away, but the warmth remaining as he returned to reality. His eyes opened to find darkness, however, and as soon as he realized he was actually awake, there came an urgent throbbing at his temple, as though his own brain was punishing him for waking up too quickly. He groaned, reaching a weak hand up to rub furiously at his head, trying to dull the pain.

He stopped quickly, realizing that his other hand was resting at his side, laying on an airy down comforter. Actually, the reason he was so warm and comfortable was because his whole body was tucked under that comforter and he was laying in what seemed to be a bed three times the size than the one he owned in Traverse Town. A lone candle burned to his left, its wick so short that the tiny flame was sputtering to remain alive, the wax around it already dried except for what remained below it to drown in. And even though the chamber was nearly devoid of light, Riku knew the room he was in was quite large, larger than perhaps the secret place at home.

Where the hell was he?

The soft sound of heavy, sleep-induced breathing alerted him that Sora was with him. Upon further inspection, he discovered that the boy wasn't actually in the bed with him, but kneeling on the floor with half of his body laying on the mattress next to Riku, the boy's head resting on his own arms.

As his eyes slowly began adjusting to the darkness, he could vaguely make out the shape of an antiquated chair sitting by the bed behind Sora to the bed's right, and a night table with what looked like a bowl of food sat next to the boy in the corner.

This was strange. 

Aside from the fact that he was now in a foreign room, a lot of time seemed to have passed during the transition in which he had left the gummi ship and ended up here. Why else would it seem as though Sora had been watching over him for hours, only to have fallen asleep himself? The bowl of food was obviously for him, and had been made quite a long time ago since he could no longer smell it. And the chair had probably been brought in for Sora to sit on while he waited to for Riku to wake up, but Sora had abandoned it to sleep at Riku's side, meaning he had been sitting in the chair long enough to grow to hate it. And the candlestick was nearly burnt to the holder, strings of thin, melted wax hanging like icicles from the gray steel.

Just how long had Riku been unconscious? Where were they? And why had he been asleep so long? There were other questions, of course, but not nearly as important, such as, who had made the food, and where was Yami? 

Riku slid his hand into his hair and, to his disgust, found it to be a tangled, greasy mess, confirming his suspicions that he had indeed been asleep way too long. But before he could reach out to wake Sora, the sharp, hollow echo of footsteps in the hallway stopped him. As the steps came to a stop, the sound of a lock being turned outside the room could be heard, and Riku dropped his arm back to its original position and closed his eyes, just when he heard a heavy door being pushed open from across the large room. From behind his eyelids he could tell that the hallway was lit, or that it was daylight, for the darkness in the room was dramatically lifted.

More footsteps, this time padding quietly against carpet, and coming closer to the bed he was laying on. He strained his hearing, trying not to give it away in his facial expression, but it was hard trying to pretend to be asleep when he had no idea what was going on. The sound of clothing rustling against the comforter signified that Sora must have been awoken from his slumber by the newcomer, even though Riku couldn't feel the weight change on the bed.

"Hmm...? What's wrong, Yami?" came Sora's slow, drowsy voice from the bedside, and even though he had his eyes closed, Riku could practically see Sora falling into a wide yawn.

"Nothing." At the sound of Yami's soft, brazen voice, Riku mentally frowned. Just the thought of him spending more time with Sora alone irked him beyond words! "I simply came to deliver a fresh dinner plate, since you do not wish to come to the dining hall to eat. There is enough for two to eat, for when Riku wakes."

"Thanks..." The clink of metal against porcelain, a fork against the plate as Sora took it. "Have I been sleeping all day?"

"Yes," Yami replied. "It is understandable, since you remained awake last evening."

"Mm... I'm just worried about him," Sora said breathlessly, probably the effects of another yawn. "What day is it?"

"It is the fourth."

Riku could practically feel two pairs of eyes, one amber and one blue, staring at him where he lay under the covers of the bed. Sora was worried about him. Sora had, as he had suspected, been watching him day and night.

But for four days?

"Four... He's still not awake. I thought she said only three?"

She? Who was _she_?

"Then we overestimated his strength," Yami solemnly said. "I would not worry. His illness is not serious... It is a simple matter of psychological and magical exhaustion, and it only takes time to cure it."

"I should have fought more during the tournament.... Then Riku wouldn't have had to fight so hard, and then he wouldn't have gotten sick, and he'd be awake right now."

"You fought well. And while we are on that subject, how did your third lesson fare?" 

Lesson? Sora was getting lessons? What kind and from whom?!

"She's kind of strict... But I've mastered all second-level spells, so I think I'm doing okay."

"Congratulations."

"I'm still not even close to your level," Sora admitted, and Riku sensed a shy smile, which was rare from the boy. "But the heartless are finally starting to react to me."

Wait. What the hell was _that_ supposed to mean?!

Not only was Riku horrified at the news, for that meant Sora had been placed in danger, Riku was even more appalled that Sora seemed _happy_ about it.

Even though he made no outward gesture that he was awake to have heard the conversation, Yami must have known he was merely pretending to sleep, for when the amber-eyed boy retrieved the old bowl from the night table (Riku heard the footsteps and the porcelain sliding over the wooden table), he said, "Please eat the food this time, Sora, and make sure the keyblade master does as well. I will be bringing her in to speak with him in a few minutes." That said, he set the new plate down, crossed the floor to the open door, and quietly shut it behind him as he left.

Riku's eyes slid open to find that a chandelier with real candles now illuminated the room; when or how they had been lit, he wasn't sure of, but he suspected Yami had used magic to do it. And when Sora turned his head away from the door to look at him, Riku was already staring at the boy, his green eyes narrowed. Sora's own eyes widened upon seeing that the older boy was awake, and he immediately lunged forward to wrap his arms around Riku, pulling him into a tight embrace.

"You're awake!!" Sora cried happily, burying his face in Riku's neck, his voice muffled. "Why didn't you say anything?!"

"You seem to be on good terms with Yami now," Riku mused, bringing a weak arm up to brush his fingers through Sora's hair. "And what was this about the heartless taking an interest in you?"

"You've been asleep for four days, and that's all you can say?" Sora asked, the happiness in his voice quickly fading as he pulled away from his boyfriend, those blue eyes sadly lowering.

"Were you watching over me the whole time?" Riku inquired in a soft voice, feeling a little rash for overlooking Sora's feelings yet again. This should have been his first question, not something that had to do with Yami or the heartless.

Sora exchanged meaningful looks with him, the depth in those blue eyes indiscernible to Riku. "Yes. When I wasn't practicing magic."

"I'm sorry, then," Riku said, momentarily closing his eyes as he settled against the large, fluffy pillows. "For making you worry. And for being a jerk."

"Nn. You were just worrying too..." Sora said with a short grin, though there wasn't much feeling behind it. Riku didn't doubt that Sora was happy that he was awake, but something else was wrong with the boy. "Yup, Yami and me are still friends. He's the one that's been bringing us food, and making sure I sleep. And he's been keeping me company too."

"How considerate of him," Riku sighed, stiffly rolling onto his side and wincing at the pain that spread throughout his body. "He hasn't... been telling you any weird things, has he?"

"...not since the tournament..."

Ahhh.... The tournament. Just what _had_ Yami told Sora during the fight? But Riku had a feeling that even if he asked, Sora would push the question away, so he didn't bother. Not yet.

"What was this about the heartless, then?"

Sora's grin slowly fell, his mouth slightly open as he struggled to find the words to explain it to Riku. "Ahh... Well. There's this lady that's helping me focus and improve my magic, and while we've been practicing, the heartless started noticing I was there. You know how they always ignored me before."

"Yeah. So why the change of mind? Have they attacked you?" Riku asked, struggling to sit up, his side already hurting from laying on it.

Sora, noticing his problem moving, rose to his feet and helped him sit up before climbing onto the bed to lay next to him, his spiky brown hair brushing against Riku's neck as he snuggled close. He smelt clean, and for a moment Riku wondered how badly _he_ stank after the tournament and four days being incapacitated in a bed. He certainly felt dirty enough to scare away any heartless.

"Well..." Sora began, nuzzling his nose into the older boy's chest. "They only attack me when I really want them to, so I can practice. It's like... 'Hey, you stupid heartless, attack me so I can kick your ass,' or something like that. And they do."

"That's weird."

"Yeah, but now I have target practice. There's lots of them in this world, but they don't really bother people in the main rooms," Sora explained.

"Er... Where are we?" Riku asked, suddenly curious. "And is there a keyhole?"

"I dunno about a keyhole.... And I forgot the name," Sora said absently, "but it's really high up and it's really pretty. Like out of a fairytale."

"Hn. So you like it here?"

"Sorta...." Sora admitted, smiling a little as he sat up. He reached over to the night table and picked up the still-warm plate of food Yami had brought in. "It's kinda boring here. But we can't leave until the gummi ship is fixed."

"How did it break?" Riku asked, watching Sora carefully balance the plate between them and realizing that he actually was rather famished. "I don't remember anything after the portal."

"Portal?" Sora asked, blinking, but then he grinned, stabbing at something on the plate before bringing it to Riku's lips, who gratefully took it into his mouth. It was some kind of meat he hadn't tried before, but it was quite good. "Oh... Portal. It was something called a warp hole. Turns out that they don't appear often, and it's even more rare for one to lead here, or so the lady said. She knows a lot. But anyway," Sora said as he continued with another bite for Riku, "the gummi ship kinda... stalled or something... and we crashed here. She offered to try to fix it, but there hasn't been much progress... Not even Yami knows what to do with it."

"Well... None of us know how the hell the ships are made, let alone how to fix them," Riku sighed, his voice taking an exasperated tone. 

"And I really don't want to try using the darkness to travel again," Sora said quietly, his smile turning a bit sad as his hand hesitated in mid-stab. "It scares me."

Riku reached forward to cup Sora's cheek, those blue eyes looking up to catch Riku's hard green. "You don't have to, Sora. We'll find a way off, even if it takes another week to repair the ship."

The boy smiled, but it seemed a bit forced, as there was no longer any happiness in his eyes, nor did the smile stretch to its usual length. "Thanks... I'm really glad you're awake Riku."

Riku returned the smile, though his was a bit more genuine than Sora's. "Glad to be awake, though it seems like I only slept about two minutes, actually." A rather strange two minutes, he admitted to himself, recalling the dream about Kairi. And before he realized what he was doing, he said, "I actually dreamt about Kairi."

Sora's eyes immediately lit up at the mention of her name, and this time he smiled an actual smile. "If you're dreaming about her, then she must be okay," Sora said, lifting the fork again to Riku's mouth. "The lady told me that my dreams are probably just my own wishes mixed with my memories. But your dreams, being the keyblade master and all, were probably more 'accurate to events in reality.'"

For a moment, as he chewed the warm, delicious meat, Riku contemplated that sentence. Obviously this woman Sora kept mentioning knew more than she was saying, but if Sora was okay with her, then maybe Riku didn't have to worry that much. But if what she said about his dreams was true.... What was with all the different Soras in his dreams? And now that Kairi figure?

Could it be that Kairi really did think they hated her, that she thought they weren't looking for her? But then what was that she said about Sora not liking Riku anymore? It sounded more like a resentful, jealous statement... Kairi wasn't like that.

"Who is this 'lady' you keep talking about?" Riku suddenly asked, trying to tear his thoughts away from his dreams.

"Um... She never told me her name," Sora said, lightly laughing, not at all concerned that he had changed the conversation. Riku found himself smiling at the boy's mirth and honesty. "I just call her Ma'am because I don't know."

"So tell me about her. And this world," Riku suggested, gently taking the fork from Sora so he could feed himself and let the boy talk.

"Alright," Sora replied, scratching at his head a bit before giving a toothy grin. "Heh. I'm not sure where to start."

But before Sora _could_ start, there came a knock at the door, and then it was pushed open, Yami's amber eyes staring across the room at them. Riku sighed at the interruption and then shamelessly glared at the white-haired boy, who merely smiled back as he stepped into the room.

"She is here to see you," he announced, pushing the door completely open, letting the light of the hallway pour into the candle-lit room. 

"Ah..!" Sora turned away from Yami to smile helplessly at Riku as if to silently say, '_We'll talk later_.'

Riku studied the look on Sora's face for a moment before turning his gaze back towards the doorway. It could have just been his imagination, but he could have sworn the temperature in the room suddenly decreased when the silhouette of a tall woman stepped into the room, her long, dark robe swishing silently around her. The tapping of her staff was the only sound she made as she crossed the room to the bed, the shadows gradually pulling away from her figure so Riku could get a clear look at her long, pale face. With a wave of her staff, the chair beside the bed gently scooted away so she could stand in its place, her long, tapered fingers curling around the magical scepter as she came to a stop, towering over the two boys snuggled together on the bed.

The atmosphere of the room had taken a rather sinister feel, making Riku feel as though a fingernail was dragging its way up his spine. He felt almost trapped there under the covers, vulnerable under her intense gaze and tiny, amused smile. She was, he had no doubt, powerful; too much for him to handle, should she prove to be an enemy. But Sora had not mentioned her eerie nature, nor had the boy shown any signs of fear from her, so Riku was willing to give the woman a chance.

But that almost nonexistent smile of hers reminded him too much of Yami.

"Good evening," she said, her voice like frayed silk over the polished wood of a coffin. Her lips tilted a bit more upward, making the smile more obvious as she stared down at Riku. "I am the keeper of this castle, keyblade master. Welcome to Hollow Bastion."

~~~

"She gave me the creeps."

"Hehe, I know. But she seems nice, doesn't she, Riku?"

After a brief introduction to the castle, the woman had left him, Sora, and Yami alone in the room with the suggestion of freshening up before returning to bed, which Riku had gladly accepted. Now both Sora and Yami were helping him walk to where the open-aired bath was; Sora had mentioned briefly that it was similar to the one at the coliseum, and Riku had agreed to be taken there. He had trouble even moving, and it had become apparent to all three of the boys that Riku was going to need help with everything he did, whether it was something simple like walking or getting undressed. Riku felt a little irked that Yami would also be there, but he understood that Sora probably couldn't handle Riku by himself.

"Nice... yeah..." he replied, sounding vaguely depressed as the three boys slowly hobbled down a long corridor. "_Seems_ nice. Doesn't mean she **is**. Did you see the look she gave me? "

"Er... No," Sora replied honestly, tightening his hold around Riku's waist as they approached the large archway that led to the enormous bath.

"It was like she wanted to pluck my eyes out with her fingernails and eat them," Riku laughed bitterly, lethargically stumbling over his own feet and growling in exasperation as they passed under the arch. "Sh-Shit..! Why the hell am I like this? I don't feel exhausted or whatever... I just can't _move_!"

"I don't know. Yami thinks you're sick," Sora said, glancing over at the taller, white-haired boy, who gazed back at him with those yellow eyes. 

Riku was too busy staring at the huge bath to see the exchange, his own green eyes widening. "Wow. This place is more impressive than the coliseum's..."

And it was. Nearly three times the size of the coliseum's public bath, it looked like a man-made lake, and Riku wondered what it must have been like when this castle had been inhabited by other people, because surely that woman didn't always live here by herself. Somehow, he even doubted that she owned the place. Legally, at least.

On the way here they had run into a few heartless, but they hadn't paid any attention to the three boys on their trip. It was almost like they were comfortable here... Hollow Bastion. Wherever this was.

"Here... Riku. Sit on the floor so me and Yami can get the stuff to clean you up with," Sora instructed happily, gently easing his boyfriend to the edge of the pool. "And then we'll work on your clothes."

As soon as Riku had taken a seat there, he finally had a good look at the younger boy. His reaction was immediate. "Sora, what are you wearing?!" he cried, green eyes wide as he stared. Sora was dressed in the outfit he had worn when he and Riku had gone out on the date in Traverse Town. Why was the boy wearing _that_? Especially around _Yami_?!

Sora looked taken aback for a moment before he glared at Riku defensively. "Well, I did bring my clothes with me on the gummi ship. I found my bag behind the seats and figured I should wear them," Sora explained stiffly. "After the tournament, my old outfit wasn't really that comfortable to wander around in. I brought the outfit I bought for you too, so you can wear that until you find some new ones."

Riku weakly scratched at his head as he managed to smile up at his boyfriend, apologetic. "I wasn't saying you look bad, Sora. Actually, I love it. It just surprised me... And I'll be glad to get out of these clothes."

"That's what I thought," the boy huffed haughtily before he fell into a toothy grin. He turned to Yami, who had brought over the soap and things sometime during their conversation. "Oh, good! Thanks. Uhm... Could you watch Riku while I go get his clothes and a towel or something?"

"Of course," Yami replied, giving Sora a kind smile before the boy grinned over at Riku and then took off down the hallway at a run. But as soon as Sora was gone, the amber-eyed boy's kind facade fell, those strange eyes turning back to stare at Riku. "Amazing," he commented softly as he knelt beside Riku, the corners of his mouth turning upward in an amused smile. "Despite what you two have gone through, he still cares about the little things," he said as he set out the different soaps at the edge of the pool. "He even acts as though nothing significant has happened in your relationship."

Riku promptly narrowed his eyes at the other boy. "So now that Sora's gone, you stop pretending to be the good guy? Fine, Yami, so tell me what's wrong with me," he said in a biting, singsong voice, pulling his lips to form a dry grin. "I'm not just sick. I _know_ it's your fault, so stop pretending it's not."

For a moment Yami was silent as he arranged the soaps, his eyes focused on his work rather than Riku for once. But when he finished, he looked up again, white hair framing his solemn face. "When we fought," he said quietly, though definitely without remorse, "that was when I did it. It is a minor poison, so it did not affect you right away, nor did it kill you. It was not meant to. Its purpose was to give you an untroubled sleep for a few days; side effects include slight paralysis."

"Why?" Riku demanded, struggling to lean forward. "What are you, Yami?"

The boy simply smiled again. "I cannot tell you why, and to answer your second question, I am merely curious. As for _who_ I am... It is best left unsaid. You may not find the truth pleasant."

"Ehh... So you're that important, huh?" Riku smirked, reaching a hand up to pick at his dirty hair.

"No," Yami replied, returning the smirk. "My role is _far_ more significant. Even I myself do not know its true importance." There was an uncomfortable silence after that, with Riku glaring at the boy, and the boy simply regarding him. But then Yami said something that surprised him. "Sora mentioned his upcoming birthday... I was not aware if you had gotten him a present."

Riku suddenly groaned, covering his face in his hands, realizing what that meant. "I was going to buy him one when we got back to Traverse Town!" he cried, growling to himself. "I take it you think we're not going to leave here before then?"

"No. The vessel does not seem restorable, not with the elements in this world," Yami explained. "This is why I brought up the date with you. Sora will be disappointed if you do not find something for him, am I correct?"

Riku promptly narrowed his eyes, glaring at the other boy. "Is this another of your tricks to separate us?" he accused in a harsh voice, clutching at his knee to keep from hitting Yami. "Or are you here to offer your help?"

"The latter, actually."

Riku blinked. He had been kidding about that, but... "You're going to help me?" he asked, a bit suspicious. "I don't believe you. What are you trying to pull?"

"Nothing. I merely wish to help you. She trusts me more than you, obviously, so I have access to the inner parts of the castle, including her studies. It would not be a problem to find something for Sora, if you want me to."

The other boy raised a single eyebrow, taking a moment to think about it. What other choice did he have? "Alright," he said, green eyes studying Yami carefully. "I'll trust you to find something, but I'll be looking on my own as well." Here he paused, his gaze turning accusatory again. "What do you want with Sora?"

"Ah," Yami's smile widened, "common misconception. The boy is not who I want."

That was when Sora chose to return, his footsteps echoing loudly in the corridor before he burst through the archway, a wide grin painted on his face, a stack of clothes and a pair of rather stylish black shoes clutched in his arms as he bounced up to Riku and Yami. "We ready to take a bath?" he asked, voice bright and chasing away any more questions Riku had wanted to ask Yami.

Actually, Yami beamed back at Sora, and Riku was startled at how friendly they looked with each other. "We are," the amber-eyed boy confirmed, revealing to Sora no sign of the true nature he had just shown Riku. "If you will help him undress, I shall prepare the water."

"'kay."

And they did. As soon as Yami knelt down to warm the water with a spell, Sora carefully pulled Riku to his feet and helped him remain standing so that they could remove his tattered, worn clothing. It was quite a difficult process, with Sora letting Riku lean his weight on him while also trying to help unbuckle everything. First went the shirt, Riku wincing as Sora forced his arms over his head so they could get it off, and then it was discarded to the floor so the younger boy could unfasten his boyfriend's pants.

If the situation weren't so serious, it would have been rather comical. If Yami hadn't been there, it might have been an ideal time to follow Leon's advice and talk to Sora alone. Or 'do other things.' Then again, Riku didn't think his body was up for 'other things' considering he could barely even stand at the moment.

Riku felt rather helpless in the state he was in, letting Sora and Yami do everyday things for him, but it wasn't like he had a choice. Staying in the bed for another four days didn't seem like it would be very comfortable, and while he knew Sora loved him, he didn't know if Sora loved him _that_ much to snuggle with him after that long without a bath.

Then Sora's hands went to the waist of his pants to push them off. Strangely, Riku wasn't wearing any shoes; someone must have taken them off before placing him in bed, most likely. A strange smile crossed Sora's face as he pulled the pants down, along with his plain underwear, and Riku didn't even have time to think to be embarrassed before he was standing there fully naked, Sora kneeling in front of him and helping him step out of his clothes.

"The water is ready," Yami announced, and Riku froze, having momentarily forgotten that Yami was there. He didn't have to turn around to know that Yami was now staring at him with those eyes, probably with that amused look on his face.

Riku felt like sarcastically asking if Yami was enjoying the view, but he held himself back, remembering that Sora probably would take the exchange of words the wrong way, placing more distance between the boys. So he just sighed, letting both of them stare.

"Ne, Riku," Sora said softly as he began to help the older boy hobble down the steps into the bathing pool. "This is the first time I've actually seen you completely naked."

Coming from Sora, it didn't seem so bad. "Let me guess..." he sighed lightly, managing a smile as his tired body eased into the warm water (Yami had actually done a good deed---he'd have to thank him. Maybe). "You like what you see and you want me to sleep naked from now on."

Sora did return the grin as he let Riku sink into the water. "Well, actually, no," he admitted, causing Riku to blink in surprise. As Sora was quickly undressing, he said, "You have all these cuts and bruises on you, even after four days, so you're not looking too good. Other than that..." He paused, dropping his shirt to the floor, a warm smile crossing his face. "Well, I've decided to rape you once you get better."

"Gee, that makes me feel better," Riku laughed.

He stopped when he realized that Yami was undressing too. What the hell?! _He_ was going to take a bath too?!

Riku tried to keep his eyes averted from the white-haired boy and watch only Sora, but as soon as Sora had stripped down to his underwear (long gone were those blue boxers of his), the younger boy turned his back before he completely undressed. A feeling of bitter disappointment filling him---hadn't he just shown everything to everyone?---Riku looked at Yami.

He had to admit that Yami was quite attractive, though it irritated him to think about. Slightly more muscle that Sora, a little taller, deep bronze skin, and a kind face.... And now that he wasn't wearing his usual angular, gaudy pants or shirt, Riku noticed that he was actually shaped a little like Sora---skinny, but not ill-looking, with a figure almost reminiscent of a girl. The boy's best features? While Riku loved everything about Sora, from his disappearing pudgy belly to his cute bottom, boyish chest, and smooth legs, Riku realized he rather liked Yami's chest, which was a scary realization considering how much he despised the amber-eyed boy. He forced himself to look away, only to discover that Sora was already waist-deep in water as he waded towards Riku.

"Hey, Riku, do you think Leon and the others made it back to Traverse Town okay?" Sora asked innocently, glancing over his shoulder to see Yami approaching the steps down into the pool. "I mean... I've been wondering," he admitted as he turned his attention back to Riku, "since they didn't end up on this world."

"Most likely they have," Yami responded before Riku could say a thing.

Riku took a moment to glare at the white-haired boy before he added, "They're probably looking for us, Sora."

"I think you're right," Sora smiled. 

The rest of the bath passed rather uneventfully, with the two boys helping Riku wash his tangled hair a few times until he was convinced it was clean, and helping him wash his body, some of which Riku would rather not experience around Yami ever again. And when he was clean, he used them as support to climb back up the steps to the blanket-size towel Sora had brought for him, and the two boys went back to their own baths, leaving Riku to dry himself.

The water had done wonders to his body. His wounds no longer painfully throbbed, and even his muscles felt a little less stiff to move. He felt, even, that he could walk by himself if he tried, but he didn't. As he was rubbing his hair dry, keeping most of the gargantuan towel wrapped around himself, he noticed that Yami and Sora were talking animatedly, with Sora using his hands to gesture wildly, most likely talking about his lessons with that woman or something. He wondered if Yami and Sora had taken baths together while Riku had been sleeping those four days.... Even though Yami had said himself that he wasn't interested in Sora, it still bothered Riku, because he _knew_ that the kid was up to something, even though he put on that kind facade. Saying anything about it to Sora would only upset him. Riku had to talk to him alone.

Satisfied with his hair, Riku turned towards the two articles of clothing Sora had brought for him. What? No underwear?

"The outfit took me forever to pick out," Sora said from behind him, coming up with a smaller towel around his waist, his hair still dripping wet and sagging limply at the sides of his face. He was grinning proudly. "I didn't let Aerith or Yuffie have any influence in what I got for you, so I hope you like it." And then he promptly grabbed his clothes from the floor where he had left them.

Riku turned his attention back to his new outfit. He held each article up separately, closely inspecting them. The shirt was his favorite kind: high neck and sleeveless, though this time it was a black, frayed cutoff made out of some thin, stretchy material. The pants though were black suede, cut stylishly, and looked as though they would barely fit him. When he put them on, however, they fit perfectly; they hugged him nicely, and they weren't too tight. And much to his pleasure, he saw that the pants were fit with little straps at the sides, like his old ones. 

He was still smiling to himself when Sora came up from behind him again and poked at his bum, commenting, "Ooo. Really nice, Riku. Sexy enough to eat."

Riku turned around, running a hand through his damp hair as he grinned at Sora. "And which one of your five meals would I be?"

The boy returned the grin. "You want me to say dessert, don't you?" he teased, poking Riku in the stomach, causing the older boy to flinch. Damn Sora for always tickling him there...! "You would be more like my dinner. Five courses, all delicious. Mmm..."

Riku raised both eyebrows at that, but before he could ask Sora to elaborate, a soft, cold voice spoke from the archway. "Now that you three gentlemen are finished with your baths, I would like to ask a question." Riku and Sora turned to find that woman standing there, staff resting against the stone floor as she swept her eyes over all of them, not taking a second glance at anyone in particular.

"Yes?" Riku asked, blinking as his brow furrowed.

Her strange eyes settled on him, a wicked smile crossing her lips. "Ah, the keyblade master. This was meant especially for you," she said, one of her hands gracefully tugging at her pointed sleeves. "The other two gentlemen, Yami and Sora, have volunteered to do different tasks for me. Yami overlooks my collection and helps in my studies now, and Sora has kindly offered to help clean up the heartless around here, in exchange for my teachings in magic." She paused here to curl her fingers over the head of the staff. "I came to ask if you were going to help with the eradication, dear keyblade master?"

Riku exchanged quick looks with Sora between turning his attention back to the woman. "My name is Riku," he said bluntly, narrowing his eyes at her. He refrained from asking what her 'collection' was. "And I'll help if you can tell me where to find the keyhole so I can seal this world."

"Keyhole?" she asked slowly. "Ah, you must mean the world's keyhole. One has not been uncovered yet, unfortunately, Riku," she said, saying his name almost poisonously. "Does this mean you will not be helping?"

He regarded her reaction carefully before speaking again. "Sure. I'll help. Is there anything else to do here?"

"In the foyer there is an entrance to the grand library where the books desperately need reorganizing. The content you might find in there will certainly be worth your time," she replied as she turned away from them, her robe sweeping silently after her. "That is all I wanted to know. Sleep well."

And then she was gone, leaving Riku with the distinct feeling again that, even though he wasn't sure why, he was trapped. Trapped on this world with no way off. Trapped with perhaps his most deadly enemies yet, though he couldn't point out where. He even felt trapped in his own body, now that, because of Yami's admitted poison, he could barely move, let alone fight. It seemed that only his Sora was on his side. But even then... 

He wasn't sure for how long.

  
  


_______________________________________________________________________________

For those of you complaining that there aren't enough *thoughtful* plot-filled, well-written shounen-ai Kingdom Hearts fanfics, well, there aren't. **But**, there are a few, and I urge you to read "The Gathering" by Kirei Tenshi. It's beautifully written, and she certainly knows what she's talking about. ^^ It's a must-read sequel fanfic, and I recommend it to any Riku, or Riku/Sora fans. Tell her I sent you! XD Or, take a look at my favorites or visit the website Spare Key, where only the best KH fanfiction gets in. Ah! And if you haven't found it already, I've posted my second KH fanfic. ^^; It seems to be quite well-loved already, and I'm sad that I got more reviews from it in five days than I do with Stygian Solace in an entire month. Anywho, its chapter 2 is up, and so is the rewritten chapter 3 of SS. Go review that! GO! GO! ^^

**Also**, I won't be answering any more questions about Yami regarding his identity. ^^ Because it'll be revealed in a few more updates. It's still a long way off, but I don't want to give any thing else away until then, other than what I already give away in the chapters. Hehe. 

So, here's a reminder to review and tell me what you think of my writing, the story, the characters, and to ask me questions, because I do try to get back to all the reviewers who ask questions (and now only people who ask questions, or write long reviews ^^; don't have time for small reviews anymore), even though it sometimes takes me a while. Stygian Solace feels lonely, and the review button has begun to chew on its own letters in its starvation. Feed it! And I'll start part 2 as soon as I find more inspiration. X.x; I wrote three chapters in one week! Let me sleeeep....

Oh, and I expect yummy fanart of the bath scene... mm... nekkie bishy.... ^^


	18. Ch 14: Taste of Earth

_Author Notes:_

I'm alive. ^^; yes. But I did a bad, bad thing. ;.; **I accidentally deleted SS's plot!** I so desperately tried to get it back, but it was useless. **But have no fear**, because I took it upon myself to rewrite the plot, and now I LOVE IT!! I even tied in KH2/Deep Dive references! I fit everything in so perfectly that I even impressed myself. Bwahaha! Oi,  but it's not that angsty anymore, so I went ahead and changed the story's genres. That should make a few people happy. ^^

Thanks go to Stajj and Lane for entertaining me with yummy pictures and drooling over Yami with me, and to Shiva-Jo for keeping me entertained at 5:30 AM every other night. ^^; And lastly, my many reviewers, whom I all love, especially those reviewers who review again weeks after my last update, just to remind me to write. You guys are great! I still like you over-analyzers the best though. XD Nothing makes me happier than a long, helpful review (except maybe ficlets). Unless it has too many negatives in it. Then I pout. 

Ready for a _long_ chapter, weird plot factors, and obvious hints at the next plot twists? The points of views were fun to toy with in this chapter. Oi, and believe me, if you're in the dark about something in the story, you're supposed to be. If you think something is weird, you have every right to think that, because it's intentional. Hehe.

Er.. and get ready for the plot-changing chapters in SS… ^^; I'm a bit nervous about them, and I hope you guys give me trust and support as I start writing them. I know a lot of you will **freak** at all the twists and turns and cliffhangers, but you **have** to know I've been planning most of these twists since day one. 

_A look ahead:_

Complicated confessions from Yami. Look, I can make heartless dance! And Happy B-day, Sora!

______________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Fourteen: Taste of Earth_**

  
  


Yami was right, the bastard. And Riku realized it with growing frustration as the days passed and he was forced to remain in his temporary room to heal. He asked Sora every time the boy came to visit, but the answer was always the same.

No, the gummi ship was not being repaired yet.

Well, then how the hell were they going to leave!?

By the time the second day rolled around, Riku couldn't take his confinement anymore, and was sneaking out of the room when Sora caught him, only to force him back to bed. Riku complained about having a world to save, but in reality, he was just so _bored_ it infuriated him. But he was still suffering from the 'slight paralysis' Yami's cheap poison trick had given him, so Sora was intent on making Riku heal as fast as he could. He was convinced that Riku's running amuck about the castle was not going to speed up the process, so the older boy grudgingly complied and went back to bed. That's all he did. Sleep, eat, bathe, heal. 

He hadn't told Sora that it was Yami's fault he was ill, and he really didn't know why he didn't mention it. It was probably because he didn't want Sora to worry or suffer anymore than he already was. Not to mention their current relationship wasn't exactly very stable. And Yami, the smart bastard, was avoiding Riku's room and only visited when Sora was also there, so Riku couldn't squeeze any more information out of the amber-eyed enigma. It wasn't like Yami would talk in Sora's presence anyway. Then again, Sora and Riku couldn't talk in _Yami's_ presence either, and he was always there.

On the morning of the third day, Riku was finally beginning to feel comfortable in his room; its antiquated beauty and rather gothic structure was actually an interesting sight, and he appreciated the detail that went into building the place. He even began to appreciate his comfortable bed that, whenever he was helped out of the room to bathe, magically remade itself with fresh sheets (Riku didn't bother to contemplate _how_). However, he was still tentative about that strange woman and 'her' castle, but he was itching to get out of the room and would rather explore than spend another day cooped up in bed. He was like a prisoner here, not a guest. Even when he had proven to Yami and Sora that he could walk perfectly fine on his own, the two of them suggested he should continue to rest, and thus, he had to remain in bed.

But he also remained miserable for the rest of the day, merely nodding when others spoke to him, and they immediately noticed the change in his mood. Sora knew Riku hated to be trapped in one place for too long, which was why they had leapt into this adventure in the first place; he also understood that Riku was not only feeling a sense of helplessness, but guilt, for sleeping all day when he could be searching for the keyhole or finding a way to repair the gummi ship. And he was. He did feel helpless, he did feel guilty. And he was **bored**.

But that evening it was Yami, not Sora, who came to see him. Riku was sprawled out on his back on the floor, staring straight up at the candle-lit chandelier when the creepy boy entered the room and shut the heavy door behind him.

Riku had been in the room so long that he no longer had to look up to see who entered the room---he could tell who it was just by the way the person closed the door. Sora generally shut it loudly, not really caring if he woke Riku up in the process. The woman who owned the castle had a dampening effect on the atmosphere in the room, and didn't close the door when she entered---Riku had only known her to enter the room twice, the first time being when he had met her; her second visit had been on the second day to see if he was still alive. How generous.

But Yami took more care when he entered the room, always trying to quietly push the door shut so as to not startle Riku, who didn't really care. And this time around, it was a gentle door-shut, so Riku knew it was the reserved boy.

The keyblade master said nothing when he heard Yami enter. The boy silently stood there for a moment, most likely to study Riku's strange position on the ground, wondering if he had finally died from boredom. At least, that's what it felt like to Riku. And slowly, quietly, Yami crossed the rug-spread floor to stand beside the other boy's body, leaning slightly over so that he could meet Riku's vacant green gaze, those amber eyes practically glowing in the dim lighting. 

"Riku."

His voice was calm, as usual, but this time it was laced with an emotion he had never heard from the mysterious boy. Concern? That was a little weird... Yami showing concern.

Riku made no sign of acknowledging that Yami had spoken. He still resented the boy for everything he ever did to him and Sora, and encaging him in this room only added to that hatred and growing misery. He didn't want to see anyone right now...and by ignoring them, he had succeeded in driving them out of the room each time. Sora hadn't taken Riku's reticence very well, and had stopped coming to talk to him about five hours ago. 

But it seemed Yami wasn't giving up that easily.

"Riku," he tried again, a bit more urgently. 

When Riku didn't respond, Yami let out a soft sigh before he gracefully sunk to his knees to get closer to the other boy's position, his white hair brushing lightly over his shoulders as he shifted into a comfortable position. Had his hair always been that long? Riku couldn't remember...

"Sora asked me to come to you," the amber-eyed boy continued, dismissing Riku's silence, who closed his eyes when he suddenly felt Yami's fingers brush through his hair. Yami... was touching him... "He knows you are disappointed with him, but he was only trying to help you, Riku, no matter how much you hate being confined to this room."

Riku felt his jaw clench. Not only was Yami _petting_ him, he was trying to _help_ his relationship? This didn't make any sense. What the hell was he trying to pull this time?

"Sora feels that you are well enough to do as you please now, so feel free to leave. Neither of us will stop you. He just did not want to see you suffering, should you encounter a heartless too strong to deal with yourself."

Despite his current aggravation and his hatred of the boy, Riku found himself relaxing under Yami's calm, bass-like voice, and gentle caresses. The touches were harmless, almost loving, and with each stroke, each kind pet, Riku's contempt slowly melted away. 

"The boy was going to tell you himself, but because of your dogmatic nature, he was afraid to approach you. So I will tell you," Yami said quietly, almost in a murmur, his fingers still tracing through Riku's hair. "Today he mastered the third level of attack magic. He is not quite done.... He still has to better his healing and ailment spells, but he has made amazing progress since he arrived here. His self-pride is almost too much for even him..."

Riku unconsciously let out an amused _Hm..._ at that, a ghost of a smile crossing his lips. Of course Sora would be ecstatic that he had progressed so far in his training with that woman. Of course Sora would have wanted to share the news with Riku himself... Alone. Like he and Yami were right now.

....why wasn't he pulling away from Yami's touches?

Riku's eyes slid open to catch the other boy's intent gaze. "What are you doing?" he asked, his voice low and curious.

The petting paused for a moment, but then began again, this time with two hands. "Experimenting," Yami replied softly with a content smile. "You seemed lonely, even though you were purposely neglecting us. I am not Sora, but I thought perhaps you would not mind if I..."

Sitting up, Riku suddenly pulled away from Yami, brushing at his own hair to make it even again, not turning his eyes to meet the other boy's gaze. "You pretend you're innocent..." Riku sighed in exasperation, deeply frowning. He hesitated for a moment, as though pondering something, his forehead wrinkling as he spoke again. "If you're not after Sora, or to break our relationship up... What do you want with us?"

"You jump to quick conclusions," Yami mused lightly, curling his hands together in his lap, "which makes you easy to manipulate, Riku. And I have already told you what I seek. Experimentation."

"Another question then," Riku said, turning to face the other boy, his green eyes narrowed into a scrutinizing glare. "Why did you suddenly start calling me Riku instead of those stupid pet names?"

"They felt wrong," was his simple response.

"You still call Sora 'boy' sometimes," Riku pointed out, his voice turning harsh. "Do you go around calling me 'keyblade master' when I'm not around?"

Yami's eyes softened before they shifted to look away. "You do not understand."

"Of course I don't!" Riku growled, raking a hand through his hair again. "You play around with us, and when I ask questions, you return them with riddles! You mess with our minds, poison _me_, and then try to act like the good guy?!" He paused there, glaring at the side of Yami's face, who still hadn't turned to meet his gaze. The boy looked stricken, almost sad, and Riku couldn't understand why. "And what is with this compassionate act of yours, suddenly pretending to care for us? No, I'm sorry, Yami. I'm tired of your games!"

With that said, Riku stumbled to his feet and hurried towards the door, ignoring the faint residual pain in his legs that lingered from his illness. When he reached the door, he already had a hand on the large brass handle when he heard Yami speak, the boy's voice so quiet, Riku almost thought he had imagined it.

"I did not expect it to go so far...."

Riku froze, his face twisting in anger as he spun back around, clenching his fists in a weak attempt to control his emotions. "_What_? Tell me, just **what** were you trying to do by breaking us up?!"

Yami was still sitting there, his head lowered so that Riku could not see his expression. "It started off as an experiment. I was curious about the keyblade master and his Other...."

"You mean _Sora_?" Riku supplied, not fighting the crude tone that crawled into his voice.

"Many beings in the worlds have similar predestined, intertwined fates such as yours..." Yami continued explaining patiently, one hand anxiously kneading into his pants as he spoke. The gesture was uncharacteristic of Yami, but Riku failed to notice. "But only the strongest hearts can summon a keyblade, and you, who wields the keyblade, and your Other, who can wield the keyblade, were an ideal pair to study."

"So who are you, _Yami_, if you think you have the right to do with us as you please?!" Riku demanded.

This time the boy raised his head, those amber eyes gleaming in the vague candlelight, that familiar amused smile now on his tanned face. Why he was smiling now, when he had been pouting a minute before, Riku didn't even try to understand. And when Yami spoke, it sent a cold chill through his body.

"Who am I?" he asked quietly, his voice reminiscent of the curl of a dying flame. Soft, deep... but hiding something that could easily swell into a conflagration and consume all surrounding it. The boy gracefully rose to his feet, raising his chin, his white hair swirling around his shoulders as those yellow eyes leveled on Riku. "I am nothing... for I do not exist."

~~~

After the small argument with Yami, Riku gladly fled from the room to search for Sora. It seemed like Yami wasn't going to be much help anyway; every time Riku got the boy to admit something significant, he went ahead and created another riddle to bend the truth again, and frankly, Riku was sick of it. So he was off to find Sora and apologize.

Wherever he was.

Riku had turned down the hallway opposite the one they took to get to the baths, so he had assumed he would end up somewhere big, like maybe a dining hall or something... But he had instead found himself standing on a balcony overlooking a vast expanse of fluffy grey clouds and a deep, star-spotted sky. 

For a moment Riku was reminded of home, in Sora's room at night, when they were little kids. They would shut the window and pull the curtains closed so that the room was completely black, and then they would spread a giant comforter out for them to sit on. And once they got settled, they stuck a flashlight under a plastic lid they had jabbed varying-sized holes into, creating their own star-system on Sora's ceiling. Both boys would lie back on the soft blanket and draw out their own constellations and try to point them out to one another, usually getting into silly fights over their differing opinions. But when they got bored, they had never failed to fall asleep together there on the floor, the flashlight forgotten between them and left to slowly die. 

The sky here was like that... only it was real, with real stars... And they too were being left to die, slowly disappearing as Sora and Riku dawdled their time away here.

Riku turned away from the endless sky and closed his eyes, sighing. When he opened them again, that woman was standing there in the archway, her hands resting delicately on her magical scepter, her long black robe curled around her. This time there was a large raven perched on one of her shoulders, its immense beak open as if to grin at Riku and its beady eyes staring at him with what seemed to be contempt. If birds could feel contempt. But the woman simply watched him, her face and eyes giving away nothing.

Glossy feathers shifted as the raven lifted its wings and suddenly cawed at Riku, who shot it a dirty glare.

"You seem lost, keyblade master," the woman said, her voice sounding bored but keeping its eerie, ominous tone. "No one informed me that you are now well enough to promenade around the castle without escort."

"I'm not promenading," Riku said, trying not to let her words get to him. "Besides, it was your little slave that told me I could."

"Slave?" she asked coolly, running a fingertip over the green orb planted at the top of her staff.

"Yami."

Her painted lips suddenly parted into an amused laugh, the raven on her shoulder ruffling its feathers as though it was mocking him as well. He felt the corners of his mouth twitch in annoyance.

"I'm not stupid," he said, narrowing his green eyes. "I know you know more about Yami than you're letting on. I can tell he's working for you. How else would he know his way around the castle's inner hallways?"

"Indeed." Her laughter had ceased but her smile remained as she regarded him carefully. "But that boy is no slave of mine. He volunteered to his tasks, and I am merely letting him keep you as a pet, since you are of no use to me."

"And Sora is?" Riku demanded, his lips thinning into an angry line.

"Ahh... So your true worries come to light," she cooed, reaching a hand up to pet her bird as she spoke. "Your little friend came to _me_ asking for guidance, so it would be best to consult _him_ about the matter, not me."

The bird seemed to leer at Riku as it danced from foot-to-foot, its dark, glossy feathers infernally shining in the moonlight. 

"Alright..." he said, eyeing the bird warily. "Where's Sora at?"

"The boy and I have just finished yet another training session, so I assume he went to visit you," she said easily, turning her head slightly away from him.

"_More_ training?" Riku asked accusingly. "Don't you think twice a day is enough?"

"Again, find fault not in me. The boy asked for the extra lesson," she replied.

"And just what do you teach him?"

Her lips curved again at his question, her hand going back to resting at the head of her scepter. "I believe we have spoken enough about the boy."

"So you want me to cut to the chase," Riku said, rather than asked, folding his arms across his chest in a condescending manner.

"Precisely."

"Alright. It's Yami's fault that me and Sora are here, isn't it?"

"Yes," she said, and the raven's beak opened again to caw. "Yami was the one who arranged your arrival here."

Ahh... So she was going to answer his questions, was she? But... if it was Yami's fault... how did he do it? Did he somehow make that portal so he could land them here? It was silly to imagine, really. Not even Yami could have the power to affect space, right?

"Who _is_ Yami?" Riku asked, his eyebrows drawing together in curiosity. 

"He failed to relay that information to me," she replied.

"I don't trust you."

"A shame. Any more of your dispensable inquiries?"

Riku eyed her for a moment. He did have a thousand questions burning inside of him ready to be demanded, but he knew that this woman couldn't answer them. Or wouldn't. Not yet, at least. He put on a bitter smile and politely bowed, sweeping his hand in a gentlemanly gesture.

"No, I am finished, Mistress," Riku drawled sarcastically. "I think I shall go promenade around your creepy castle until I find my sex-kitten."

"You would be wise to hold your wit, boy, lest you find your tongue handed to you for your next meal," she droned as he passed by her without so much as a second glance.

He stepped into the hallway to escape, the raven's sniggering drifting after him on the subtle night breeze.

~~~

He must have heard wrong. Sora had called this place a castle, right? Just a castle. Well, Riku had never been in a castle before, but they weren't supposed to be this **big**. Hollow Bastion wasn't a castle, or even a bastion. It was a labyrinth!

At least, that's what Riku thought because at the moment he was undoubtably lost.

It must have been an hour or two since his conversation with that woman and he was still wandering the hallways, searching the larger rooms for any trace of Sora. He had accidentally circled back once and found his room, but Yami had disappeared from it and Sora hadn't been there either, so Riku was getting a little frustrated. He really wanted to know how the other occupants of the castle got around without getting lost like he was.

Most of the corridors looked the same so he had a bit of a problem telling the difference between them. Riku also tried his best to not stray out onto the balconies because that was where the heartless seemed to like to hang out.

The creatures here were rather large, and while some of the original type of heartless appeared, bulkier ones usually accompanied them. And now they carried shields and weapons and it was a bit of a challenge fighting them with his keyblade, which was looking more and more meager in comparison to the heartless' claws and clubs.

So the keyblade only chose those strong of heart, huh?

The knowledge flattered Riku a little bit, but he wished his keyblade were a little more powerful because it wasn't holding up very well against the Hollow Bastion heartless. Those two weeks at Traverse Town had given him plenty of practice with the weapon, and during the tournament at the coliseum he had used it well against the competition... But ever since Yami had beaten him, Riku's fights had gotten significantly more difficult.

Riku was pretty sure that it wasn't really Yami's fault this time. Yes, he could blame it on Yami for poisoning him or whatever, and that he was still recovering and therefore wasn't fighting to the best of his abilities. However, Riku knew that wasn't true. That would just be an excuse. No, Riku was fighting well. The fault lay with his weapon, the keyblade. The heartless had gotten stronger, and so had he...

But the keyblade hadn't.

It still retained its beautiful polished shine and magical aura, but it was as though it was mocking him. Beautiful, but weak.

That was why Riku tried to stay away from the outside pathways and balconies where the heartless liked to appear. The hallways were much safer for him. Some of the outer corridors were rather awe-inspiring with their magical lifts and colorful walls, but Riku did not want to explore without finding Sora first.

However, Riku doubted he could even find his room right now. Because he was so lost, it came as a great relief when he finally found someone, even though that person was someone he generally wished to avoid. 

It was Yami. As Riku turned into his hallway, the other boy casually leaned against the wall, looking as though he had been waiting for Riku. At that point Riku really didn't care, and released a comforted sigh, knowing Yami would help him. 

As he approached the amber-eyed boy, he suddenly realized how ironically important Yami had become in his life during the past few days. 

Yami had helped him through his illness, and even though the boy had been the one to give Riku it in the first place, he had gone out of his way to see that Riku was healing, that he ate and bathed regularly, and that he was safe. If Riku had asked for help, Yami had given it freely. And then there was that strange offer to find Sora's present for him… What was that about?

Nevertheless, Riku was relieved to see Yami.

"Came to give me a guided tour, Yami?" he asked, immediately locking gazes with the other boy, who gave a kind smile in return.

"If you wish for one."

"Actually, I'm starving."

Yami gave a knowing smile. "Then we shall begin in the kitchens."

And they did. Yami escorted Riku around most of the castle that night, showing and explaining what he needed to know for their stay there. Riku took all the information in quickly as they wandered the many halls and he munched on his dinner, which was wrapped neatly and carried in a small burlap bag tucked under one arm as he followed Yami's lead. 

The heartless rarely attacked when they were together, and when the creatures did, Yami took care of them quickly---so quickly, actually, that Riku didn't even have to summon the keyblade or put away his food. And Yami was a smooth talker, the boy pointing out strange architecture and the fastest routes to the main halls of the castle that Riku would have otherwise missed. 

"How do you know so much about this place?" Riku had asked after about an hour into the tour when he was finished eating his food.

Yami had simply replied with, "The Grand Library has many informative books."

So that had been that, and the tour had continued. But even when Riku asked, Yami wouldn't let him venture into the inner workings of the castle where Maleficent's quarters were, so Riku decided to save that exploring for when he was alone. 

Riku was surprised, however, that Yami had opened up so much to him, and that Riku had let himself trust the boy so carelessly. It was interesting the way Yami spoke about the castle, as if proud of its majestic design and history. The way the boy's voice carried comforted Riku, and when he talked freely in front of Riku, it was almost like Yami was letting him see a part of himself that he hadn't shown in a long time… Like Yami trusted him in return, or appreciated his company.

This led to another strange realization. In the three weeks he had known the boy, not once had Riku considered Yami as an actual person. He'd been seeing Yami as a roadblock, a mysterious rival, someone he couldn't take his eyes off for too long because of the distrust he had for him. Not once had he considered that Yami had his own feelings, his own interests, passions and dislikes, and hobbies. Maybe Yami's world had been attacked by the heartless and he had lost his friends and family, or even a lover. Maybe there was a good reason why Yami knew the things he did, and why he was "experimenting" with Riku and Sora's relationship.

Speaking of that…

"I don't suppose you'll tell me what you're doing by toying with me and Sora," Riku said as they appeared in what seemed to be a foyer. 

Yami paused in the center of the room under a beautiful chandelier, turning slightly to face the other boy. "Perhaps when I think you are ready," he replied calmly before he gestured to a large exit across the room. "Those lead outside and to the gummi ship crash. Over there is the entrance to the Grand Library where you will be spending most of your time, as per the Mistress' wishes. You did offer to organize it, remember?"

"Yeah."

"Good. Straight that way leads to the inner parts of the castle and you are not to venture in that direction."

"Why not?"

"You will not like what you see, and I do not wish to see what punishment she has planned for anyone who disobeys her rules," Yami said pointedly and began heading up the staircase. "I will show you the library, and then escort you back to your room. Sora should have returned by then."

"What does he do all day?" Riku asked, following closely behind the other boy.

"I make it a point not to know," Yami said with a small smile. "However, I do know he spends the majority of his time with the Mistress, that sorceress. When he is not learning from her, I am not sure what he does."

Riku lowered his eyes, thinking about that. "He spends time with me, right?"

"Some of the time, not all."

And as they entered the library, Riku couldn't help worrying about that fraction of the time when _no one_ knew what Sora did.

~~~

Hours passed like days and days like weeks, and Riku had very little to keep himself entertained with. His job organizing the library took perhaps a day and a half. After that he had vaguely wondered how long it would take him to _read_ the library, for that was all he _could_ do in that damn castle.

Sora was always with Maleficent, so the two boys couldn't even talk anymore or 'do other things' like Leon had suggested. Riku _had _managed to apologize to Sora for the silent treatment he had given him, and they had snuggled to sleep together, but that was the extent of the physical part of their relationship. Sora, the one who had been so eager to leap into Riku's pants before, was slowly closing himself off like a desk's drawer, and when Riku reached in for something, Sora would close himself a little more, making it even harder for Riku to reach. Even when Riku questioned Sora about his training, Sora found a way to change the subject or brush it aside as something innocent, but Riku knew. 

He could feel the changes in the younger boy, and quite frankly, he knew he had reason to worry. Saying or accusing anyone of anything outright would only cause more problems, however---the kinds of problems that Riku really couldn't handle.

On the other side of that metaphorical desk, the drawer named Yami was gradually opening up to Riku. Of course, the information inside that drawer must have been coded in some foreign language, because Riku certainly didn't know how to solve that boy's riddles, nor could he piece together what he _did_ know.

More than once Riku had thought about taking his frustration out on the heartless, but considering his keyblade was lacking the necessary strength to stand up to the formidable breeds at Hollow Bastion, he didn't dare fight often. He would hate to find out what happened to people who fell to the heartless in battle, and day-by-day, that possibility was increasing for him. 

At the moment Riku was lounging on the large staircase in the library, a book raised above his head as he skimmed through it. It was a welcomed rest from the questions buzzing around in his head, but as always, he was quickly becoming bored. 

Most of the books he had skimmed through already weren't exactly reading material. More like schoolbooks, he mused, since they were filled with complicated philosophy, mathematics, and physics. He had found a few books about the history of this place, but they were mostly filled with nonsense about past rulers of the place, and it hadn't said anything about the creepy woman who was running it now. Maybe she had killed everyone off before they had even had a chance to add her to the history books. Scary thought, really.

Actually, by sifting through the books, he had been hoping to find one good enough to be Sora's birthday present, but at this rate he'd _never_ find a decent gift. The books in this library were just too… 

Not Sora?

He supposed that he could trust Yami to find a present for him, like Yami had offered, but it made him feel horrible that he was already in Yami's debt because the amber-eyed boy kept giving his assistance. Even though Yami hadn't asked for any compensation yet, Riku still felt like he was expected to do something nice in return.

Yami…

He actually wasn't that bad to talk with. Riku found their Sora-free discussions rather fascinating, in fact. Now that Sora spent most of his time with that creepy sorceress, Yami was frequently visiting Riku, almost obsessively, and Riku found himself seeking Yami out in return, just to pass the time. Surprisingly, they hardly ran out of things to talk about. However, while Riku told Yami about life back on Destiny Islands, and time spent with Sora in the past, Yami never spoke about his past. No, Yami's conversations were filled with interesting theories about the heartless and keyblades, and even magic and all the separate worlds. He spoke about all this freely to Riku, who didn't hesitate to ask questions (whether or not Yami answered them depended on their propinquity and importance). 

Not once had Yami fed Riku any lies, or tried to manipulate him into believing anything absurd. It was amazing, really, how much their relationship changed from one day to the next. Two weeks ago Riku had despised the boy, a few days ago he had decided to give Yami a chance, and now…

What was it now? Were they friends?

Riku's trust was almost like a balance in the wind in the way that it liked to sway a lot. One moment Riku would forget that Yami was the same person who had pushed Sora into his anti-social shell, and would openly admit he liked Yami's company; but as soon as Yami showed any sign that he was hiding something, Riku would remember that he still knew nothing about Yami, and would return to his distrust of the other boy. 

It was a strange relationship, but it was getting stronger every day. 

And it had been three whole days since Riku had last asked if the gummi ship was being repaired yet. It wasn't that he had given up on the hope of escape, it was more like he had forgotten that there _was_ an escape. Or maybe he just didn't want to leave anymore.

With a last brief glance at the book he had been skimming through, Riku sighed in defeat and dropped it, letting it hit the carpeted stair before gravity sent it tumbling down the rest towards the rug far below. It landed in a messy heap in front of a pair of fine boots, its spine face up and its pages folded in and out again. It wasn't until Yami picked the book up and spoke did Riku notice that he was there.

"The owner of these tomes would shudder to see such abuse," came the soothingly quiet voice from the foot of the stairs.

Riku glanced up in time to see Yami lovingly unfold the delicate pages of the ancient book and run his fingertips up its spine in a gentle caress before he closed it. It struck Riku as odd that someone could care so much about something as simple as a book, and in such a… er… _suggestive_ manner. 

Geh. Why was he relating those kinds of things with _Yami_?

"Stuff as boring as that deserves to be abused," Riku mused from his perch on the stairs, supporting his chin in his hand, which was propped up by his knee. He stared at Yami for a moment, his eyes casual yet attentive. 

Today the boy was wearing grey pants, not his usual black, and had his ever-growing white hair tied back into a loose ponytail. What surprised Riku, however, was that Yami's shirt was _white_ (Yami _never_ wore white!), and tight… and so thin it was almost transparent. It aesthetically contrasted well with his dark skin and, for the first time, Riku noticed that Yami wore ear cuffs, little silver cylinders that hugged about an inch of the curve of his ear. 

Riku couldn't deny it anymore. Yami _did_ look good. He always did.

But something else was different.

Yami wasn't smiling.

The amber-eyed boy slowly began climbing the steps, gently holding the old book in one arm. "I thought that you, Riku, of all people, would appreciate the beauty of ancient literature, least of all _abuse_ it and treat it with such disrespect," he commented softly.

Riku narrowed his eyes, knowing that Yami was making an allusion to his father's strict behavior that everyone considered abuse. He had told Yami about his parents only two days ago and Yami was already using the knowledge to make judgments about Riku's character. Riku couldn't blame him though, since it was in Yami's nature to analyze things---that was one of the things that _Riku_ had learned.

"Well, you misjudged me," Riku replied nonchalantly as he leaned backwards against the stairs, staring up at the high ceiling. "It was a bunch of philosophical bullshit anyway." 

Yami stopped at the step where Riku's head rested so that Riku could view all of him from below. From his vantage point, Riku could see how low Yami's pants dipped, giving the boy a clear look at Yami's abdominal muscles and the curve downward…

Riku tore his gaze away and frowned, realizing that Yami had probably dressed that way to distract him. And without Sora around to admire, his eyes were definitely beginning to stray elsewhere.

Was that really possible? To harbor feelings for someone else when he and Sora had shared the paopu together?

Maybe the paopu bond didn't protect its protégés from their own hormones, and only stood up when actual love was involved. Then again, maybe the paopu legend was just that. A legend.

"I have a present for you," Yami said, slightly inclining his head to study Riku's lazy form. 

"Present?" Riku glanced up again just in time to see Yami settling down to sit on the stairs next to him. When Yami set the old book down, Riku noticed something else in Yami's grasp, and asked curiously, "Sora's present?"

"No," Yami replied, holding a hand out for Riku to see. "For you."

Cupped in Yami's palm was a flat metal medallion in the familiar shape of a crown. Actually, it was exactly like Sora's necklace, only it was a black so deep, its flawless surface did not reflect a thing. Attached to it was a small chain of eight linked black rings.

Riku looked from the beautiful chained pendant to glance at Yami, raising a single eyebrow in question. "It's gorgeous, but what is it?"

Yami knowingly smiled, leaning closer to Riku. "It is a key chain," he answered softly as he took Riku's hands and placed the gift into his palms. "When added to the keyblade, a key chain transforms it into a more powerful weapon. I found this particular form, called Oblivion, while performing a favor for the Madam here in Hollow Bastion."

Riku blinked at Yami, taking in this new knowledge as he lifted the key chain by its last ring, letting the dark crown dangle in front of him. Slowly, a light smile crossed his lips as he stared at it.

"Thanks, Yami," he said, keeping his green eyes focused on his present. "Really. I needed this a lot."

Even though this was yet another thing he owed Yami for, Riku couldn't let himself feel bitter about it. 

"Would you like to use it?" Yami asked, leaning even closer to study Riku's face. 

"Use it?" Riku replied, shifting his attention back to the other boy's amber eyes. "You mean against the heartless?"

Before Yami could even nod, Riku had summoned the keyblade and held it out in front of both of them. The weapon had stopped singing warnings to Riku ever since they had landed in Hollow Bastion, and its near-silence almost disturbed him. 

_Carefulbecareful_, it still whispered, but the voice seemed to have given up hope. No longer was it so urgent or attention seeking. And now that Riku no longer wore his gloves, he could actually feel the warm hum of the magical weapon, and that let him know that it was still his and ready to do what he willed it to do.

Yami, meanwhile, openly stared at the giant key, a ghost of a smile on his lips as he studied it in Riku's hands.

"I just attach it, right?" Riku asked, holding up the key chain in his free hand and, again, before Yami could respond, he acted.

The black ring had barely touched the tip of the keyblade before the hilt was engulfed in a warm swirl of colorful light that soon stretched over the entire weapon, filling the quiet air with a strange shimmering sound and the smell of metal and black cherries.

Riku exchanged a strange look with Yami as if to ask if all key chains had their own scent, but decided that if magical spells could leave aftertastes (Cura had an interesting sugary property to it), then a keyblade could smell.

When the light show ended, both boys returned their eyes to transformed weapon. They smiled at what they saw.

"Now _this_ is what I'm talking about!" Riku cried as he leapt to his feet, holding the keyblade up to take in all of its new beauty. 

But as soon as he stood, a wave of dizziness passed over him and he stumbled, precariously leaning backwards. He would have fell if Yami hadn't leapt after him and grabbed his arm to pull him back. Riku ungracefully knocked back into Yami and slumped against him, and the other boy had to gently ease the pale boy back down to the carpeted stairs.

"Ergh… I feel so sick all of a sudden…" Riku mumbled in a low whine as he pressed his face into Yami's shoulder, the arm holding the keyblade hanging loosely at his side.

Yami gently supported him so he wouldn't go tumbling down the stairs, one arm wrapped around the boy's waist, his other hand gripping Riku's other arm. "Not sick, but drained," he corrected him, completely comfortable with Riku's nearness. "New power comes at a price, Riku. The weapon may be stronger, but it will most likely drain your magical resources while you wield it."

"Magical resources?" Riku repeated, slightly raising his head but not moving it away from Yami's shoulder. "I didn't know that I had magic…"

"All living creatures do," Yami said quietly, lifting his hand to cup the side of Riku's pale face. "The fatigue is only a minor side-effect. You should begin feeling better almost immediately," he assured, softly running a thumb over the corner of Riku's mouth. "But then again… you went from wielding its weak original state to such an impressive form. You might need to rest after all."

Riku gave a content sigh at that, a smile on his face as he rested against Yami. "As long as I don't have to go back to my room to do it."

"Of course not," Yami replied, shifting a little so that Riku wasn't completely resting in his lap.

As if waking from a drunken state, the silver-haired boy noticed their strange position and immediately pulled away, weakly moving back to put space between them. He forced back an embarrassed flush, disbelieving that he had almost been snuggling with a boy he had despised only two weeks before. It seemed like he was minding Yami's presence less and less, so much in fact that he didn't even care about how close they were getting.

It was strange. 

Riku didn't trust it, even though he was beginning to trust _Yami_.

To break the strained silence that had suddenly come between them, Yami quietly asked, "May I see Oblivion?"

Riku nodded, and with more effort than it usually took, he held his newly transformed keyblade up to get a better look at it.

The clumsy look of its original form had been replaced with a sleek black and silver new design that Riku immediately took a liking to. The bow of the key now looked like a pair of demon wings that curved downward to meet at an ornate spearhead, and in the middle the hilt had turned into silver vertebrae-like ridges. The blade of the key was long and black and a length of black chain ran up its flat sides, a complicated keyway and another spearhead at its tip setting off its wicked design. Just above the hilt was a dark blue engraving, but Riku was too distracted with the keyblade's new dark beauty to pay much attention to any more of the finer details.

No longer was the keyblade a blunt object; now it looked like a formidable weapon, and he thought with much enthusiasm that the new keyway's pointed and sharp edges would do terrible damage to his enemies.

"It suits you well," Yami noted from his seat on the stairs, a hint of amusement in his soft voice.

And he was right. Now that he only wore the black outfit Sora had bought for him, the keyblade matched perfectly. Black of his clothes to the black of the blade and bow. The paleness of his skin and his silver hair to the silver of the hilt and tip of the weapon. 

"Oblivion," Riku murmured, matching the keyblade to the name Yami had called it. 

"Oblivion," Yami echoed, his yellow eyes smiling not at the weapon, but its master.

That night Riku destroyed more heartless than he had in any of the matches at the tournament. It was also the first time that he had fought side-by-side not with Sora, but with Yami.

~~~

Sora finally mastered the non-elemental levels of magic a few days later, and to celebrate he and Riku planned to have an evening just for them on Sora's birthday the following day. Both boys became nervous wrecks, and for very good, separate reasons.

The morning of the big day, Riku was still without a present, and now, with an evening with just the two of them, he _knew_ what Sora would ask for.

To be on top.

Sora was nervous because he was afraid Riku would finally try to open him up and tell him what was wrong with him, and ask the questions he didn't want to answer. That and he was feeling more detached than usual, like someone else was maneuvering him throughout his days, even though he knew what he was doing. Sora's last reason was the most obvious: his growing fear of what was happening to him.

Riku knew none of his boyfriend's worries, however, and was currently frantically searching the library for a good book to give to Sora as a gift. It was his last resort, it really was. Even though it was still early afternoon, Riku was rather irked that Yami hadn't delivered a present to him yet, as he had promised.

At least, that was what he was thinking about when Yami swung the grand doors open and strode into the large room, his footsteps unusually heavy as he crossed the library towards where Riku sat in an old chair by the window, a huge stack of ancient books sitting on the table next to him. The doors clacked against the walls before bouncing back and closing with a thunderous _bang_.

That in itself was very suspicious.

Wasn't Yami always the one who quietly opened doors so as to not disturb Riku? When had he changed that trait of his?

Not to mention how hurried and loud his steps were, and how flustered Yami looked as he crossed the rugs to stand in front of a surprised Riku. Something was definitely wrong with the other boy.

"Yami?" he said softly, his tone silently asking Yami what the hell his problem was.

The frown that crossed Yami's face told Riku that he wasn't flustered as he had first thought. No, he was pissed. Or greatly disappointed.

Riku carefully rose to his feet to stand in front of him, and for a quick moment he noted that Yami was a good two inches taller than him now. When had _that_ happened?

The boy's still-growing long hair was hanging loosely all over the place at the moment, adding to his disturbed appearance while also reminding Riku about the peculiarity of how fast his white hair was growing. Two weeks ago it had barely touched his shoulders. Now it was a few inches down his back.

Riku was almost jealous about how great it looked on him. He'd never admit that out loud though.

"What's wrong?" he asked this time, seeing that his last inquiry had failed to stimulate a response yet.

A petulant look crossed Yami's face as though he were a ten-year-old who hadn't gotten what he had asked for on his birthday. Brow knit together, his lips slightly puckered and his eyes glinting with envy and sadness, Yami extended his hand, indicating he had something to give to Riku.

"Sora's present?" Riku asked, relief flooding into his voice as he extended both of his hands.

Into his hands dropped another key chain, much to his surprise. This time it was an intricate chain of closely-knit diamond-shaped links, a familiar star-shaped symbol attached to the end.

"A paopu fruit!" Riku found himself exclaiming as he raised his wide green eyes to confront Yami. "Where the hell did you get this?!"

"Is _that_ what it is?" came Yami's surly reply, his voice a little higher and more mocking than usual, and for a moment Riku looked taken aback at the tone. The tanned boy squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed his forehead as though cursing himself before he spoke again, this time normally. "Never mind where I found it. Sora will enjoy it, will he not?"

Riku was still staring at him in shock. Not only was this key chain strongly reminiscent of Destiny Islands and looked vaguely familiar, Yami had just sounded like…

"Yes… Sora will love this," Riku replied, forcing himself to look back down at the trinket. A paopu fruit, the symbol of the start of their relationship. Of their love. If anything could mend their feelings, it was the reminder that they were bound by the magic of a paopu fruit. The chain was gorgeous, even more so than Oblivion's. But then something struck Riku as odd. He glanced back up at Yami, who looked considerably more in control of himself. "Why a key chain?" he asked.

"Sora is just as capable of wielding a keyblade as you are," Yami replied. "By giving it to him, you will be supporting his strength and silently giving him your encouragement."

He was right.

Then again, Yami was always right.

"So what's its name?" Riku asked, closing a fist over the meaningful gift. 

"Oathkeeper."

_How fitting_, Riku mused, a smile crossing his face. "Thanks Yami."

"I _do_ want something in return," the boy said softly, his yellow eyes narrowing. "But only when the time comes will I call upon you to fulfill that favor. Understood?"

Riku raised a single eyebrow, not really understanding the reason for the request, but understanding the request, nonetheless. "Sure," he replied. "So will you be around this evening?"

Yami's brow quickly knitted. "No."

With that said, he deftly spun around and stormed back out of the library, just like he had entered.

~~~

"Feel the power shuddering just beyond your reach, Boy. Do you feel it?"

"Yes."

"Now reach out and grasp it."

Sora extended his fingers and nearly gasped as they brushed against something. Something that hadn't been there a few seconds ago when his eyes had been open.

He could almost _hear_ the woman's amused smile.

Quickly banishing outward thought, he concentrated on the soft whisper of power he was now touching. It was so delicate, so thin and near-invisible that not just anyone could see it, like black spider web. 

This was the next step in his magical knowledge, he knew. If he could master this, he would be strong enough to stay with Riku, to fight alongside him.

He slipped his fingers around the shadow, feeling it gently tug back to let him know it still existed. Slowly, carefully, he pulled it towards himself and it easily followed, flowing over his hand and up his arm like a lover's caress. When he opened his eyes again, it was definitely visible.

"It is called a Shadow Summon," the sorceress said, her voice high with that I-know-everything tone she usually had. 

But he didn't acknowledge that she had spoken. His wide blue eyes were staring straight into the yellow of a heartless, only he had created the creature, and it wasn't like any species he had seen before. It was amorphous, like a length of silk wrapped around his arm, only it was leaning up to stare at him.

"It's a heartless!" Sora said, frightened concern evident in his boyish voice.

"Wrong," she said, her long fingers curling around her scepter as she stepped towards him, her head held high. "But it can be made into one."

"I don't understand," Sora said, glancing from her to the thing on his arm, his face forming a cute pout.

"You do not have to," she replied patiently, coming to an elegant stop in front of him, robe swishing after her. "Only understand that you have the power. Now, focus."

Sora returned his gaze back to the shadow on his arm, his eyes narrowing at it. "Focused."

"Now order it to take a form. Any form you wish."

Brow furrowed, Sora thought that over, wondering where this strange lesson was heading. Most of his lessons with her were simple, just her giving advice and telling him interesting techniques to use to enhance his magic. But since he had mastered most of the magic he knew, she had begun teaching him other stuff, like this Shadow Summon thing. He had a feeling he knew where the next lesson would go, and he couldn't decide whether he dreaded it, or wanted it.

Blue eyes hardened, staring into the yellow orbs in front of him.

This was ridiculous, but he would try anyway. After all, if the heartless attacked him when he asked them to, why couldn't he order shadows to morph?

_Riku. Give me Riku._

He half-expected the shadow to just stare back, but as soon as he thought the words, the form shuddered and slipped off his arm. It dropped to the ground and immediately grew upward, a swirl of black magic curling around the figure that began to take shape. Sora watched with amazed blue eyes as the black dissipated and an exact replica of Riku stood in front of him, only instead of wearing his new outfit, it was his old one. Not a fleck of color could be found on the creature, except its empty yellow eyes. Black as the heartless, Sora noted, only it looked so much like the boy he loved. 

"Touching," the woman's voice commented from his side, and Sora flinched in surprise, having forgotten that she had been there.

"He was the first thing I thought of," he mumbled, only slightly embarrassed as he studied the Riku heartless in front of him.

Her cold eyes fell upon him and a strange smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "It _is_ your day of birth, is it not?"

He blinked quickly, lifting his gaze to meet hers. "Y-Yeah. I'm fifteen now," he said, managing a grin.

"Ahh," she breathed in amusement, reaching a hand out to pat his head. "Then as a gift, we shall have a final lesson before we retire for the day."

"Really?" he said, widely smiling as he turned away from the heartless Riku. "What kind of lesson?"

She calmly gestured to the heartless he had summoned, her palm facing upward. "Something that will aid your quest, no doubt." Pausing to glance at Sora, she continued, "You are aware of how you can ask the heartless to attack you in training, yes?"

"Yeah…" Sora said, giving her a suspicious look, his eyebrows drawing together. "But…"

"It is not a coincidence," she said, gently ushering him to face the heartless. "This creature will follow any command you give it, within reason."

Sora slightly tightened his grip on Einlanzer, which he had forgotten he had been holding. What she was saying, what she wanted him to do… He knew what it was. He had felt the power inside of him since he and Riku had landed in Mulan's world. 

He knew he could control those beasts, but knowing he had the power and accepting it were two different things. 

Back then, in the snow when Riku had protected Sora from the heartless, and Sora had told them to stop… They had. And then Mulan had shown up. All the other times they hadn't attacked him because he hadn't wanted them to. Of course, his control over them wavered when he was around Riku, but that was because of Riku's role…

They really did have opposite destinies, whether they wanted to acknowledge it or not.

Riku just didn't know to what extent the darkness had over Sora. Sora knew, but he didn't really want to welcome it. He could admit to himself that he _did_ like using it to beat Yami at the tournament, but he had been desperate then so that excused his behavior, right?

This woman was teaching him how to harness it properly and he had accepted her help to get it more under control because it still frightened him. He was afraid of hurting Riku on accident.

But this development was new. He hadn't known he could use the darkness to create heartless-like creatures, like this black Riku. 

No, it wasn't Riku. It was everything Riku wasn't.

Anti-Riku.

"Well?" she said, turning his face with her hand so that he was once again staring at the black creature. "Give it a command."

_Give it a command_.

But if he did, would he be turning his back on the trust Riku had given him? Would he be taking yet another step towards his ill destiny of shadows and solitude?

No. He wouldn't. Because he was strong, right? He knew what to look for.

"Alright," he said, giving her a small smile before stepping towards the anti-Riku. _But what could I tell it to do…?_

Closing his eyes, Sora cleared his mind and formed an image of Riku there. Smiling Riku. Sora was there too, and they were holding hands, both of them, and with a laugh the two figures in his mind began dancing around in a circle, spinning around and around and around like two pixies.

He nearly cried aloud when he felt two cold hands wrap around his. Abruptly dropping Einlanzer and snapping his eyes open, he found Riku's face in front of his, its bloodless body standing close to him.

No, not Riku. Not with those yellow eyes.

However even that was forgettable as, just as in his mind, the heartless pulled him into a carefree dance, spinning them around and around. At first Sora began laughing, amazed that he had done this---made a heartless dance with him. 

But when he saw Riku's face, he froze. 

He pulled away from the creature, and with a wave of his hand he sent the heartless sinking back into the ground, leaving the air in front of him free of the disturbing figure. Just like that he could create or destroy such a shadow…

He knew he should feel ashamed of himself for even thinking he could replace Riku with a beast like that, but he couldn't. With power like that, who would hate it? Deep down he knew it was wrong. That was the same part of himself that had banished the abomination.

Yes, it had Riku's face, his hair, his lips…

"What is wrong, Child?" the woman asked from behind him, coming up to rest a hand on his shoulder as he stared out into the space the heartless had been just a moment before.

What was wrong?

It had looked so much like Riku. It had listened to him and they had danced. But…

"He wasn't smiling."

~~~

That evening Sora and Riku ate dinner in the library due to Riku's insistence. He said he felt more comfortable there than anywhere else in the whole castle, so Sora easily complied to his wishes, even though it was his birthday. Truthfully Sora didn't really like any of the places in the castle except some of the balconies where he could stare out into the sky. 

He must have learned that trait from Riku.

"Y'know, every time I eat, I always worry about where the food comes from," Sora said absent-mindedly, pushing a strange vegetable around his plate with a silver fork.

Riku glanced up from dissecting his own meal, raising a single eyebrow. "Why?" he asked, feeling a twinge of anxiety. This night had already been too awkward… And now they were talking about _food_?

What had happened to them?

They were like strangers on a blind date, really.

"Well, I've been outside. There's no cattle, so where does the meat come from? There's no plantation or anything, so where do the veggies come from?" Sora asked, finally stabbing the green thing and stuffing it into his mouth before continuing, his voice muffled a bit. "I mean, it's good, but it worries me."

Riku couldn't help smiling. "Must be magic."

"That would be a weird ability to learn," Sora commented, pausing to swallow. "Making food with magic." He smiled brightly at the other boy for a moment. "Today was my last day training with her, by the way."

Those green eyes immediately lit up with happiness. "Really?" Riku said, unable to hide his excitement, his smile filling with relief. "That's good news."

Sora knew that Riku greatly distrusted the mistress of the castle, and had highly disproved of Sora's time learning from her. And for good reason. Sora also knew that the reason Riku hadn't actually stepped in and forbid Sora from his training was that Sora had insisted that he wanted to learn magic. Riku wasn't the type to say no to something that would make the younger boy happy, even if he didn't like that Sora was doing it.

Actually, Sora hadn't told her that he was stopping their lessons yet. But after today, and that incident with anti-Riku, Sora didn't think he could continue down that line. That would be lying to Riku, and his own heart. And now, after seeing Riku and spending time with him after so many days without much contact, Sora realized how much he had missed him, and how much he had hurt Riku by neglecting him.

Funny, really. He had thought _Riku_ was neglecting him, but when Riku was finally free from his duty, Sora was the one who turned away from his comfort. 

He wouldn't make that mistake again.

"So how have you been?" Riku asked quietly, keeping his head lowered towards his plate, but raising his eyes to watch Sora.

"Miss me?" Sora teased in reply as he reached a bare foot out to prod Riku's leg, trying to distract him so he wouldn't have to answer that question.  

This time Riku raised his head, his eyes turning hard. "Miss you?" he repeated, his voice laced with disbelief. "I was _dying_ without you, Sora!"

The boy lowered his eyes in shame, studying his plate with a frown. "It's over now though. Now we can find a way to fix the ship and leave."

There was a moment of silence before Riku spoke again, his voice slightly surprised. "I was actually beginning to feel comfortable here… I hadn't realized. I almost forgot about the ship."

"Comfortable?" Sora asked, forehead wrinkling as he glanced back up at Riku.

"Yami has been keeping me company, actually," the older boy admitted, smiling.

Sora quickly straightened his back, blue eyes widening in astonishment. "I thought you hated him!" Not only that, Riku was _smiling_ about it. This was weird. _Really_ weird!

"Er.. Yeah. I did," Riku sighed, reaching a hand up to scratch distractedly at his neck. "But since I've hardly seen you, he started spending more time with me to cheer me up. I learned a lot from him, actually. He's not that bad, like you said."

When Riku returned his gaze back to Sora, he was surprised to see a mix of relief and fear on the younger boy's face. Honestly, Sora didn't really know how he felt about that bit of news. A part of him was glad that Riku had found someone to talk with during his absence but another part was jealous that it had been Yami. He didn't want Riku to suffer but he didn't want Riku to get close to another person. 

"Oh…" he said softly,  gently placing his fork onto his empty plate before setting it aside on the small table they were seated at. 

They sat there in silence while Riku finished up his dinner, pausing every now and then to drink at his goblet of milk. Sora casually played with Riku's toes under the table with his own feet, and was pleasantly surprised that Riku didn't pull away from the playful gesture. He was glad that both of them had discarded their shoes before settling down for dinner. It felt good, toying with Riku like this, like they were still normal boys on Destiny Island.

When both food and drink were gone, Riku stacked his plate atop Sora's and sat back in his chair, running a hand through his neatly-combed hair. Aside from Sora wearing a new outfit, and Riku having tried to tame his strange silver hair, neither of the boys had really dressed for the occasion. 

It was silly, but for some reason Sora _did_ look a year older already, but Riku placed the blame on the boy's clothes and his daily training that had, much to Riku's envy, given his muscles definition. Sora was growing up. Even his eyes had lost some of that unique youth to them.

"You look great," Riku said, and at this Sora widely grinned.

"I was saving this outfit for today!" he announced, trying a little too hard to be like his old self. He seemed to realize how odd it was that he had to pretend things were normal, so he mellowed a little and settled with just a sad smile. "We need to talk, don't we?"

Riku slowly nodded. "We do, but it can wait until tomorrow."

Sora let out a soft sigh, smiling in relief. "Good. I was worried."

"Want your present now?" the older boy asked as he rose to his feet.

"Do I?!" Sora laughed, jumping up after him. "Where is it?"

Motioning with his hand for Sora to follow him, Riku headed towards the staircase, carefully descending the steps to the nearest bookcase, Sora trailing after him. 

"I stashed it here because I was afraid I was going to lose it," he admitted with a small smile as he stopped in front of the tall structure and reached onto a high shelf to grab a cloth bundle.

When Riku deposited it into his hands, Sora first thought maybe the gift was more clothes, but when he began unfolding it, he heard a jingle of metal. Curiously, carefully, he peeled back the cloth and uncovered Oathkeeper.

An awed look spread across Sora's boyish face, his blue eyes widening as he stared at the beautiful key chain. "It's a key chain. With a paopu fruit at the end…." Slowly he raised his head and met Riku's expectant gaze with his confused one. In the past few days Riku had shown Sora Oblivion and explained what key chains could do, but… "But why give it to me?" Sora asked. "Your keyblade…"

Riku held a hand up and shook his head. "There's several meanings behind it, Sora," he said, managing a reassuring smile. "It's a key chain, yes, for a keyblade, maybe. You're as strong as me, and I'm sure you can wield a keyblade too," he explained, reaching forward to pull Sora closer to him. "Until you get that weapon, you can wear it with your necklace or crown chain."

Sora lifted the present up and smiled back, dropping the cloth onto the floor. "It's perfect!" he said, tapping the pendent at the end with one finger, causing it to spin from the force.

"It's also a reminder that we're bound by the fruit, Sora," Riku added, edging closer to the younger boy and slipping his arms around his waist. "And that even if you're pissed at me, you can't get rid of me."

Grinning at that, Sora lowered the key chain and said, "Why would I want to?" 

He paused to hook his present to his crown chain and smiled down at it before he glanced back up at Riku, pressing his hands to his boyfriend's chest. Slowly he leaned forward, a strange glint in his eye as he smirked. 

Riku immediately recognized that look and mentally shuddered, knowing what was coming next.

Maneuvering Riku back into the bookshelf until they could go no farther, Sora slipped his arms up and dug his fingers in that gorgeous silver hair, his smirk growing and revealing a line of teeth. "I love you too, Riku," he breathed into his ear, pressing close. "Now satisfy me."

_______________________________________________________________________________

**I wrote a lemon for you!**

I couldn't post it here, of course; it's much too graphic for FF.net and I don't want to get deleted.

_The link is in my profile,_ and be sure you review AFTER you read it. 

Also, the **"thank you gift for 400 reviews"**'s link is in my profile, so enjoy the YUMMY picture that awaits you.


	19. Ch 15: The Seducing Darkness

_Author Notes:_

Well, for those who didn't read the lemon, you missed out on a few important hints. ^^ But oh well. About Sora being on top---he _will_ have his turn, but for the first time, I always intended for Riku to be on top. All part of the growing plot, really. Oi, and don't call it porn. X.x If I wanted porn in Stygian Solace, I would let Lane write the chapter summaries. No, the lemon scene was something I lovingly call "plot-sex" which is, in my opinion, the best sex in writing there is. You have a whole story leading up to their first time, and when they have sex, the story afterward takes a different turn, because they can't go back and change things. ^^ Yup. When sex is a plot factor or plot twist, it's not porn. It's tasteful, meaningful, and well-worth a read. 

College has started for me, so I no longer have infinite free time, and the chapters will take a lot longer than they usually do. However, don't worry!! Even if only one person reviews the later chapters, I'm going to keep writing. I've come too far to stop now, so please don't worry about me not updating, or me quitting this story. There's roughly nine chapters left (yes, that few, but who knows how long those chapters will be?), and even if it takes me two weeks, one month, three months, or longer to update, don't fret. I have a summary, so I know what to write. It's just that real life gets in the way. 9.9 You know how that is. Or sometimes I just get so _bored_ that I need a while to rest and play with my writing technique. I'm still only human, after all. 

**Finally**, this chapter took so long to do because I was busy analyzing Ansem reports, adding in my own theories and making SS fit into them. So far everything is flawless, and I've even tied in a lot of Deep Dive aspects, which means that, yes, I've begun working on the sequel's plot. Even though the sequel is waaaay in the future. Hehe. ^^ Okay, speech done! Goodness, so many of you want Yami/Riku… Scary. That last chapter certainly changed a lot of your minds about him (some of you still hate his guts though ^^;). Ready for lots of Riku-brooding and big plot twists?

_A look ahead:_

The end of all reason, the end of a perfect love, the end of the struggle, the final corruption.

______________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Fifteen: The Seducing Dark _**

Riku woke to the strangest feelings. 

The first thing he noticed was that he was laying on the library floor, rough carpet digging into his bare back and legs. He was naked. With a naked Sora curled up at his side. And that was when he felt it:  the satisfaction. 

A lazy smile curled at his lips as images of a few hours ago filled his head, and to make sure it was real, he slipped a hand down Sora's arm, feeling the boy's soft, cold skin. The brunette stirred a little at Riku's touch but didn't fully awaken, his face nuzzling gently into Riku's bare chest.

That was when Riku noticed was the heavy fur blanket draped across both of their nude forms. Through his tired mind, Riku tried to surmise where it had come from. Certainly it hadn't been that woman's doing considering she rarely entered the library, especially when she knew Riku would be there (why, he didn't know---she probably had better ways to keep her eye on him). So it had to have been Yami.

Yami had seen them like this?

For a moment Riku wondered what his reaction had been. Had Yami been angry? Had he felt anything at all seeing Sora and Riku curled up in such a final position? 

But even if Yami _had_ felt something, he had still been kind enough to find a blanket and cover them. That was a good thing too, since now that they were calm and dozing, the air around them was freezing.

As if to further that point, Riku shivered, using one arm to draw the blanket in closer around him and Sora who unconsciously clung closer, letting out a small hum of a snore.

Hm… They had woken up in a similar state as this back on Mulan's world---fur blanket, cuddled together, skin against skin… Only, aside from their surroundings, there was another notable difference.

They had done it. They'd made love, had sex. They had become one.

It almost didn't seem real…but then when Riku felt Sora's cold body against his, he realized that it _was_ true. Sora was really his. After all the suffering their relationship had gone through, they had proven their destinies wrong. 

However…

Something was wrong.

He could sense it.

Something about last night bothered him, but he couldn't remember what…

And then there was Sora, who had let him take the dominant stance despite Sora's constant previous wishes. Sora, whose skin had felt warm last night for the first time in ages.

"Mm… Riku…"

Briefly distracted from his thoughts, Riku focused on Sora's tiny form and smiled, reaching a hand out to brush his fingers through his unruly locks of brown hair. The younger boy had such a serious sleeping face, his eyebrows slightly drooping in concentration and his lips forming a soft pout. He was still so innocent despite all that had occurred. The baby fat on his cheeks proved that, so did the air of boyishness that he held…

While it was slowly fading, it was still there. Even through their stupid opposite destinies.

Was it really true? Was Sora really fated to such a dark life? Was their relationship really so fragile? …why _them_? 

And what if Yami and everyone else was actually wrong? Maybe it was all in their heads and there really was nothing wrong with Sora besides his easy trust.

But… It wasn't just their imagination, nor could it all be just a simple dream. It was real. Magic was real. The keyblade was real. The heartless, Yami, their power… And that feeling. That shallow, ominous feeling. It was all real. 

But then… So was their love. And their friendship and that paopu bond between them.

Riku _loved_ Sora. It wasn't just some childhood infatuation that he could just get over as time passed and other people came into his life. This went beyond just friendship and loyalty --- it was real, so real it almost breathed, it was almost tangible. And it hurt. A lot. It hurt to think about their future, to know that Sora's childlike innocence was gradually crumbling under Destiny's pressure. It hurt that Riku couldn't truly help him or stop the flow of decaying will. It hurt to love so passionately when he feared what the future would do to them. Fair? No. But the forces that controlled their life together didn't give a shit about fairness. It didn't care about how deep their love ran or how buried within one another they were.

Again Riku slipped his fingers through Sora's hair, a frown pulling at his soft lips as he continued to study the sleeping boy's face.

Sora was so innocent. How could anyone think he could possibly follow the darkness?

Even if there was evidence, Riku couldn't believe it. 

When Sora finally awoke, the older boy was still regarding him with a frown, one hand gently petting him as his eyes stared not at him, but through him. Even through a haze of sleep obscuring coherent thought, Sora recognized that look on Riku's face. It meant Riku was deeply contemplating something that didn't quite make sense to him.

Sora smiled to himself and began to stretch, starting with his toes and working his way up until he felt the soreness in his lower back and the ache of his muscles.

Jeez, was the aftermath of sex always so painful?

Granted, the pain wasn't entirely unwanted… It was like the dull ache of sore muscles the day after an extreme workout, only the pain he was having now _burned_ and felt raw; it hurt, yes, but it gave him some sort of masochistic pleasure too, probably from knowing what he was sore _from_.

Such was the case now.

When Sora fell into a full-body stretch, Riku finally seemed to notice he was awake and the two boys met each other's gaze with short smiles---the kind of smile that confirmed everything without uttering a word. 

Well, _almost_ everything.

"Satisfied?" Riku asked with a hint of amusement as he lowered his face to Sora's.

As Riku glided his lips over Sora's, the younger boy's smile widened and he managed a soft, "Hmm…?" in reply before reaching out blindly to pull Riku closer.

"You told me to satisfy you," Riku clarified quietly against the boy's mouth.

"Mm…" was Sora's suddenly despondent reply.

Hearing the change of tone, Riku pulled away slightly to study the other boy's face. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Sora's response was muted and had a definite hint of pout in it. "I didn't get to be on top." 

Ahh… Riku had had a feeling that that subject was bound to come up. As he reached a hand up to muss his own hair, Riku smiled sheepishly. "You didn't stop me."

"Yeah…" Sora replied quietly. "I know." There was a pause as Sora thought over something, and when he continued, it was with a little more optimism. "I'm glad though, because I wouldn't have known what to do… Hehe."

Riku grinned as he replied, "You dork."

"But I get to be on top next time for sure!" Sora assured, grinning back sleepily as he dug his face back into Riku's chest. "Mm… so tired…"

After last night? Riku was surprised the boy had even stayed awake _this_ long. Even though Sora was a bundle of energy when awake, it took a while for him to actually _wake_ up.

"Before you fall back asleep, do ya want to retreat to our own room?" Riku asked, lovingly playing with the fuzz on the back of Sora's neck. 

His actions must have tickled the boy, for Sora's shoulders tensed up a little as he spoke. "Bed… Sounds good. But I can't move."

Hm… That _could_ be a problem. Riku didn't really want to make Sora walk so soon after what transpired last night. Well, there was always the difficult solution.

"I guess I could carry you," Riku suggested.

This time Sora raised his head and blinked up over Riku's bare chest to give the older boy a disconcerted look. "Carry me?"

"Sure."

Sora's look turned doubtful. "_All_ the way to our room?"

"I'm not some pansy, y'know, I _can_ lift that pudgy belly of yours," Riku sighed (Sora interrupted with a "Hey, don't bring my belly into this!"), "and lug you all the way across the castle."

"Hmph. How sweet of you. 'specially after you didn't let me be on top."

"I thought you'd forgiven me for that already!"

"But you _did_ promise me…" Sora pointed out through a short yawn.

"Well, then it would be _you_ carrying _me_ to our room, Dork."

"That's the second time you've called me that this morning."

"Well, you deserved it," Riku said as he slowly sat up, easing Sora's body off him so that the boy's head was now laying in his lap and the blanket was curled around Sora, leaving Riku's skin bare to suffer in the cold library air.

"…too tired to argue…" Sora mumbled, snuggling into a little ball like a kitten on a cold day. 

Riku prodded the boy's forehead with his palm. "Hey, you need to cooperate if we're going to make this work."

"…mm…"

"Sora."

"…'kay…"

Riku sighed, forcing back a smile. He was reminded yet again how strange their relationship was, and for the first time since Traverse Town he _seriously_ doubted Yami's words about their opposite destinies. 

"Alright… I'm getting up to get our clothes," Riku said, shifting so that Sora's head dropped onto the library's floor. But the younger boy was already softly snoring, mouth partly hanging open. 

This time Riku let himself smile. 

Shakily climbing to his feet, he suppressed a shudder as he began to stretch his long limbs, feeling rather daring for standing in a grand library in a strange world… naked. But he brushed care aside and went about gathering their clothes, dumping them in a pile by Sora's head. When he was done he pulled out his pants from the pile and slipped them on, leaving them unbuttoned in his hurry to get to a warmer room as he knelt beside Sora, stacked the few articles of clothing on top of him, and then carefully lifted the blanketed boy into the cradle of his arms.

Sora, actually, was a little _too_ light in weight. Carrying him would be no problem at all.

Making sure Sora's body was completely covered and enclosed in warmth, Riku turned away from the bookcase they had slept by and headed to the main doors of the library, greatly hoping that he didn't run into that woman or her crow.

…he actually did want to run into _Yami_, but not right now. He wanted to pull Yami aside and ask him some more questions. **The** questions. The ones that Yami usually wormed his way around answering. The amber-eyed boy was good at that, changing the subject without making it obvious. But this time Riku was determined to get some answers.

Also, now that he was sure his relationship with Sora was fine, he wanted to get out of Hollow Bastion and back to Traverse Town so the two of them could have a real talk where that woman and Yami wouldn't interrupt them. Besides, Riku was sure Leon would like to see the keyblade's new design, and know what had happened to them after the coliseum. No doubt Leon and the others were dying from worry…

By now, they were actually probably trying to save the worlds by themselves.

It was so strange…

Riku wasn't sure how, or for how long, but he had slowly forgotten about life outside of Hollow Bastion. He had gotten to the point where he didn't care if he left the castle or not, or if the worlds perished without his help. It was like his and Sora's intimate excursion last night suddenly snapped everything back into place and made it clear what he had to do.

He had to get more answers from Yami. He had to get himself and Sora off this world. 

The only way to do that, as far as he knew, was to fix the gummi ship. Somehow. Yami had to know _something_.

"…Riku…?"

Riku broke away from his train of thoughts to glance down at Sora, whose face was turned towards his bare chest, eyes still closed. "Yeah?"

"I want chocolate ice cream…"

Giving a short laugh, Riku shook his head and replied, "When we get home."

"Home…"

"Yeah, home."

It didn't take much longer to get to their room, and when he approached it he noticed that the door was already open and waiting for him. That was strange, but he brushed it aside because that meant he didn't have to open it on his own.

He entered the room and saw that the chandelier was lit, and that it had been lit not too long ago because the candles were barely dripping wax down their stalks. 

Setting Sora down so that he was half-standing, leaning against Riku for support, Riku reached out with his free hand and peeled back the heavy comforters before lifting Sora again and gently dropping him onto the mattress.

"We made it," Riku announced, reaching down to further mess up Sora's hair.

The boy was already curling up again, a pout visible on his face. "Tuck me in," he half-whined, turning over onto his stomach and wiggling his butt in the air.

So Riku did. And he did it thoroughly too, making sure that no part of Sora's body was untucked. "Get some rest," Riku said with a hint of a smile, leaning down to kiss Sora's forehead.

"You're not staying…?" Sora asked, raising his eyes to blink up at Riku as best as he could in his position.

"I'm going to try to find a way off this world," Riku explained. "I might be able to get Yami talking, too."

"M'kay… nighty…" was Sora's mumbled response as he turned his face towards the pillow and closed his eyes.

And just like that, Sora was softly snoring again. It was a silly sight, actually, with a mound of blankets covering the boy so that only the back of his head was visible like some sort of spiky brown plant was sprouting out of the mattress.

Gathering their clothes again (they had fallen to the floor before he had put Sora into bed), Riku pulled his shirt on and buttoned his pants before grabbing his shoes from the corner of the room where he had discarded them yesterday before his date with Sora. After pulling on his socks (cleaned by the mysteriously-absent caretakers of Hollow Bastion) and shoving his shoes on, he ran hands through his hair as a makeshift brush.

Riku closed the door behind himself when he left the room and, straightening his back, he looked left and right down the long corridor, wondering where he should look first.

A low rumble from his stomach told him that breakfast would be nice. So, despite not having a clue where the food came from, Riku headed towards the kitchens, making a note to send some food up for Sora later.

~~~

Darkness. 

"We seemed to have regained some of that happiness back," came a quiet whisper, the boy's voice barely audible. But to the being he spoke to, audible words were not necessary. "I love him so much that sometimes it hurts." 

_"But…?"_ came the soft, richly deep voice that Sora was now so familiar with.

But? Was there a but?

…yes… There was, wasn't there?

"But I'm afraid..." Sora continued, his voice hushed. "Afraid of this darkness." No, not the darkness. _I'm not afraid of the darkness, am I? _Sora realized, more than mildly surprised. His real fear was much more terrifying. "I'm afraid of losing him," he admitted.

_"Who are you?"_ the voice asked.

"Who am I?" Sora asked back, a little more than confused. "But you know who I am…"

_"Yes, who?"_

"I'm Sora."

                                                                                                                                  **Sora!**

"R-Riku?"

_"Sora. Sora. No."_

"What?"

_"You are not Sora."_

"I'm Sora! From Destiny Islands!"

_"Destiny. Such a cruel woman. Who are you, Sora?"_

"W-What?"

_"I am asking you. Who are you?"_

"I am..."

_"Speak up."_

"I'm... me."

_"You are you? Is that all?"_

"I'm... Sora."

_"Sora."_

"Just Sora."

_"Just Sora?"_

"..."

_"You are not ready yet."_

"...who are you really?"

_"Not important."_

"Who are you?"

_"You already know."_

"What's happening to me? Why am I doing these things?"

_"Who are you, Sora?"_

"Stop asking me that!"

_"Then answer. Who are you?"_

"Stop...!"

_"Are you here?"_

"Please... stop..."

_"Or are you there?"_

"....I don't know..."

_"Sora. Sora is lost."_

"...stop! Stop it!"

_"Who are you?"_

"I don't know! Stop!"

_"I know who you are."_

**"STOP!!"**

_"You are but a lost kitten."_

~~~

It was a total mess. Even if Riku had all of Cid's mechanical skills, there was no way he'd be able to fix the gummi ship. Actually, it was amazing that any of them had survived the crash in the first place. Plainly put, the ship was totaled.

Since he had first arrived at Hollow Bastion, Riku had never actually ventured far outside to visit the crash site… But after breakfast, he had decided to take a look at it to see if he could try fixing it---yes, he was getting that desperate. It hadn't taken long to find the site… And from the looks of things, they were stuck here for good.

The colorful blocks that made up the ship were scattered amongst the crystal surroundings and the only thing from the ship that was actually recognizable was one of the seats.

It was like staring at a nightmare.

The ship couldn't have looked like that when they arrived… None of them had been injured in the crash. Actually, no one had suffered even a scratch as far as Riku knew (he _had_ been asleep for four days after all).

Someone must have done this. Someone had to have stripped the ship and made it irreparable _after_ they had landed on the world. 

Riku already knew their coming here was deliberate---that woman had said so herself that Yami had planned it---and now it was obvious that she or Yami (or both of them) was determined to keep Sora and Riku on Hollow Bastion.

But why?

He had to talk to Yami. 

Turning away from the scene, Riku began to climb the rocky terrain to head back towards the lift that would carry him to the castle gates.

There had to be another way off the world… a way that didn't rely on Sora using his dark powers. However, the only thing Riku could think of as he carefully scaled the precarious crag was that somehow Yami would be able to help… even though Yami was probably the last person he should trust.

He didn't have a choice though. How else would he and Sora find a way off the world?

By the time Riku approached the lift, he was convinced that only Yami could help him. But he wasn't sure where to find the other boy…

In fact, Riku was so caught up listing the possible places that Yami could be found that he didn't even hear the heartless materialize behind him. It wasn't until he saw a shadow ahead of his own that he realized he wasn't alone and, glancing up, he realized that he hadn't been alone for a while.

A group of flying heartless had formed above him, and Riku didn't have to turn around to know that there were some behind him, already preparing to strike.

He hated being caught off-guard… And he hated it when something interrupted his thinking.

Summoning Oblivion, Riku was already spinning around to deflect an attack from the heartless behind him when even more sprung out of the ground in front of him, surrounding him on all sides. 

Riku hadn't been looking for a battle today, but it looked like he didn't have much of a choice. Yet another thing to add to the growing list of things out of his immediate control.

He still owned _this_ fight though.

The sharp metallic clang of Oblivion's blade against the heartless's shield sang to him like a mother comforting her child---it filled him with a nostalgic warmth, reminding him of his duty. That's right. The heartless weren't just a nuisance---they were his enemy. This world's keyhole still needed to be found and sealed, and that probably should have been his first priority, not looking for a way out.

A little snooping in the castle shouldn't hurt though.

But first, he had to get _into_ the castle.

Shifting his feet into his usual fighting stance, Riku sprung aside as the giant armored heartless charged. The boy twirled around and met the creature's side as it passed him by, and he immediately fell into a series of high, long strokes, carving into the creature's vulnerable side and brutally striking its head. This species of heartless had particularly high defenses, but it was slow. And stupid.

When it managed to swing back around, Riku had already turned his attention to another one of its kind that was preparing to rush him from behind.

_Toofasttoofast!Toostrongtoostrong!_ they cried, their 'voices' making the keyblade tremble in Riku's hands, but Oblivion merely responded with:

_Toocareless,toolate.Heishere._

Which was slightly unnerving, but before Riku could analyze the keyblade's withdrawn words, the three armored heartless rushed at him from all sides. When they were bearing down on him he leapt forward, using one of their shields as a foothold to spring high into the air over them. They crashed together with tremendous force, cracking the very stone beneath them. Riku was sure that if he had fallen victim to that particular attack, he wouldn't have lived long enough to even register the pain.

At the peak of his jump he arched his arms upward, bringing the keyblade down into a dagger-like position, using gravity and his strength to drive it into the ground as he landed. Much to his surprise, it created a shockwave of magic that caused the earthbound heartless to crumple to the ground.

Where the hell had _that_ power come from? Had Yami actually been telling the truth when he said that Riku too had magic?

Then why couldn't he use it before?

Because he hadn't tried, he realized. He hadn't really needed any powers before because he had been able to reply upon his own strengths.

But if he wanted to save the worlds now, he _would_ have to learn….

He was so weak in magic compared to Sora…

Weak in other things too. Like resolve. Perseverance. Denial…

And Riku could feel it. It was like slowly going insane, though he knew it must have been even more indescribably hard for Sora compared to Riku and his lesser plights. 

However, Sora had held up this long. Riku knew the boy was strong, but now that he thought about it… Sora's strength was simply _immeasurable_. 

Put in Sora's place, how long would Riku have lasted? A few days, maybe. If Riku had trusted Yami from the start, if he had believed the darkness inside of him, Riku would have fallen easily. But Sora overcame his weaknesses by building strengths. If it had been Riku in a situation like that, he knew he would have given in. 

Would he admit it? No. It was the sort of weakness that he would never address even though he knew it was there and would cause him pain. Riku seemed strong, and he really was, but he had the most dangerous types of weaknesses. Love. Greed. Power. Arrogance. Trust.

Riku didn't trust easily, but when he did, he was almost _too_ trusting. Like with Kairi. Granted, he had been using her in the first place, but she had gone behind his back to tell Sora to leave on the raft with her without Riku because Riku was "acting weird." And then there had been that incident in the secret place when she had accused him of summoning the heartless…. Pfft. He had also trusted his parents, but that was another matter entirely. Then there was Leon, on whom Riku had relied upon to back him up. But he'd almost trusted him as much as he trusted Sora, and that was dangerous. The trust for Leon had almost been too much to be just trust, but Riku wasn't sure what it could have been. He had been relying too much on Leon, and even Sora had seen that. 

And lastly, Yami. Yes, Riku relied upon him and trusted him, but only to a small extent. Yami, obviously, wanted something from him and Sora, claiming it as simple experimentation… But what did _that_ mean? 

Riku's other weaknesses, Greed, Power and Arrogance, all went hand-in-hand. Riku _did_ want more power even though he knew he was good, and he knew he didn't just want it to protect Sora. He knew he didn't just want it for his role as the keyblade master. He wanted it because he, well, _wanted_ it. 

But that first weakness… _Love_… that was the most dangerous one of all. 

When the shockwave of magic died, the flying heartless finally attacked Riku from above, diving to claw at him in his kneeling position. Using the keyblade as a handhold, Riku pushed himself off the ground and kicked out, knocking the closest bird to the ground before landing a few feet away, Oblivion dangling loosely from his grasp. He spun without thinking, flinging his keyblade as hard and as fast as he could, barely watching it as it traversed through the air like a missile and plunged into the crippled bird.

Ducking further attempts by the creatures to rip his head off, he lunged forward to jerk his weapon out of the ground, pulling his leg around to turn already as Oblivion easily came free from the stone. It was a good thing he turned too, because the weakest armored heartless was charging again. Riku immediately jumped again, this time twisting in mid-air to land facing the heartless's back as it passed under him. It took only a single blow to its back before it finally disappeared, defeated.

Only one heartless down so far. As he leapt back into the fight, Riku wondered how long would it have taken Sora.

Sora was strong… But the question was:  _was Sora stronger than Riku?_

Yes.

Or, at least _Yami_ thought so. 

That's right. Yami had figured it out long before Riku had, and had used it against them from the start. Back at the coliseum when Riku had tried to predict the upcoming fight against Yami, Riku had thought that Yami would go for the weaker of the two first, and during the fight when Yami had focused in on Riku first, Riku had been confused. Back then, Riku had thought he was stronger than Sora. But he hadn't been wrong about Yami's fighting technique; he had made a simple mistake. Yami thought _Sora_ was stronger. Yami chose to fight Riku, the weaker one, first.

Riku understood that now. He had figured it out during the last few days spent with Yami, during Yami's incessant questioning and rambling. But was he really weaker than little Sora? How? Why did Yami think so and what proof did he have?

Growling to himself, Riku brushed thoughts of Yami aside and returned his attention to the fight. Much to his surprise, he found that he had already disposed of two more of the bird heartless.

The fight was far from over though.

Tightening his grasp on Oblivion, letting its frigid darkness fill him with self-assurance, Riku attacked, diving into the heart of the battle with a slight smile on his lips. He thrust the keyblade this way and that, striking the heartless with thoughtless, perfect precision as he twirled through them, sometimes using only one hand to swing, sometimes crossing his attacks under his arms to hit the creatures behind him. His feet slid effortlessly over the stone, always switching his weight from one to the other as he danced through the heartless and glided Oblivion through their bodies.

The feeling of battle… Riku had missed it without realizing it. The movement felt so natural, the danger and seductive rhythm of it almost hypnotized him. Even though he wasn't a soldier and had no real experience in true battles, it was easy for him to fall into its dance. He moved so gracefully, so fluently, it was almost like liquid. 

The heartless barely even had time to attack as he swept past them, keyblade cleaving through their defenses and fatally injuring them. Left and right the creatures were disappearing, their dark bodies returning to the darkness from where they had come.

And as he fought, amidst the warm light in his heart he felt a pang of fear. It was like the feeling of arriving too late or forgetting something critically important to him.

Even as the last heartless fell to his keyblade, the feeling did not leave. In fact, it grew.

~~~

Sora woke from his sleep with a start, his blue eyes snapping open to find the suffocating darkness of his and Riku's room.

He couldn't remember what his dream had been about.

Quickly glancing about the darkness, he shivered, slowly curling into himself as though for protection.

Something was wrong.

Where was Riku?

~~~

Riku had just entered the castle and was climbing the left side of the staircase when he saw it.

The door was open---the door that Yami had told him not to go through, the one that led deeper into the castle where, he suspected, was that woman's quarters. And probably Yami's. And the keyhole.

And he didn't doubt that he'd find more than that too.

Letting Oblivion disappear from his hands, Riku headed back down the stairs and straight through the forbidden door. He didn't know what else he would find, but there was a possibility that he'd find a way off the world, or where to find the world's keyhole.

Plus, he needed to find Yami.

Keeping his excuses in mind, he prepared himself for a possible encounter with the mistress of the castle. Only…

He nearly ran straight into her. _Nearly_.

He stopped himself just in time and ducked to the side, pressing himself against the wall behind the doorway, praying that she hadn't heard or seen him. Her back had been facing him, but that didn't mean anything---she was a sorceress after all.

Hearing the tap of her staff against the floor, Riku sucked in his breath, hoping she wasn't turning his way. But she didn't. Rather, she was turning to face someone else besides him, someone who was already in the room that lay beyond the forbidden doorway.

"Are preparations complete?" she asked, her voice ringing with the sort of impatience that made Riku suspect she had been waiting for the preparations to be completed for quite some time. He suddenly felt sorry for whomever she was currently addressing.

Despite the lack of residents in the castle, Riku hadn't really been expecting the next voice.

"Not quite," came Yami's soft, deep accent. "Actually, there has been a change of plans, Madam. However, I assure you that by this evening you and I will both have what we want."

What did _that_ mean…?

Riku frowned, trying to decipher the strange conversation. 

Yami was in charge of some preparations… Something happened and changed his plans… And both he and the woman wanted something that was going to be delivered by tonight? Or something…

"And the last princess?"

Princess? Last princess made it seem like there was more than one.

"She is safe, as I have said before," Yami replied. "You will simply have to trust me."

"Trust," she said, her voice dripping with disappointment, "is a fool's way of making deals. I will not wait much longer, Child. We need all seven Princesses to open the Keyhole to the darkness!"

"Unlock it and the heartless will overrun this world."

"What do I care?" she almost laughed. "The darkness holds no power over _me_. Rather, I will use it to---"

Just when the conversation was getting good, her voice suddenly got cut off by the annoying caws of her crow. Which meant one thing.

Riku had been spotted.

He had barely even thought of running before the woman suddenly spun around and leveled her magical scepter upon him, her eyes pinning him with a lethal glare and her painted lips curling into an amused smile. Riku knew then it was probably useless to give an excuse or run. He was caught.

"Ah, the keyblade master pays us a visit," she drawled sweetly, and with a wave of her staff, chains of darkness suddenly sprouted out of the ground and wound around his wrists before jerking him forward.

Unable to resist the hold she had on him, Riku let the chains pull him and he stumbled to her, setting a defiant glare upon his face as he turned his head up to meet her gaze. Yami, he noted, had made no sound nor move since the crow had discovered Riku. The amber-eyed boy, actually, seemed to be struggling internally with something---for once his face wasn't passive. No, he looked both infuriated and pained, as though he knew what was going to happen next, and dreaded it.

"You, boy, are an annoyance," the woman said as Riku came to an abrupt stop in front of her. She glided closer to him, her scepter tapping against the floor as she drew near. Reaching a single hand out, she cupped his chin and studied his face with mock affection. "Your use has sadly expired," she cooed, "if it ever existed at all."

"Hurt him," Yami whispered hoarsely, "and I will never deliver the last Princess."

The woman shifted only her eyes to regard him before returning her gaze to Riku's upturned face. "Him? Hurt him? Silly child, you told me we needed him, so alive he shall remain. However…" Here she paused, releasing Riku both magically and physically as she turned away from him. She gave Yami a dark, meaningful look. "I cannot guarantee his safety should I encounter him on my own again. Both of you are dismissed."

Riku was never happier to see Yami approach him. Yami, however, was looking ever sullen, a deep frown on his pretty face as he guided Riku out of the hallway and into the large foyer.

"That was foolish of you, Riku," he commented as they crossed the spacious room. His voice held soft reproach, surprising Riku. Yami had been worried about him? 

"I didn't think you cared," Riku said derisively.

Yami was silent for a moment as he walked in front of Riku, who studied the mysterious boy's back as they headed into the corridor that would lead Riku back to his room. Yami held this sort of condescending air about him as he walked… like he _knew_ he was powerful, influential, gorgeous… Like he didn't care what anyone else thought of him. His beautiful white hair was softly curving around him, moving as he moved, flowing with the current of air that passed through it, and it looked so soft… like it would feel of feathers and silk if he reached out and touched it and twirled it between his fingers. 

And his skin… Riku couldn't quite place a color on it. It wasn't as dark as brown, but it wasn't light either, and it gave a sort of smooth glow that was reminiscent of a girl's body. Sora had that sort of look too---skin so soft it was hard to believe it belonged to a boy. Both Sora and Yami shared another trait too:  the ability to look great in any color. At least, it seemed that way. Yami rarely wore color, but today he was, and it was almost like the chosen wardrobe for today was meant specifically to entice Riku because Riku certainly couldn't stop staring. The white shirt wasn't unlike the one he had worn the other day, but the pants… They were a blotchy burnt red in color, and made of what seemed to be leather. Tight leather that somehow managed to flare at the bottom and frame Yami's sandaled feet.

Where the _heck_ did he get his clothes? Riku really wanted to know.

And while Riku could easily describe Sora's adorable traits with romantic metaphors, Yami was completely different. Everything about him spoke of dark secrets and forbidden wants.

Experimentation.

What exactly did he want with Riku?

"You would."

Riku glanced up from staring at Yami's pants to blink at him. He had totally forgotten that they were in a conversation. "Huh?"

Yami threw a subtle glance over his shoulder. "You _would_ think I do not care for you. It is in your nature."

Increasing his pace, Riku fell into step next to the other boy, gazing up at him with accusing eyes. "What are you trying to tell me? That you _love_ me?"

Yami raised a single eyebrow as he regarded Riku's look. "_Love_ you? Goodness, do not be so arrogant, boy."

Riku breathed a sigh of relief.

But it caught in his throat when Yami spoke again.

"I simply _desire_ you," the amber-eyed boy corrected. "There is quite a difference between love and desire." Yami paused to study Riku's reaction, and when he saw the boy's startled look, he smiled softly. "Do not look so appalled. I desire many things, Riku. Knowledge. Power…. And other things I do not wish to discuss with you." 

There was a silence after that which lasted until Yami took an unexpected turn down a hallway Riku wasn't familiar with. Granted, Riku had wandered the hallways for hours, but he hadn't really gotten to know any of them unless he needed to pass through them to get to where he wanted. Right now he and Yami were heading deeper into the castle… But before Riku could ask where they were going, Yami spoke again.

"What do you desire, Riku?"

That was a bit personal… But he supposed he didn't have anything to lose, so Riku answered. 

"Acceptance."

"Ah, an honest answer," Yami commented with another smile. "And such a complex one as well. It works on many levels, does it not?" He hesitated, meeting Riku's eyes. "It is as simple as wanting your parents to accept you instead of harassing you, yet as complex as wanting society to accept your relationship with Sora… Your role as the keyblade master… Even wanting Sora to accept you as you are:  weak."

Riku dangerously narrowed his eyes, knowing Yami had hit all his weak spots. "I've been meaning to ask you about that."

"About what?"

"About Sora and me. Why you think I'm weaker than Sora," Riku replied, his hard green eyes locking with Yami's yellow. "It took me a while to understand why you picked me off first during the last fight in the coliseum, but I figured it out."

"So you did…" came Yami's quiet response, a frown slowly settling on his face. "However, at that _time_ you were weaker than the boy. You two are constantly surprising me with your strength… But during my studies of you, I realized that you have the most fatal of weaknesses, Riku. It is that weakness you possess that Sora does not that raises him to a level beyond yours. And before you ask, no, I will not tell you what that weakness is. You must learn for yourself."

Riku lowered his eyes and nodded, his brow wrinkling in thought. "Can I ask you some questions though?" He raised his head when he realized that they had stopped in front of a fancy ornate door and that Yami was now staring at him.

"Of course," the other boy replied with a short smile, pushing open the door and gesturing with his hand for Riku to enter.

If Riku had thought that _his_ room was nice, he was wrong. _This_ room…

It was simply fit for a king.

The first thing Riku noticed was the warm atmosphere of it that immediately made him feel welcomed. Wanted. Bookcases and enormous paintings lined the wood-paneled walls, but one bookcase, which took up an entire two-story wall, stood out in particular. A black wire-framed spiral staircase with an organic design stood at the bookcase's end, leading up to what seemed to be a half-second floor to the room with a mini-library and a grand desk with even more books piled onto it. Underneath the mini-library was a brilliantly-designed screen partition which probably led to a dressing room or bathroom, or perhaps both. 

On the other side of the room was the largest bed Riku had ever seen. It was four-posted and had a rusty red canopy and drapes. Black sheets (he couldn't tell what texture) spanned the entire mattress, and random red and yellow pillows lay scattered upon them. 

The floor was a soft golden-red wood that also stretched halfway up the walls where there was no bookcase, but past the bed, where the largest bookcase and cabinet stopped, so did the wood. Instead, there were solid stone (marble?) steps leading up to what seemed to be a grand piano stationed in front of beautiful stained glass windows that depicted some story about light and darkness. 

To the left of the windows and piano was a columned balcony that was currently closed half off by one black curtain (the other curtain was tied back, but if it had been loose, Riku would have never guessed that there was a balcony behind them), and only a soft breeze was coming through.

Riku couldn't even begin to describe the quality of the furniture, trinkets, and books laying around the room. It was all so expensive and fine-looking that, while he _did_ feel very welcomed in the room, he was almost afraid to touch anything.

"Wow…" was all he could actually utter.

His reaction made Yami give a soft chuckle as he quietly shut the door behind them. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

Riku managed to nod enthusiastically. 

"This room belonged to the former ruler of Hollow Bastion," Yami explained as he too glanced around the breathtaking room.

"How do you know?" Riku asked, pulling his gaze away from the largest bookcase to stare at Yami. 

The amber-eyed boy smiled. "Is it not obvious?"

It was. It didn't take a genius to figure out that this room was owned by royalty.

"Yeah…" Riku breathed, glancing around the room again. When he turned back to Yami, the boy was climbing the stone stairs towards the balcony, so he followed.

"You wanted to ask me questions," Yami reminded as he pulled back the second curtain to reveal the entire balcony and the gorgeous view it had of the uneven land of post-heartless Hollow Bastion. Riku imagined that the world must have been filled with beautiful trees and rivers and small little villages back before it had been overrun, but now it was so barren… Lifeless… But still beautiful in its own crystalline way.

"Questions," Riku repeated, bringing his mind back on track. "Yeah."

Yami settled on the stone banister of the balcony, his white hair almost glowing in the foreign sunlight as it played in the gentle breeze. Both his face and body language told Riku that he was listening, so Riku continued, bringing up the first question that came to mind.

"That woman said that she let you keep me as a pet. Otherwise she would have gotten rid of me…. So what do you want with me, Yami?"

Yami fell into a pleased smile. "This question again?"

"You've never answered it," Riku pointed out.

"But I have," Yami replied, bringing a hand up to brush at his hair. "I told you. I am experimenting with you."

"How?" Riku immediately asked, drawing closer to Yami on the balcony. "Tell me. I want to know about this experiment of yours and what it has to do with me and my relationship with Sora."

Yami's smile suddenly fell as though something had just occurred to him. "Oh… I failed to mention…"

Frowning, Riku asked, "Mention _what_?"

"I was wrong, Riku," Yami admitted, his yellow eyes softening. "You and Sora… I was wrong. So I am beginning a new experiment, of which you are still a part."

Sighing in exasperation, Riku rubbed his forehead. "Can't you just give me a straight answer?"

"Of course not. That would ruin all of the fun," Yami said, his smile returning. "Next question please."

"Fine… Why here? In Hollow Bastion?"

"To isolate you from outside interference. We could not have you out and about saving worlds while we tried to carry out our own plans. And your isolation contributed wonderfully to my experiments."

Well, that explained a lot. But…

"What plans and what experiments?" Riku asked.

"They will be revealed in due time."

Riku sighed again, giving Yami an annoyed look. "Alright. You said you cared about me… I'm guessing it's only for experimentation purposes though, and that's why you saved me from that woman."

"Yes and no," Yami replied quietly, giving a knowing smirk. "Next question."

Rubbing at his arms as he drew closer to Yami, Riku sifted through his questions to pick out an important one. When he found one, he was already standing in front of the other boy.

"Where did you get the Oathkeeper key chain?" he asked. "It had a paopu fruit at the end, something only found on Destiny Islands where I'm from. I want to know where you got it."

Yami merely tilted his head, his smirk spreading into a crooked smile. "I met a girl."

And that was all he said.

~~~

Sora had just snapped his pants closed and buckled his shoes when he saw it.

It was faint at first…

But like a growing whisper it appeared:  a soft, green light.

Something was wrong. Something was going to happen…

The light flickered as though it would die, but when Sora stood from the bed to glance around the room, it grew again. It wasn't threatening, or at least it didn't _seem_ to be. It was like it was trying to get his attention.

"Hello…?" he quietly called.

The light flickered again and began to fade…

"Hello?"

And it completely disappeared, plunging the room into complete darkness.

…hadn't the chandelier been lit when Riku had left?

Where _was_ Riku?

As though to answer, the light flickered back into existence, only now it was a small ball hovering in front of him, beckoning to him.

To do what?

He wanted Riku.

Slowly, but surely, the ball began to drift towards the door, casting the walls of the room in an eerie jade light.

So Sora followed it.

~~~

Yami pushed off the stone banister and slowly brushed past Riku, giving the boy a meaningful glance over his shoulder as he descended the steps back into the main room area where a large, intricately designed rug spanned the wooden floor. His sandals gave a soft shuffling sound as he crossed the rug, slowly turning to regard Riku with a questioning glance, as though to ask why Riku wasn't following him.

He caught Riku staring at his bottom and silently laughed, placing a hand on his hip. "Riku, do come here."

The other boy hesitantly complied, carefully proceeding down the stairs to stand before Yami.

"Now, before you ask further questions," Yami began, his voice growing serious, "I want to claim my payment."

Riku felt his heart suddenly give topsy-turvy skip. 

His payment? _Now_?!

Riku didn't have anything to give him!

"Now?" Riku asked, his voice filled with suspicion. "What do you want?"

"Your word," Yami replied, eyes narrowing. "I saw that you did not fulfill Sora's wish last night---" and here Riku glared "---So I want your word that you will carry out my wish. I believe I have earned it after all that I have done for you."

Riku mentally snorted. _What_ things?

Then again, Yami _had_ helped him out a lot. With Sora, with the castle, with his knowledge, with that woman…

And Yami was right. Riku couldn't back down now. He refused to break another promise.

"Alright. Now," Riku sighed, forcing a smile onto his face. "You have my word that I'll try my best to carry out your wish. What do you want?"

"Your cooperation," Yami said simply, taking a few steps to stand directly in front of Riku. "I want you to feel no malice towards me, no self-remorse, nor any love at all towards Sora. Just for this experiment."

Something didn't feel right.

But Riku didn't draw away when Yami lifted a hand to cup his cheek. Nor did his eyes move from Yami's when the other boy leaned closer.

"She does not like you... but I do," the amber-eyed boy whispered, his breath strangely comforting against Riku's mouth.

"She?" Riku asked quietly in response, his gaze moving down Yami's face to focus on the other boy's alluring lips. 

He didn't know what was wrong with him… But now that he was alone with Yami, in such a comfortable atmosphere, after such a mysterious request, Riku found that he couldn't really resist Yami's charm. Sora never even entered his mind. All that mattered, really, was Yami and fulfilling Yami's request, whatever he meant by 'this experiment.' Yami, whom Riku couldn't deny an attraction for. He knew it was wrong. He knew it would lead to some consequences he would later dread, but…

He owed Yami. He couldn't break another promise… Not another one.

And… he didn't think he had a choice.

"You mean that woman?" Riku asked for clarification when Yami didn't respond.

"No," Yami replied, testing dangerous grounds by casually sliding a hand from Riku's waist down his side to caress his hips. But Riku didn't object. "Not Maleficent," he continued, a smile pulling at his lips, and Riku pulled back slightly in surprise upon hearing that name, "that foolish witch. Do _not_ mention her again when I am with you."

"Maleficent?" Riku repeated, his eyes growing wide. Wasn't that the witch who destroyed Leon's world? Did that mean this place was…? "That's her name?" he asked quickly, realizing the sudden situation he was in. He began trying to pull away from Yami. "Then she's---!!"

"Silence."

The finality of that single word sealed the silent contract and Yami closed the distance between them, tilting Riku's head up for an overwhelmingly warm kiss that made the smaller boy completely forget about his worries.

There was no Maleficent here. There was no keyhole, keyblade… No destinies being played with.

No Sora.

Sora didn't kiss like this. Sora's kisses were sweet, shyly lustful and loving… Sometimes daringly intense.

This was provocative. Sensual. It was both erotically reckless and perfect. It was naughty. 

And Riku loved it.

Burying his fingers in Yami's hair---it _was_ feathery-soft and silky---Riku pulled Yami closer and opened his mouth further, allowing and encouraging the other boy to deepen the kiss.

No, this wasn't wrong. Yami was right…

Love and desire were different.

Riku loved Sora, almost _too_ much…

But he _desired_ Yami. It was obvious to him now. There was no love in it between them, only love for the actual sensations their desire was creating. It was just two bodies responding to each other… It was just…

Desire.

Pulling away for sweet air, Riku managed to growl a soft, "I _hate_ you…" before Yami pulled him towards the bed.

"I know."

~~~

But _Sora_ didn't know.

He stood transfixed at the sight before him, his blue eyes impossibly wide as he watched Riku let Yami undress him, touch him, _enter_ him. 

He hadn't known what to expect when entering the door… He had just followed the light, hoping to find Riku…

But this… 

This…!

Sora dropped the hanging door handle, letting it clang noisily against the wooden door, but neither of the two boys tangled on the bed noticed his sudden presence in the room. Slowly he backed away, shaking his head in disbelief, pulling his arms tightly around himself and feeling the burning pain in his lower body, remembering what had happened with Riku last night.

_Last night._

And already Riku was…

With _Yami_…

The last two people Sora trusted!

Riku didn't love him. Riku _couldn't_ love him, not if he was doing _this_…

So it was true… Sora really didn't have anything left. Nothing at all… Even his little guiding light had abandoned him, scared away by the primal noises coming from inside the room. 

Sora finally tore his eyes away from the door, digging his fingers into his bare arms as he gritted his teeth.

He had no one to trust. No one to protect him.

Nobody loved him.

Not even Riku…

What was left?

He had nothing.

Nothing…

Who was he without Riku?

"Who am I…?"

_Who are you?_

"Boy."

Sora's head snapped up and he spun around, tears spilling out from his vacant eyes as he found the voice that had spoken to him. Boy… That's what he was. She knew what he was. 

Some stupid little boy… With no one who loved him…

"You are not alone, Boy," she said, her scepter tapping against the stone floor as she approached him, the shadows playing over her face as she smirked.

Sora merely responded with a shudder, letting his tears fall to the cold ground below.

He _was_ alone. 

He _was_…

"You still have your power," she said.

Power.

His power…

That's right.

"You do not wish to handle the pain," she said softly, drawing closer and slipping an arm around him in a loose embrace. He immediately latched onto her, burying his face into her black robe and squeezing his eyes shut, letting his warm tears soak the dark material.

Haha… He was freezing… He was always freezing…

And the only thing warm was the product of everything he lost…

Tears… so weak…

"You do not _have_ to handle the pain," she continued in a soothing voice. "Let that wretched part of you die. Let your power free."

Power…

_His_ power…

Was it really his?

Did it really matter…?

Could he really just let it go…?

Let someone else take over?

"Please…" Sora whispered, bunching her robe in his fists to try to contain his emotion. "Please…"

"Please what?" she asked.

"Make it go away…" he said, choking back a sob, feeling the sting of fresh tears. "_Please_…!" 

"Then close your eyes," she said, stroking the back of his head, trying to give him false comfort. "Close your eyes and fade away."

Fade away…

Sora could do that.

Slipping his eyes closed, he took a deep breath, trying to still his shuddering, trying to erase the haunting images from his mind.

_No more pain_… 

He wanted that.

A place where he could forget.

Heal.

Sleep…

                   Sleep…….

                                         ….sleep…..

_HeiscomingHeiscoming._

_Masterishere!Masterishere!_

And when he opened his eyes again, he grinned.

But he wasn't Sora.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Oh boy. ^^;; Many of you loved me before… But now comes the angsty bits. Anywho, sorry I haven't been replying to reviews; I have absolutely NO time to reply to them anymore, but I will somehow reward those people who keep on giving their chapterly long, beautiful, analytical reviews. I'm not sure what the reward will be, but I'm sure I can come up with something yummy. And don't be afraid to e-mail me personally if you have a question or something, because I do manage to get around to those.

Oh. And my birthday was August 21, for those who asked. ^^ It's always been in my profile. On another note, Lane is leaving me to go away to college! I shall be alone and bored in my city now. *sob* Moving onto better news, I've been updating the site again. O.o I'm drawing again! And I keep getting gift art!!! It's amazing. ^_^ I love gifts.

Also, I **know** most of you think you know who Yami is, but you're _all_ wrong because you're forgetting something critical:  **why** he's like that. There is a reason, y'know. ^^ Anywho, this chapter was yet another pain to write. I took some creative liberties with this one… And Lane wanted to write the lemon, so I didn't include it in the chapter. It'll be posted on SS's site when (or if) it gets written.

The chapters from here on out contain revelation after revelation. But please review and let me know what you thought of this one. ^^; I'm a bit nervous about it because NO ONE read over it. I just posted it straight away.


	20. Ch 16: One Spiral Unwinds

**Note: The Uzumaki Fanfiction yahoo group has been created, so please join if you're a dedicated reader! **

_Author Notes:_

Well, here's **Happy 1-Year Anniversary** to KH's release in the US! Thanks to KH, I've had the opportunity to develop my skills and meet wonderful people, and have my work read by awesome readers like you! XD Hehe, go on and read now. This whole chapter is Riku torture….

* * *

_**Chapter Sixteen: One Spiral Unwinds**_

-o-o-

Another dream.

He could tell.

Was he to be forever cursed with these foreboding, symbolic dreams that he could barely even discern the meaning of?

He was so tired. His limbs ached, his head throbbed, his heart felt too weighed with guilt.

Couldn't he just sleep? Rest without dreams would be a welcome change.

But of course destiny had other plans… It always did.

He recognized the setting immediately from the vision he had had in the coliseum, after he had been defeated. It was the chapel again, the sad and worn building of holiness that so ironically mirrored his own feelings, only this time the air was as still as death and feverishly cold, causing him to shudder mercilessly.

It did not take him long to discover his state of undress---he wore just a deep obsidian black bed sheet that hung precariously around his hips, one hand grasping its corners to keep it in place. Nor did it take long for him to realize that he was not alone.

Rather, Yami had been with him from the beginning this time, but unlike Riku he was dressed quite warmly and elegantly in a deep red dress shirt that buttoned tightly up his sleeves and in the front, which was cut off at his midriff, showing the intricately-woven belt around the curve of his usual pants.

He was not facing Riku. In fact, it was like he didn't know the other boy was even there, and this told Riku that maybe this dream was a little more important than his others. After all, he could see so much detail this time, every thing from a scuff on Yami's sandals to a tear in the velvet of the seat that Riku had been pinned to in his previous dream.

Sunlight was once again filtering in through the stained glass windows overhead, sheer curtains immobile in the dead air. The only thing really missing was the dark-winged Sora.

Riku didn't really miss him though. He wasn't his real Sora… but this Yami was so much like the _real_ Yami that Riku could not ignore _him_.

"There _is_ no real Yami," came a quiet, withdrawn voice, startling Riku out of his thoughts. It took him a second to realize that it was actually _Yami_ who had spoken to him.

Such a strange tone, coming from such an imposing person.

His green eyes lowered from studying the windows to focus on Yami's back, who seemed to be inspecting something.

"What do you mean?" Riku asked, not bothering to wonder how Yami had read his mind.

The amber-eyed boy slowly reached forward to lovingly stroke something Riku could not see. When Riku took a step forward to get a better look, Yami suddenly turned to glance over his shoulder.

"What do I mean?" he echoed, his voice laden with innocent sincerity. "I wonder what I mean…"

Something was wrong.

Riku had felt it before, long before he had even fallen asleep, but now the feeling was almost tangent, like he could almost reach out and grasp it.

Something was **wrong**.

"Riku, I know you are confused," Yami said softly, raising a hand to caress his own cheek. "So I will explain a few things before we wake up."

"How…?" was all Riku could really think of to reply.

"Do not ask the How. Ask the What," Yami calmly said. "The reasons for my actions are not so simple, so I shall begin honestly."

Riku nodded and crossed the decaying wooden floor and rug to stand closer to Yami. "All right," he agreed, locking his eyes with the other boy's. He suppressed a violent shudder, bringing his free hand up to rub some warmth into his other arm, trying to fight back the cold of the dream.

Yami gave a sad smile in return. "I was wrong again, Riku," he said, and Riku realized that Yami was actually going to give him what he wanted. Answers. "I had two separate missions, you see. My first was to study Gemini, and since I knew that all key bearers are destined to be part of a Gemini pairing, I set out to study you. I wanted to see what happens when two Gemini of the same pairing become one… as in through the intimate act of intercourse."

Intercourse? Sex?

If what Yami was saying was true, then…

"Legend tells that something extraordinary will happen when a union such as that takes place, and I wanted to witness it for myself," Yami continued before Riku could form anymore thoughts.

Yami paused there, turning to glance in front of him before turning back to face Riku as he rose to his feet and turned away from what he had previously been inspecting. It was a long chain, a distorted form of a heart at the end, and for a moment Riku wondered about its significance. But then Yami gave Riku a pointed look as though asking permission to continue, so the silver-haired boy nodded to silently say that he was listening. So Yami continued.

"I knew you and Sora, your presumed Other Gemini, would eventually go through the union," Yami said. "So I did not concern myself with keeping your relationship stable…"

So then Yami wasn't really trying to separate Sora and Riku, or trying to keep them together. He was just doing his mission selfishly, without care of its consequences. But then _why_ all the lies and deception?

Yami was already speaking again. "Now that you know my experiment---"

"No," Riku said, cutting in before he could continue. "I _don't_. I mean, _why_ were you playing around with my love for Sora like that? Why all the secrets…? And _why_ did you call…" Riku hesitated, squeezing his eyes shut as he tried to find the right words. "When you… _y'know_…"

"When I seduced you," Yami finished for him.

Riku promptly glared. "Yes. _That. _You said that was an experiment too. Explain."

For once, Yami looked off-put. The amber-eyed boy sighed and gracefully ran a hand through his hair. "As I mentioned before, I was wrong. Twice. The first time was with you and Sora… You two 'became one' so to speak. You united. But nothing happened."

That's right. That meant the legend about two Gemini becoming one and causing something extraordinary was false. Or… Or he and Sora…

"So Sora and I aren't Gemini," Riku realized, his eyes slowly widening as the implications sank in. "Sora and I aren't destined to be on opposite sides… We're not enemies?!"

He was about to fall into uncontained laughter of relief when Yami's voice stopped him.

"Yes… And no."

Riku closed the distance between them and laughed nervously, raising his free hand as though to make a point. "But you just said---"

"You still, obviously, fight for the light, keyblade master. It is your destiny as long as your Other walks the path of darkness. Yes, you still have a Gemini somewhere, as does Sora, who is currently suffering from the effects of the darkness."

"So someone else out there is my fated enemy…" Riku said slowly, feeling another cold shudder run its course through his body. "And Sora has one too… But we're not _each other's_ fated enemy… And we're still on opposite sides of the whole light-dark spectrum?"

"Precisely."

Riku's brow furrowed. "So why did you sleep… with me….." His words trailed off as the truth hit him. "You thought you were _my_ Gemini so you _seduced_ me?!"

"Yes," Yami said, managing a tiny smile. "But again, nothing happened."

"So you're part of a Gemini pairing thingy too, then, right?" Riku asked. "But you're not _my_ Other."

"Correct."

"Then there are three of us looking for Others… Me, you, Sora…" Riku sighed, scratching at his head in frustration. "This is all so confusing." Then he hesitated, slowly raising his eyes to meet Yami's again. "Why did you finally decide to come clean to me? Because your experiments failed?"

"They did not fail," Yami said lightly with a calm smile. "Rather, they helped narrow my choices. To be honest with you, I am relieved that you and that boy, and that you and I are not Gemini… It helped another of my theories, the knowledge of which I cannot bestow upon you."

"You're so annoying when you do that…" Riku half-growled, pulling the sheet tighter around his waist. Then something occurred to him. "Hey, what makes you so sure that Sora and I aren't Gemini, just because something _presumably_ happens during sex? That's so stupid."

"Because I have seen you two," Yami said, briefly letting his eyes lower. "There were many times when you were on the same side… This is impossible for two Gemini once they know of their destinies. It confused me to great lengths before, so I had to make sure the two of you united. To make sure I was wrong."

That made sense.. sorta…

"But then why did you go to such lengths to lie to Sora and try to separate us?"

"I admit, my second mission _did_ hinder my progress on the first," Yami said quietly, seriously. "But it was a necessary risk."

"A second mission?" Riku asked, cautiously narrowing his eyes. He had a feeling he wouldn't like this new revelation.

"Yes… To corrupt Sora's strong soul so that it could no longer support its dark side within its pure, and had to tear into two."

"Wait, _what_…?!" Riku demanded, shaking his head as he tried to comprehend that last statement. He shivered again, but ignored his numbing limbs. "What the hell does _that_ mean?"

"What it sounds like, Riku," Yami patiently stated.

Riku didn't understand… Dark and Pure sides? Tear into two? Did that mean something had happened to Sora's soul? "Why _Sora_?" he asked.

"I am afraid I cannot answer that without bringing in complications that would endanger myself," Yami answered quietly, lowering his eyes. "But I _will_ say that I believe that if it had been an individual with a weaker soul undergoing such pressure, the soul would have caved into the dominant force and adapted to it. Sora was too strong to give into the darkness directly, his soul was too pure to be swayed so easily. So it tore and became two."

Riku was beginning to understand what he was saying. "You… On purpose…"

"Yes."

"But… Sora seems so stable… He was this morning," Riku insisted. "He's fine!"

Yami finally gave a full smile. "Such ignorance. If only you knew the likely current situation."

Riku regained his composure and managed to ask with a lowered voice, "What do you mean?"

That sudden feeling of something wrong filled Riku again and he quite suddenly did not want to know what Yami had to say next.

"You still do not know who I am, how I know what I know, and what my future plans are. In fact, you do not know my latest deductions and theories that I plan to experiment with," Yami said softly. "And you do not know Sora's current state."

Somewhere in his heart he already knew it. He could already feel it---that absence of Sora, that guilt weighing their love… Their paopu bond was mutual, but there seemed to be no Sora on the other end any longer.

Something was definitely wrong.

"What the **hell** did you do with Sora?!" Riku desperately demanded, stepping forward to grab Yami as he fought back his sudden fear.

Nothing could have happened yet.

Please let Sora be alright! If what Yami was saying was true, about Sora's soul…

Well, it made _sense_, with some of Sora's mood swings lately, but nothing had recently happened to trigger a full tearing of his soul, right? Just last night he and Riku had finally taken the final step in their physical relationship, surely _that_ hadn't hurt Sora so much… And he had seemed so normal, so Sora-like just that morning, like his old innocent self from Destiny Islands. Sora had been _Sora_.

_Nothing_ could have happened yet!

But that familiar amused smile crossed Yami's face, signaling that something had indeed happened. Quite suddenly Riku was terrified.

"For someone so dedicated to loving that pet of yours," Yami began, that smile nefariously spreading, "you seemed to be quite blind and deaf when he stumbled across _our_ little union. You did not even notice him standing there, did you?"

Riku's heart literally stopped.

"You're joking…" he breathed, green eyes wide with growing alarm. "You've _got_ to be joking…!"

But he knew he wasn't. It _wasn't_ a joke.

He could feel it…

Riku's face suddenly twisted with unspeakable disgust and horror.

What had he _done?!_

He stepped away from Yami, pulling an arm across his chest to hold himself, his other hand clutching the sheet tighter around his hips. He barely even registered the cold of the room any longer.

There were no tears. Riku never cried… He had no reason to.

He didn't _deserve_ to cry…

Especially when there was someone else who needed it more.

Like Sora.

He had to find Sora!

Just as the dream world around him began to fade away, Riku settled his green gaze upon Yami and hissed, "I don't care who the hell you are, or who the hell your Gemini is. After I rectify my mistakes,_ I'm_ going to kill you."

And with that, he woke up.

"Who **are** you?"

"_Who am **I**?"_

"Yes."

"_I am you."_

"Me?"

"_Rather, I am a part of you."_

"You are?"

"_Yes. Your heart was too strong to corrupt, so your soul ripped into two. Me. And you."_

"You're not telling me everything. _Please_ tell me!"

"_It isn't necessary to give you such knowledge. After you gain a better understanding of things, we'll speak again."_

"You're not just half of my soul, are you? Who are you _really_?"

"…_An unimportant figure in the history books. Very few knew I existed."_

"I don't understand."

"_Not yet, you won't. That's right. But the more important question is: Who are you?"_

"…no one… No one loves me. I just want to sleep…"

"_Then sleep, and I shall protect you from your enemies."_

"..alright…"

Warmth…

Riku felt so warm…

It was so strange waking up to such comfortable warmth after such a disturbing dream. No, not a dream. Everything Yami had said had been true, hadn't it? And now Riku needed to get up, find Sora, leave somehow… He had to. It was so urgent.

The problem was actually getting up. He was so comfortable, so sleepy and tired of trying to fix all his problems. No child should have to go through this sort of confusing life. If only he could just exist here, where nothing was urgent, where he could just live in this world composed of only warm sheets caressing bare skin, and having another warm body to snuggle against.

…a body that _wasn't_ Sora's…

Geh! What the hell was he doing?!

Suddenly he remembered that he was sleeping with the enemy, and that he had too many things to do to erase his guilt that left him no time to rest. Or complain.

He had brought the exhaustion and screaming muscles upon himself. It was _his_ fault. Granted, Yami had helped considerably that afternoon by seducing him, but Riku couldn't place all the blame on him. Riku deserved whatever punishment was in store for him. He deserved this pain and overwhelming guilt. That afternoon he had done _nothing_ to stop Yami. He had given in **so easily**… and had responded a little _too_ eagerly to the other boy's touches.

There was no excuse for what he had done, other than the fact he **had** wanted Yami, truthfully. And he had liked it, no matter how shameful or sinful the act had been.

Yes, it was the payment that Yami had wanted. Yes, Riku had promised him. And yes, Riku hadn't had much of a choice. Even though Yami wasn't the type to force himself upon someone else, Yami had conveniently trapped Riku in his own guilt by bringing up his promise with Sora.

Shit…

Yami had taken him --- that was supposed to have been Sora's privilege…!

SHIT!

And he couldn't take it back now.

Bringing a hand up, Riku clutched at his hair and clenched his teeth, biting back a helpless scream.

All he could do was explain it to Sora, apologize… and leave their relationship's fate in Sora's hands. As soon as Riku found the boy, that is. And after the dream conversation he had just had with Yami, finding Sora was mandatory.

Riku would have to think about the rest of the conversation, and the dream itself, later. He still wasn't sure why Yami had approached him in his dreams, and not in reality… But he had gotten the important information across.

Promptly releasing his hold on Yami's body, Riku sat up, letting the black sheets drop and pile at his hips.

Agh…

He felt it. That _pain_…

It was evidence that he had royally screwed up that afternoon. So was the feeling of dirtiness, both literal and imagined. Not only did he have the mess that had adhered his skin to Yami's when it had dried as they slept, he also had the stains of guilt in his mind, in his heart. He had betrayed Sora. He had _hurt_ Sora…

No.

Stop.

"Stop it Riku," he hissed to himself under his breath.

It _couldn't_ be too late yet. It just couldn't…!

Dragging dirty fingers through his disheveled hair, Riku glanced over at the balcony and realized that it was still really early, only sunset. He was honestly surprised at how little he had rested after what had happened that afternoon.

He had still rested too much, though… Something kept whispering to him _too late, too late, you're too late_ and the longer he stayed in this room, the more his sense of panic grew.

After assessing how much damage had been done to his body during intercourse (compared to sex with Sora, sex with Yami had been considerably more _violent_), Riku slowly turned and glanced down at Yami's inactive form.

He looked so innocent.

But this was Yami… Surely there was no way that this sleeping child-like being could be _Yami_. Yami wasn't supposed to be this fragile-looking, this _cute_… Was it possible for someone so dangerously beautiful to also look so _cute_? So _human_?

Everything about him spoke of beauty --- the elegant curve of his cheek bones, the way his soft white hair fell into his closed eyes, the sweep of long eyelashes that occasionally fluttered in his dream-state, the slightly puckering of his delicious lips… It was almost _wrong_ to look so beautiful after all that he had done. And never had Riku seen him so carefree… _innocent_.

Cute.

Yami almost slept like Sora, only Yami didn't seem like the type who would. Maybe this was the real Yami --- the person behind the façade, without the mask of an amused smile and hidden intentions.

It was almost hard to be angry with Yami when he looked like this. Riku didn't have the _heart_ to.

So, with a soft sigh Riku shook his head and leaned forward, gently running two fingertips over Yami's lips, feeling their soft warmth one last time. When Riku pulled his hand away, Yami's eyebrows twitched into a subtle frown and he wrinkled his nose a bit, giving him an even more Sora-like appearance.

Riku couldn't help the tiny smile that faded over his lips.

But Yami wasn't Sora… And this was wrong, comparing the two…

Glancing one last time at the other undressed boy, Riku quickly slipped out of the bed and got dressed, trying to stifle the winces caused by the pain in his lower body.

No time to regret, to feel pity for himself. No time to even cleanse himself of the dirtiness coating his heart and skin.

He did manage, however, to leave the room without looking back.

Sora was more important than Yami. He _was_. Sora was more important than Riku's love and need for _anything_. Sora's happiness meant more to him than his own, more than the lives of any and all worlds out there.

Because…

Because without _Sora_…

Riku wouldn't know _how_ to live. Breathe. Love.

Sora _was_ his life.

And now Riku didn't know how to repent for what he had willingly done, for what he felt with Yami, for what pain he had caused Sora.

But something kept telling him that he was already too late.

He couldn't be…

He'd never screwed up this badly before. Something like _this_…

"Shit…!" Riku growled, pulling his arms tightly around his chest to keep from hurting himself. He really wanted to. Hurt himself, that is… But he would only cause more pain, and it wouldn't alleviate his guilt.

Nothing would take back what he had done.

It must have been fate that Riku did not have to look far to find Sora. Just as he turned down the hall with Yami's room and stepped into a new passageway, he saw a familiar figure standing at the end of the dark corridor.

Sora.

However, before Riku could even let out a sigh of relief, the figure turned to regard him, a mischievous smile pulled across his lips, and then darted around the corner without a word.

……what the hell?

Was Sora _playing_ with him?

Letting suspicion cast over his short-lived relief, Riku frowned and followed Sora, his footsteps quiet as he turned down the hall that his Sora had disappeared into.

There he was again, waiting there at the end of the corridor, a carefree smile on his face.

A smile that was eerily reminiscent of the dark-winged Sora in Riku's dreams.

"Sora?" he called, only loud enough so that his voice would carry. It created a soft echo that bounced along the high arches of the castle architecture.

The boy merely stared back at him, smiling. Silent. But then…

Echoes of an amused giggle floated back to him in the musty air, and Sora disappeared down a new hallway.

Shit. Riku was getting a _really_ bad feeling about this.

That smile, that giggle… The only thing missing was a pair of wings.

No, but he wasn't dreaming this time. This wasn't that Sora… This was the _real_ Sora, wasn't it?

Was it true? Had his vivid dreams really foreshadowed his imminent reality?

Well, it didn't matter anymore. He couldn't turn back now.

Suppressing a cold shudder and trying not to think of the worst case scenario that was most likely waiting for him, Riku followed Sora towards what he knew could be a trap.

How could it not be? Everything good in his life was beginning to crumble right before his very eyes.

He might as well stop hiding and face it, and try to prevent it. It was impossible to prepare though. How does one prepare for such an event?

Riku wasn't even sure what was going to happen when he arrived at the final destination that this vague representation of Sora was leading him to. He could only follow and hope…

So follow he did, keeping his gaze steadily in front of himself to watch as Sora turned down new corridors and paused to wait for him, sometimes lingering long enough for Riku draw near before he hurried ahead so that Riku never could fully catch up to him. They crossed dark halls that Riku had never known existed, and entered strange, empty atriums filled with archaic gothic architecture that did nothing to ease Riku's nerves. They passed under archways that, when Riku looked back a minute later, disappeared without a trace, leaving just blank wall from whence he had come.

As they gradually went deeper into the labyrinthine castle, Riku felt the icy fangs of darkness slowly sink into his sore limbs, urging him to hurry forward. The more they walked, the stronger the stench of shadows grew, so much that he practically felt the ebb of darkness pulsating around him like a heartbeat, like it was actually alive and waiting to swallow him. Capture his soul. Envelope his heart within its proverbial arms until he finally gave in.

It was that feeling that spurred him on and assured him that he was heading the right way. Surely this was a trap. Surely his fate lay at the end of this journey, where Sora was taking him.

Riku wasn't really afraid of what would happen to _him_. He would gladly follow Sora into the depths of darkness if that is where Sora was truly going. But no… Sora wasn't, really, if what Yami had said was true. Sora _couldn't_ fall into the darkness. Not completely, at least. That's why his soul was, or had broken into two. His Sora still existed, but now there was another… Another Sora.

Dark Sora.

_That_ was what Riku feared. That any part of Sora would hate him, or try to abuse Sora himself. Riku feared rejection. Riku feared his own weaknesses.

Weakness.

That one fatal weakness of his that Yami had mentioned… What _was_ it? Riku couldn't think of a weakness that would ultimately lead to his downfall, a weakness that hindered the growth of Riku's strength.

It was probably _that_ weakness that the darkness would try to exploit. But he had no time.

No time to fear, no time to plan, no time to escape. He did not even have time to regret.

Riku did not know how long Sora led him through the castle --- he hardly paid attention to his surroundings anymore --- but when the darkness became so thick in the air that Riku had problems concentrating, even breathing, and when the cold, empty numbness had fully taken hold of his limbs and the only thing he could feel was his own erratic heartbeat, Riku knew he had arrived at his destination.

A hollow sound was steadily humming around him, making him feel as though he were gradually going deaf, only he knew he wasn't, for he could still hear the sound of his shoes against the stone, and his own labored breathing.

Sora had stopped in front of a pair of doors, he noticed. The boy had simply stopped, and was now motionless, simply staring straight ahead like a mindless automaton. Like he _had_ no soul.

This wasn't Sora.

When Riku took a cautious step towards the figure, the doors suddenly pulled open as though an invisible hand had reached out to do it, startling Riku into moving backwards again.

And, after flashing Riku a bright Sora-like grin that made the older boy's heart suddenly constrict in guilty pain, the figure passed through the open doors and disappeared, leaving Riku standing there with only his fleeting thoughts.

Riku honestly contemplated running.

All it would take to send him retreating was just a step back…

Just one foot.

But what would be the point?

He couldn't turn back now. He didn't even know where he was anymore, and he had no escape off this world…

Besides, something told him that he was destined to see what lay beyond those doors. Something told him Sora was there.

He couldn't leave Sora like that. He couldn't run away unless Sora was with him…

Or against him.

So, taking a long, shuddering breath in a feeble attempt to calm his heart, Riku crossed the final distance and stepped past the nonexistent threshold to face his fate.

He entered a long, wide hall with red carpet leading even deeper into the castle, but the shadows were too thick to see what lay beyond the end of this foyer. The lighting was oddly tinted blue, and with a quick glance around, Riku discovered why.

And his breath caught in his throat.

Young women were encased against the walls in what seemed to be dark crystal. They looked like they were sleeping, only their faces had no color… And they did not seem to be breathing. Not one flutter of an eyelid. It was like they were frozen in time, trapped forever young and beautiful, and cold. Lifeless.

Nearly dead.

Only somehow Riku knew they weren't just dead…

Somehow he could _feel_ their purity, the light within them. Or, the light that _used_ to be within them.

Suddenly Riku realized that these girls had no hearts. Someone had taken them. Was that what happened when a person's heart was taken?

But… didn't they become heartless? Why weren't these girls heartless if they did not have hearts?

It was so unnatural, how peaceful they looked in their sleep-like states, how eerily beautiful they were.

Perhaps, Riku surmised, not everyone became heartless when separated from their hearts. To be honest, he had no idea how the whole heartless thing worked, and he suspected that not many people actually knew.

Reaching his hands up to stroke furiously at his arms (he had goosebumps, he noticed), he tried to rub some feeling into his numb arms, but it was useless. So, casting one last glance at the frozen women around him, Riku moved on, only to come across more of them. He was going to ignore their pretty faces, but he felt obligated to look, like it was his fault that these women were trapped here in Maleficent's castle, like it was his fault that they were being shown off like trophies of some war that he was unwillingly a part of.

But then he saw her.

Long lashes curved against her cheek, a kind, sad smile frozen on her pale-as-snow face.

Snow White. The princess Riku had met in that dying forest…

He hadn't been able to save her world. He had watched as it had crumbled beneath his very feet as he had escaped using Sora's strange power.

She had disappeared from her meadow… But before that, she had been concerned about her 'executioner' or someone who was going to destroy her forest. Someone who controlled the creatures that had killed her friends… Creatures.

The heartless.

She was a princess.

And now she's here.

Yami and Maleficent had been discussing princesses earlier that day… She was upset that Yami had not delivered the _last_ princess.

So _Yami_ was the one who had kidnapped Snow White. That made sense. After all, it was on that world that Riku met him. Yami was collecting princesses, so that meant these other girls were princesses too.

Maleficent had said… Seven princesses to open the keyhole to the darkness…

There were six there, so that indeed meant that Yami still had to deliver that last princess, but then Yami had said that he _did_ have the last princess, and that she was safe. Which meant that Yami could open this keyhole to the darkness.

That must be what was beyond this hallway.

What else could emit such corporeal darkness?

So, aside from finding Sora, Riku needed to make sure this keyhole was not opened, and that the princesses' hearts were returned to them. Maybe these women could help him and Sora, too.

The problem was, of course, sealing the keyhole and retrieving the hearts, wherever they were. And finding that last princess before Yami could deliver her to Maleficent.

Then again, _why_ hadn't Yami delivered her? Was there a reason for Yami to keep her, and only her?

Six princesses here…

Riku couldn't fight back the guilt that filled him.

He didn't know the other princesses, he hadn't been to their worlds, and he hadn't been able to save them or their people. Some hero he was. Some savior of the worlds.

He couldn't even protect the person closest to him.

Sora.

That's right. He needed to move on, find Sora, save Sora, take Sora away from here.

_Sora. Remember Sora. He's the most important person to save,_ he quietly noted to himself, once again trying to rub some feeling into his arms.

Useless.

That's what he was, actually. Nothing he did was right.

He only hoped that, despite whatever lay beyond this hallway, he could protect Sora and fix some of his mistakes.

Tearing his eyes away from Snow White's death-like face, Riku continued down the hallway, feeling the darkness biting into him, letting the now-visible tendrils snake around him and weakly cling to him as he moved forward. It was like these little wisps of shadow were welcoming him, waving to him and encouraging him to move forward. He was definitely expected here. For a split-second Riku contemplated waving back, or letting them curl around his body and let them have his way with him.

He felt like such a whore. First Sora, then Yami, now the darkness. He seemed to be willing to give into anything, really. Then again, when it came down to the basics, there didn't seem to be much difference between any of them…

When Riku stepped into the new room, almost immediately the darkness retracted from around him, retreating back to the hallway and abandoning Riku, leaving him standing vulnerable in this large, strange hall.

Strange was an understatement.

The first thing Riku noticed was a large doorway swirling with a beautiful array of colors and darkness, but it had no keyhole, leading Riku to believe that it wasn't complete yet, and Yami still hadn't surrendered the last princess yet.

Yami… was he still sleeping so peacefully, innocently back in his room? Blissfully unaware as to where Riku was? As to what Riku was about to do?

…could Riku seal a keyhole that hadn't even appeared yet?

No, it didn't seem likely.

He needed the last princess then, wherever Yami was keeping her.

The second thing Riku noticed was how to _get_ to the large portal-like door. There was a large cylindrical dais in the center of the room with stairs curving around it to get to the top, where the door was stationed in the middle. Wicked-looking machinery filled the room, floor to corners to the ceiling, and it seemed like this door had been experimented on for quite a long time.

As he took a few more steps into the room, he openly stared at the spacious room, taking in its odd structure and strange technology. The last thing he actually noticed was Maleficent, who was standing at the top of the stairs, waiting for him with an obviously pleased smile on her sallow face.

Riku wasn't surprised to see her. He vaguely recalled that she had threatened him earlier today, and he didn't doubt that she would try to carry through with her threat now that she had him in her grasp, and they were alone. Without Yami here to protect him.

…and there was no sign of Sora…

Maleficent extended a hand, long painted fingernails glinting in the lighting of the room. When Riku took another step farther into the room, a sharp **_caw!_ **rang in his ears as that woman's awful crow zipped past his head and flew up to her, gracefully landing on her outstretched hand before hopping up to her shoulder. Then it turned and leered at Riku, who decided to ignore it and close the distance between himself and the foot of the stairs.

Maleficent drew away from the landing, her long robe swirling around her as she practically glided towards the door of darkness, her staff making steady _click_ noises against the hard floor. Climbing the stairs to be on equal footing as her, just in case, Riku followed the sorceress, finally speaking up.

"I assume you're not going to 'guarantee my safety' now that we have encountered again, _Maleficent_," Riku said in a pompous tone, purposely provoking her.

"I see that insufferable brat has finally released my name to you. How courteous of him," she drawled in mock amusement, her crow shuffling its feathers as it glared at him. "I trust that your _righteous_ friends bestowed upon you the knowledge of my identity," she said, rather than asked.

"You invaded Hollow Bastion nine years ago using the heartless… That's all I really know," Riku admitted, once again stroking his arms, only this time the touch sparked the return of feeling in his skin, and his nerves lit up with tiny prickling sensations, telling him that he was indeed alive and awake. He ignored the annoying feeling, knowing it would fade away soon, and he focused his attention on Maleficent, who was now regarding him with curious satisfaction.

"You seem so unconcerned, dear keyblade master," she commented, elegantly changing her staff from one hand to the other. "I had the impression that you would barge in here asking questions and making ludicrous requests."

Riku decided not to reply to her statement, and instead said, "I saw your collection of princesses. I see Yami has been busy."

"He volunteered to his tasks. He simply entered the castle one day and explained to me why I could not open this doorway, and then he offered his services to my cause," she explained freely.

"I remember what you said." Riku lowered his eyes momentarily, recalling the conversation he had had with her on the balcony that one night. "You let him keep me as a pet."

"Yes," she droned, her smile growing. "I did. At least, until you still had use." Her crow tilted its head and opened its beak as thought _it_ was going to speak as well, but it didn't, and she continued. "But you have done your duty, keyblade master."

"Have I?" Riku asked, no hint of interest in his voice. "I don't see how I've helped you any."

Her smile fell into a more malicious smirk. "Dear child, you helped your little beloved," she said softly, her voice practically dripping with ultimate, evil delight, and quite suddenly Riku had a feeling he knew what she was going to say. "You kept his mind sane long enough so that he could enhance his magical powers through my teachings," she explained coolly, reaching a hand up to pet her crow, keeping her face raised but eyes lowered to study Riku. "I see that Yami did well in keeping his part of the bargain."

Riku had to fight back a growl. "What _bargain_?"

"Silly boy," she sighed, lifting her hand away from her pet and gesturing lightly. "I let him keep you as a pet, keyblade master, because in exchange he said he would make sure your beloved would succumb to the darkness and become my dark slave."

This time Riku didn't even try to restrain himself. Tearing his green eyes away from her to stare at the ground, brow furrowed in disgusted anger, he bit, "So _that's_ why you kept me alive…!"

He should have figured it out on his own, that he was only being treated as a guest in Hollow Bastion because he was being used. Why else would someone so blatantly evil keep their enemy at their stronghold? Of course they were _using_ him…!

To hurt Sora, of all things…

"Precisely," she practically purred, incensing Riku's anger. "And how easy it was, too."

He should have seen it. Now he truly had no one to blame but himself.

He could try to blame Maleficent for so easily tricking him, or Sora for letting himself be manipulated… But, really, he could only blame himself, for being so _stupid_ and _lazy_ and …. And…

And if Riku had disobeyed Yami and Maleficent, if he had somehow learned all of this earlier, he could have prevented this. Or if he had somehow convinced Sora to get them out of there --- Sora had had the power after all… Maybe if Riku had just _tried_…

Or if he had just ignored Yami's kindness…!

_Fuck!!_

Clenching his hands into tight fists and managing to control his voice so that it was only a sarcastic drawl, Riku asked, "And just _what_ do you want with _Sora_ when you have all those heartless to play with?"

He didn't have to look up to know that she was still smirking. _Bitch_.

"Why use heartless when I can have a powerful re-embodiment of darkness to do my bidding?" she said, a pleased chuckle trailing off in her words.

Re-embodiment of darkness? Just who had Sora become?!

"What did you _do_ to him?!" Riku harshly demanded, raising his eyes to glare acidly at her as he took a step forward.

"Do to him? What did _I_ do to him?" she repeated, sounding vaguely surprised. "I simply encouraged the boy, told him to embrace his true side."

"_True side_?!" Riku heard his own voice break into a desperate shrill. "What the _hell_ does that mean?! Sora is just Sora!" he cried, feeling despair rising within him. Not here…! He couldn't cry here, no matter how helpless the situation was. No matter how helpless _he_ was. "Why can't you selfish bastards just leave us _**alone**?!_"

Riku was not expecting the next voice that spoke.

"Just _who_ is selfish, Master of the Light?" came a hard, cold tone, causing Riku to whirl around to face the new speaker.

Darkness.

The violent shudder that ran up his spine was almost audible. He could almost _feel_ the whispers of caution coming from the shadows, like he generally heard coming from the keyblade when he held it. But this time, he didn't need the keyblade to decipher their words.

They were saying it was too late.

He somehow knew that this newcomer was that "Master" the heartless followed, the man who had been playing the strings all along behind both Maleficent _and_ Yami.

This was his _real_ enemy.

_That_ was who had just spoken. Somehow Riku knew.

Fighting back the sudden urge to summon Oblivion, Riku felt his eyes widen on their own accord and he heard himself gasp as the figure stepped out of the darkness.

_Impossible…!_

Same boyish features, same chocolate brown hair…

But cold yellow eyes narrowed at him, lips pulled back into an emotionless grin. Darkness clung to him like a second skin, and gone was that usual bright aura of his that could banish any of Riku's foul moods.

Now this dark being was all who remained.

Riku had moved forward before he even knew what he was doing, pained disbelief distorting his pretty face.

"_Sora_…?"

The figure tilted his head as though contemplating Riku's outburst, a long smirk drawing over his lips, those lips that Riku knew so well. As the figure spoke again, Riku took a slow, cautious step back, feeling his skin crawl with sick dread.

"Sora?" that voice laughed, sounding considerably calm as he continued to walk forward, scintilla of darkness curling after him. "I'm not your Sora." The figure cast a quick glance at Maleficent. "I can take care of this. Leave."

And like an obedient heartless slave, Maleficent swung her staff and disappeared, leaving Riku alone to face the newcomer.

It was hard to look at him because they were so similar, yet so _different_…

It was Sora's lips, his body… But those pale eyes, that sinister voice… He _wasn't_ Sora.

This was Sora's dark half. The dark part of Sora's soul.

Dark Sora.

"What happened to Sora…?" Riku asked as he bowed his head in defeat, the anger fading from his voice and becoming quiet anguish.

It was too late. Sora was already…

He had failed.

The only thing left to do was fight until his Sora returned, but it seemed so _useless_ now. He was only one person. And he was so tired, so _hurt_…

"Sora is asleep," the figure said, his audacity significantly subdued after hearing the fragmented hope in Riku's voice. "Asleep and suffering because once again the one he loved most has betrayed him."

Riku peeked up at Dark Sora through his bangs, only half-curious because he was so tired of asking questions. "Once again?"

"You're just like the last one. Selfish. Too caught up in your own wants that you overlook _his_," he sighed, reaching an arm around to hug himself as he lowered his eyes, as though he were recalling something that had happened in the past. But he was still smiling. When he looked up again, he met Riku's green eyes. "Tell me, do you have any clue as to what is transpiring?"

Riku simply glared.

"You don't, do you?" Dark Sora said, that smile turning smug. It was a face Yami would make. "I believe you will be infinitely more enjoyable than the previous keyblade master."

What?

Previous keyblade master?

Dark Sora must have seen the spark of awareness in Riku's eye, because he suddenly spoke again. "You didn't think you were alone, were you? You are not the only one destined to carry such a burden."

Riku frowned, not understanding. His frustration and anger was quickly returning. "What the _hell_ are you implying?"

"Ah, well, all in due time," he sighed, nonchalantly waving a hand as though to dismiss Riku. "You will understand soon."

A low growl erupted from Riku's throat. "I don't care who the _hell_ you are, just give Sora back!!"

Dark Sora suddenly became serious, those soft yellow eyes narrowing into a glare, his mouth pulled into a thin, angry line. "You _will_ care. It is your destiny. And Sora's. Perhaps if you would slow down your assumptions and take the time to analyze what is happening to you, you wouldn't be so hasty to dismiss me so fruitlessly, _Riku_."

He took a step towards Riku, who finally took the initiative to summon Oblivion, quickly bringing the keyblade up in front of himself in a defensive gesture. Dark Sora wasn't fazed; rather, he kept walking, regarding the weapon with a casual look.

"What a pretty little thing," he commented. A slightly amused smile quirked the side of his mouth, and Riku suddenly had a _very_ bad feeling. Before he could bite out a response, Dark Sora stopped in front of him, chin held high and that wide, satisfied smile in place. "Pretty, like you," Dark Sora asserted with a breathy sigh. "A shame, really. You have no idea how many people have their eye on you, do you?" He paused there, glancing down at the keyblade and raising an eyebrow before meeting Riku's green eyes again. "I look forward to our next meeting, _Gemini_."

"Wait!" Riku cried, and he was moving to quickly stop Dark Sora from leaving when he suddenly felt a sharp tug at his ankle. _Shit! Not now!! _he silently growled, thinking maybe a tendril of darkness had wrapped around him to keep him from taking pursuit.

But when he spun around to look, he was met with a pair of yellow eyes and the most disturbing thing Riku had ever seen.

A heartless that looked like _him_.

Shaped like him, down to the very details in his clothes, but in every shade of black imaginable. Skin, black. Hair, black. Clothes, black.

Eyes…

Yellow.

Heartless yellow.

"Sora named it Anti-Riku," came the other boy's voice, sounding remotely sympathetic. "Perhaps to mirror his own thoughts."

Riku didn't hide the disgusted look on his face as he openly stared wide-eyed at the abomination that resembled him so much.

_Anti_-Riku?

Riku felt the panic rise in him again and he suddenly kicked out, shaking the heartless' hand off his leg. When he was free he stumbled backwards away from it while it slowly crawled out of its dark hole in the ground.

But that wasn't what surprised Riku next.

Like spilt ink, the darkness slowly spread around Riku, forming more and more apertures until he was suddenly surrounded, watching with aghast horror as more of his dark clones began to claw their way out of the shadows, countless dozens of them, fingers stretched outward as they hoisted themselves out of the floor and straightened to stand before Riku, all staring at him with narrowed yellow eyes.

Riku swung around, taking in the sight of all of them --- even _more_ were appearing! --- and he felt his muscles tense in what he knew would be a useless fight. There were simply too many of them…!

The Rikus swarmed around him, gradually drawing closer so that he had no room to run, to even _move_.

He was trapped.

And when he felt their hands on him, he cried out, a formless sound of both misery and terror, the sound of someone who knew he _could_ do nothing but fight, even though it was futile. Desperate.

Hopeless.

But when he began swinging Oblivion in a sad attempt of fending them off, he felt their vice-like grips clamp down on his arms and tear his weapon from his grasp, leaving him completely vulnerable to their onslaught. He could do nothing but squirm away from their hands and cry out as they closed in around him, their cold bodies pressed to his, some of them restraining him, holding him in place while their brothers moved in for the kill.

Only, they _didn't_…

It seemed his fate was to be something much worse than death.

Dark fingers came from all directions and began pulling at his clothes, clumsily trying to remove them or tear them off, many times missing and clawing at his skin instead and drawing sweet red from him. He knew he was trembling so violently he could barely stand, but he didn't need to, for their hands were there to support him, keep him upright as they slid their fingertips over his bare flesh, as a few heads drew near to taste his warm skin and curiously kiss it, suck it, anything to send his mind into sensory overload.

Cold fingers splayed across his hard chest, testing his muscles. Cold fingers crawled seductively over the sensitive flesh of his stomach. Cold fingers slid beneath the waist of his pants, drawing him closer to screams. Cold fingers swept over his hips, up his ribs and around his sides to his back, tracing the contours of his body, hand by hand by hand by hand by hand…

They pulled his shirt up, brushed his hair aside to access his shoulder, collar bone, neck… His jaw… Cold lips ravaged his pale skin, all over, drawing out strangled groans from him, almost half-whimpers.

When they managed to shred his clothes enough so that they could slip fingers in to stroke his thighs and skim cold palms over the curve of his buttocks, his screams finally started. The more he twisted his body, the more they groped, squeezed, and sent his bodies into uncontainable shudders.

His mind began to drift on the surface of soft insanity, his own screams falling deaf on his ears as they gradually became so hoarse his voice tore and his cries continued on silently, unaware he had no more to give. He lost count of the teeth biting into him, the mouths stealing his own until his lips were bruised and bleeding.

All he saw was his own face… all around him, with eyes that saw him as nothing but a warm body.

In his mind he heard them whispering to him, calling him delicious, naming him a whore…

But there were no tears.

"_Riku!!_"

They wanted his soft curves, they wanted to ravage his already smitten heart…

They could have it, then, so long as he couldn't hear his own silent, dying screams, so long as he couldn't feel anymore. Something so graceful and pure, whether it be his body or this act of love… Something so beautiful should not be allowed to live.

He could taste the blood on his lips. There was vague wonder what the main course would be.

"**_Riku!_**"

Those somber-skinned angels with his face could feel no remorse, yet they had already squeezed the last and dying breath out of everything he had ever dreamed…

Death.

It was too good for him.

He was just giving permission to the shadows to take his heart, when he felt the darkness retract from his soul. The Anti-Rikus were being forced away from him, one by one, but Riku could not understand why.

He was so tired… so cold…

Why couldn't they just finish him off…?

But then he saw it, through the red haze of pain in front of him, through the horde of black faces and yellow eyes he saw it.

White.

A face with real eyes broke through the crowd, long white hair sweeping around his lithe body as he forced the Anti-Rikus back with a sword that was oddly shaped like a demon's wing.

"**_RIKU…!_**"

That brazen voice… Had it ever held that much emotion before?

It sounded so concerned, so broken and consumed with worry that he hardly recognized it.

Another heartless was torn away from him and Riku's savior was suddenly there in front of him, yellow eyes wide and fearful. Shocked.

Riku had never seen him look so overwhelmed.

Unaware that no sound would come out, Riku parted his lips and whispered his name, his empty green eyes filling with tears.

"Yami…?"

"Treacherous witch, I said his life was _mine_!!" Yami screamed, and far in the distance Riku could hear a woman's long, pleased chuckle.

But then Yami turned back to face Riku, a pitiful look crossing his pretty face as he took in Riku's appearance. With a quick swipe of his sword, the last heartless released Riku and he crumpled, unable to steady himself. Warm arms were there to catch him and he immediately immersed himself in their comfort, slipping his eyes closed and feeling the current world dissolve under his feet and his body being lifted into cold nothingness.

And when pressure returned beneath his feet, Riku knew he was free. Gone from that hell.

Warm rain began pelting his worn body, and Riku did not need to open his eyes to know where he was. Familiar voices were calling him, the sound of boots running through shallow puddles evident in the warm industrial air. His green eyes slid open to find the startled figures of Leon and Cid racing towards him.

As though that was the final sign, the last straw, Riku collapsed onto the wet cobblestone street away from Yami's arms, letting his emotions run as free as the rain that looked like melting time.

Warm tears spilled from under his quivering lashes, washing over his face and becoming one with the cold tears of the sky…

And he cried.

-o-o-

* * *

Ahh… There we have it. Riku's back in Traverse Town. Without Sora.

Wee. The next update will be November 4th, hopefully, **_Stygian Solace's One Year Birthday!_** Holy crap, I've been writing this fanfic that long?!


	21. A Side Story: Solitude's Monochrome Hap...

**Note: The Uzumaki Fanfiction yahoo group has been created, so please join if you're a dedicated reader! The link can be found in Uzumaki's profile above. And don't forget to vote in the polls! And we need more people posting! Ask questions too, that's why it's there. ^^;**

_Author Notes:_

**_HAPPY 1st B-DAY STYGIAN SOLACE!!! ^_^_**

Yes, it's been **ONE YEAR** since I started this fanfic! ^_^ I really didn't mean for this side story (yes, you read correctly, a _side story_) to end up being written at such an important time in the story, especially one year exactly after SS first was posted… ^^;; But well, this is where I had put it in my chapter list! It was Ch 16, Side Story, Ch 17. So, here's the side story that many of you have been waiting for, whether you realized it or not. XD 

Yup! That's right! Leon and Cloud (and some others) are back. ^^; **This Side Story deals with what happened to Leon and Cloud after Sora and Riku ended up on Hollow Bastion.** ^^; Leon and Cloud are so difficult to write, so I sincerely hope you all continue to like my characterizations of them, even in this side story… 

And be sure to review! It'll be like giving a gift to Stygian Solace on its first birthday! ^_^ Aww… Well, our gifts to you are on the **Birthday Page**, the link of which can be found in my profile, so be sure to look if you haven't already! Hehe.

______________________________________________________________________________

**_A Side Story: Solitude's Monochrome Happiness  _**part 1

"Squall, I'm worried about them."

"Yeah, especially after what you said about Yami possibly working for _her_!"

Eyelids slowly came to a temporary close over tired grey-blue eyes and Leon let out a long sigh, stifling the urge to just fall asleep in his casual leaning position against the wall of what was once Cid's shop. One arm unfolding from its position across his chest, he raised his eyes to regard the two girls with an impatient stare as he gestured lightly with his hand.

"They might have simply fallen into a warp hole," he said evenly. "If they're not back by tomorrow, I'll go out and look for them."

"I'll go with you!" Yuffie exclaimed, but immediately fell silent after a critical glare from the older man. "Or maybe not," she added quickly.

"It's not likely I'll need help," he sighed. "And if Cid's ship has malfunctioned, they'll have to ride back in the other, and there isn't much space for more than three people."

Donald suddenly seemed perturbed, as though he had just realized that Leon was suggesting he was going to take their (being his and Goofy's) ship out alone. But the duck wisely said nothing. Even though he was nervous about a stranger, an amateur driver driving their gummi ship, Donald knew it was necessary. After all, their keyblade master was now missing, and _someone_ had to go find him. It was best to get the strongest one out of them to go search for Riku, and that ultimately meant Leon. 

Leon, as he stated, couldn't take anyone with him because the ship could only hold three persons, and if he did find Sora and Riku and Yami, he might have to transport them all back in the same ship. So, Leon was right. Four people in a three-person ship was going to be a tight squeeze, if it was necessary.

He _did_ have to go alone.

And quite suddenly, Aerith gasped and turned to Cid with wide eyes, her elegant hands raised to her mouth. "You don't think they were taken straight to _her_, do you?" she asked in a quiet, subdued voice, as though even mentioning Maleficent would bring the sorceress' wrath upon them. "What if Yami took Riku and Sora to Hollow Bastion?"

A few minutes ago Leon had explained to them his worries about Yami working for Maleficent, and about Sora and Riku's unstable relationship at the coliseum. He failed to mention Cloud, however, because he felt that it would cause an unnecessary commotion when they already had a problem in their hands. Cloud's mention could wait; Riku and Sora were more important at the moment.

And Aerith's suggestion, about Yami taking Riku and Sora straight to Maleficent….

Leon slightly shifted his position, suddenly _knowing_ that was what had happened.

He _had_ left Yami in charge of driving the ship back to Traverse Town, after all. He _had_ left Riku and Sora in Yami's care, and Yami in their care because he hadn't trusted Riku or Sora to do the job, and he had wanted Riku to watch over Sora, just in case. And Yami was most likely their enemy, after what he and Cloud had discussed back at the coliseum. 

That meant Leon had practically hand-delivered the keyblade master to his enemy.

Aerith caught the subtle change in Leon's face, and she softly frowned, knowing he was hiding something. "Squall… What are we going to do? If _she_ gets a hold of Riku… The worlds are lost."

Leon forced his eyes shut again as he sifted through his thoughts, trying to push back the overwhelming sense of guilt and dread so he could think with a clear conscience. It barely worked.

"For the time being," he said, "we have to assume the worst has happened. In this case, it is Maleficent actually getting a hold of Riku and Sora." He paused, noticing how both girls cringed at the mention of _her_ name. "And the only thing we can do if that has happened is try to get to Hollow Bastion."

This time even Cid looked away as another familiar name was said aloud. All of them had suffered, all of them associated horrible memories with that place. But while the others thought about the heartless invasion nine years ago, Leon remembered Squall, and the times before that. He remembered the tragedy that changed his life _before _Hollow Bastion's downfall.

"Get to Hollow Bastion?" Cid gruffed almost angrily; he also was looking considerably grumpy because his precious gummi ship was missing. "We don't even know where the hell it fucking is."

"Wasn't that our original plan?" Yuffie asked. "I mean, to find that woman… And gather Ansem's reports to find a way to stop the heartless."

Leon nodded. "But now we can't just rely on a keyblade master to do the work for us. We have to search the worlds ourselves." He paused, noticing Aerith visibly stiffen as though she was uncomfortable with something he had just said. "What's wrong?" he asked her.

"I'm not comfortable with you running around out there alone, Squall," she said.

He promptly glared, suddenly impatient with her motherly concern and advice. It wasn't one of his usual glares, the ones that could scare even the heartless; this glare was more pointed, yet gentle, because not even he could stay mad at Aerith for long.

"I refuse to take any of you with me. This town still needs protection, and strong hands to help it rebuild."

"Then take Cid!" she said, cupping her hands in front of her. "_Please_, Squall."

His eyes narrowed further, silently telling her that she was stepping into deep waters. "It's _Leon_," he said curtly, fighting back a growl. "And Cid needs to be here to work on the gummi ships."

"Hell, what about what _Cid_ thinks?" the old engineer cut in, and the others turned to regard him. "That's better," he huffed, raising a hand to rub the rough stubble on his chin. "I think _Leon's_ full of shit, and you, missy," he nodded to Aerith, "need to stop babying him. _I'm_ needed here, as he said, but I do think he needs _someone_ to back him up."

"I'll do it!" Yuffie immediately chirped, raising one hand high into the air with a bright smile on her face.

"No," Cid bit, "you're staying here. Aerith too. We'll let _Leon_ decide who's best for the job."

At his words, the two girls reasonably settled down, and Leon could have breathed a sigh of relief, but Goofy spoke up before he could.

"Uh-huck, what about that man at the tourney?"

There was a moment in which everyone hesitated, and then five pairs of eyes settled on Leon's introverted form, expecting an explanation or answer.

Goofy was talking about Cloud.

Leon wasn't up to explaining what exactly had happened at the coliseum, or that Cloud was alive and searching for Sephiroth. Truthfully, he wasn't even looking forward to giving the news. It wasn't just because he had a feeling Aerith and Yuffie would make too much of a big deal out of it…

Part of him feared that they would demand to see him, and when they did, they would intrude on Cloud's personal space, pushing the younger man further into isolation. They didn't know how much pain Cloud had gone through, they hadn't seen the change in Cloud's eyes like Leon had. They wouldn't understand the current Cloud, and would end up hurting not only themselves because of it, but also Cloud.

Leon didn't want that to happen. Another part of him wanted more time alone with Cloud, to talk, to clear up some of the emotional cobwebs between them. He couldn't do that with everyone else interfering.

He couldn't tell them Cloud was still alive.

Not yet.

So he gave a half-truth.

"I met some decent fighters at the coliseum," he said, trying to keep his voice normal so that they wouldn't suspect he was hiding anything. "I might be able to ask one of them to help me."

But Cid had already caught on. In a strangely serious voice for someone like himself, Cid said, "You already have someone in mind, don't ya?"

"I do," Leon said, and met the man's gaze with a meaningful frown that told Cid not to push the matter.

Cid got the point. "Alright. I trust you."

This time, Leon released his grateful sigh.

This was going to be hard.

~~~

_Fwumph.  **Clang.**  Fwumph.  **Clang**_.

Steady feet shifted against sandy stone, weight skillfully distributed between legs so that both power and agility could be exploited to their fullest. Hands were wrapped in a protective layer of gauze and then gloved with thick, reliable leather, one of them adorned with a golden claw; with such a formidable weapon, a sturdy grip was essential to wielding it. Not just any person could lift a sword like this, let alone wield it so easily, so elegantly that it was almost an art.

Cloud could.

But he wasn't the type to show off.

_Fwumph. **Clang.** Fwumph. **Clang.** Scrriiiiiitch --- **shing!**_

He wasn't practicing because of an upcoming tournament, nor because he was simply bored… This practice session had the purpose of relieving stress --- the kind of stress associated with losing so easily to a rookie _child_ opponent, and being humiliated in front of and being abandoned by his former crush. And from once again finding no clues of the whereabouts of his dark half, Sephiroth.

That, and the stress from being royally screwed over by the darkness and somehow ending up as some lunatic's puppet. That's right, he still wasn't over any of his problems. The only thing he _could_ do was this. Practice.

With a soft growl, Cloud swung his buster sword around, spinning deftly on his heel before jerking the blade forward again, powerfully cleaving it into the same stone column he had been venting his anger on for the past half-hour. It was a steady rhythm that calmed him. 

It made his life simple. 

Just step, spin, swing, hit, retract, repeat.

Step. _Fwumph. Clang. _Retract. Repeat. 

Step. _Fwumph. Clang._ _Scriiiitch --- **shing**!_ Repeat. 

Step. Spin. Swing ---

"Kid, would you cut it _out_?! You're driving me up the wall!"

Cloud paused, his blade dug into the column, and turned to regard Phil the satyr, who was currently standing with his stubby fists on his hips, one hoof tapping impatiently. Cloud met the goat man's scowl with a cool gaze, knowing full well he must have looked a mess with his dirty, flushed skin and sweat-drenched hair that, no matter what Cloud did, refused to stay out of his tired blue eyes. Even though he was exhausted, barely able to regulate his breathing, Cloud still managed to give a calm, emotionless stare. He didn't have to speak; Phil did it for him.

"I know you're pissed. You have reason to be, but for Zeus's sake, express it some other way! The coliseum's columns can only take so much!"

Jerking the sword out of the stone, Cloud swung the blade up and over his side, letting it come to a delicate rest on his shoulder. Not moving his hard eyes away from Cloud's face even to glance at the sword, Phil saw the unimpressed expression the blonde man gave him. If Cloud had spoken, judging from that look, he would have said, "The _coliseum_ can only take so much? What about _me_?" or "You have no idea what the hell you're talking about, goat man."

But of course expressing himself in such a way would totally go against the icy mask Cloud had put up to protect himself.  So he merely blinked at the satyr from over the ridge of his red mantle, remaining silent.

Phil sighed. "Look, kid. I don't know why you're still hangin' around here, after the contract and all… You're useless now, kid. Why don't you leave?"

"I'm looking for someone," Cloud replied shortly, reaching his free hand up to brush at his wet bangs. It was his standard answer to everything. He must have used that excuse about a dozen times.

"You won't find 'em here. Won't be another tournament for a while, anyway," Phil pointed out.

As though trying to make sense of Phil's words, Cloud glanced out the door of the entrance hall and into the empty courtyard and realized that Phil meant that the place was empty, and would remain that way until the next tournament drew near. 

It had already been a few days since the end of the last tournament, since Leon and the others had left, and Cloud admitted that he was getting rather bored. No one to watch, nothing to practice against, only Phil to talk to.

There was still no sign of Sephiroth either, nor did he think there would be clues until the next tournament… Unless he snooped around this place, and Cloud wasn't up to such behavior especially considering who owned the coliseum, and considering the owner had already tried to kill him.

"So yeah. I have one word for you," Phil said, holding a finger up to jab at Cloud. "Go away!"

Leave?

But where would he go?

Between tournaments, Cloud had stayed here, in the coliseum, and had practiced because it had been the only thing he really could do… But back then, the heartless had still been infesting the world, so Cloud had kept himself busy by fighting them. Now that they were gone, he could only do _this_ --- practice against walls and columns and the air. 

He _did_ want to leave, but since he had awoken from the darkness, and began to remember things, he had always been here. This was the only place he knew now.

Even under Hades's angry watch, it was the only place where he felt safe.

Or welcome.

Anywhere else, wouldn't he be seen as some abomination? A freak?

The way Squall had looked at his wing… The way he had looked at _him_…

He wasn't normal. He wouldn't be accepted.

Squall. No, Leon.

Just _thinking_ that name caused his heart to beat faster. After so long without seeing a familiar face, it had to be _Squall_ who showed up and found him. But by now he and the others were probably safe and snug in their large beds at home, or already off on some other world fighting heartless.

By now… Would Leon have told everyone that he was still alive?

Somehow he doubted it.

Maybe Leon would help him. Squall would protect him against society's hatred, wouldn't he? He _had_ offered Cloud some hospitality, but Cloud had turned him down in order to continue searching for Sephiroth.

But now Cloud was being forced out of the coliseum, his only sanctuary, and there was no where else to go. Except Squall's side. Of course, though, Cloud had no way of contacting Squall. 

_Phil could have told me this **before** Squall had left_, Cloud sighed to himself, shaking his head. Out loud he said, "I have no way off this world."

"Then I suggest you find one," Phil snorted.

Cloud vaguely considered pummeling the grouchy satyr, but the idea was as fleeting as it was useless, so he instead asked the next thing that came to his mind, hoping to delay his departure a little while longer.

"Where's Hades?"

Phil suddenly took a step back and raised both of his hands in a calming gesture. "Whoa, kid. I seriously doubt you'd want to take up another contract with him after what happened last time. You shouldn't even _be_ here."

"I don't want to sign another contract, Phil." Cloud could have rolled his eyes, but he didn't. "Just tell me where he is."

"Not here. He was having problems with that creepy sorceress."

"Maleficent?" Cloud asked, knowing full well to whom Phil was referring. He also knew that Hades had been doing some dirty work for her, and that somehow Cloud was caught up in it.

"Ah, yeah, her," the satyr slowly said, having the decency to look off-put because of the mention of her name.

Deciding to press the matter, thinking he might learn something valuable, Cloud asked, "What is she upset about that has anything to do with Hades?"

Phil waved a hand in a dismissive gesture. "Bah! Something about that brat of hers bringing home a dangerous pet." But then, as Cloud's eyes widened in realization, Phil seemed to realize who he was talking to and _what_ he was talking about. "Ah, I meant to say---"

But Cloud cut in, having figured it out. He knew now, after the conversation with Leon, that Yami was Maleficent's brat. And if he had gone 'home' ---

"Yami took Riku and Sora to Maleficent?!" Cloud demanded in a quiet, biting voice.

But how? Hadn't they headed back with Leon to wherever Leon now lived? Certainly that wasn't where Maleficent was, since Leon was looking for her. 

Somehow the children must have gotten separated from Leon, and Yami had taken advantage of the situation. Yami, who was working for Maleficent --- or at least, that's what it seemed like. But then, why was she upset, and why did Yami do it if she wouldn't be happy with his decision?

Leon had said that Sora was close to Yami, and Sora was falling into darkness. Maybe Yami was supposed to deliver Sora to her, but couldn't without taking Riku too, because they were so close to each other. And Riku was what Leon called a 'keyblade master,' a defeater of the heartless. Maleficent was controlling the heartless. She must be upset because Yami had brought her enemy to her. 

_Riku_ was the dangerous pet Phil had just mentioned.

Only a second or two had passed during this revelation of Cloud's, and Phil was very well aware that Cloud had just fit the pieces of the puzzle together. Even though Cloud wasn't sure what most of it meant, or how it affected him or anyone else, he _did_ know that it wasn't good.

It meant the enemy wanted Sora for something, most likely to exploit the darkness growing within him (which sounded vaguely familiar to Cloud, like it had happened before). It also meant that Leon's pet savior, the keyblade master named Riku was now in his enemy's grasp. And Riku certainly wasn't strong enough to hold his own against such a formidable opponent like Maleficent.

Did Leon know?

Did Squall know that the destroyer of their home world, their _lives_, now had possession of their only hope?

Huh. 

But then, shouldn't Maleficent be _pleased_ that she had Riku? She could kill him off easily and rid herself of the only thorn in her side. Unless…

Unless there was another factor Cloud was overlooking. Maybe she _did_ want to kill Riku, but she couldn't for some reason. Like maybe something was stopping her. 

Or _someone_. 

Yami? But why would _Yami_ want Riku alive?

And none of that still explained why Maleficent was upset with _Hades_ about Yami wanting to protect Riku.

Cloud leveled his gaze upon Phil, blue eyes dangerously narrowed as he stepped forward, towering over the short satyr, who was suddenly looking considerably trapped. Sliding his enormous sword off his shoulder and moving it in front of himself, Cloud said in a low, even voice:

"You're going to tell me _all_ you know."

~~~

Leon was not prepared for what he saw when he crossed through the coliseum's gates three days later after his initial plan to recruit Cloud. 

He had spent the first day waiting for Riku and Sora to arrive back on Traverse Town --- they all had been hoping that maybe they were just delayed… But on the second day when it was evident the boys _weren't_ coming back, Leon had gone out to look for them, only to return the next day empty-handed. That third day he had spent his time resting and planning for his trip back to the coliseum, thinking mostly about what he was going to say to Cloud when he saw him again. That, and how to bring back Cloud without Aerith or Yuffie or Cid noticing who he was so that Cloud could rest peacefully in Traverse Town a few days to regain his strength, and open up to Leon a little more before they went on their actual trip to find Hollow Bastion.

So, after those busy three days planning his arrival at the coliseum, Leon was startled to find what he actually found when he did get back to the coliseum. At first, when he entered the courtyard, he was grateful for the emptiness of the place.

But then a sharp cry rang out in the quiet, dry air, immediately sending him into alert mode.

One hand reaching for his gunblade, Leon hesitated in mid-step, watching as a short furry figure stumbled out of the entrance hall and fell into the sand of the courtyard. Phil the satyr. But why did the goat man look so flustered?

And suddenly a taller, more lithe figure came leaping down the steps after Phil, long red mantle swirling around him and a large sword poised for attack. Beneath the mantle, just a hint of the black skin of a wing could be seen.

Cloud.

Why the hell was he chasing Phil?

"Tell me!" Cloud was yelling as he towered over the fallen Phil, who had his stubby hands over the back of his head as though it would protect him from Cloud's wrath.

"I told you, I don't know nothing!!" Phil shot back. He was laying on his robust stomach, furry ass stuck up into the air and his legs curled under him. Or, they _were_. 

Just as Cloud was stepping forward to nudge Phil's back with his foot, one of the satyr's legs kicked out, hard, and drove a hoof into Cloud's unprotected inner thigh.

The blonde man cried out and doubled over, knees falling into the sand, sword falling next to him as his gloved hands went to clutch at the nerve in his thigh, trying to suppress the pain. 

Meanwhile Phil was scrambling back into a standing position, looking both triumphant and exasperated as he brushed sand off his fur. "Threaten me again and you'll get a swift kick where it hurts more, punk!" the satyr yelled, his knobby tail swishing madly. "Now get the hell out of here before I change my mind and decide to feed you to Cerberus!"

With that said, Phil turned and sauntered back to the entrance hall, muttering incoherent things to himself, leaving poor Cloud kneeled in the sand and biting back his cries. The man's blue eyes were squeezed shut, and his lips pulled back to reveal tightly-clenched teeth. The firm muscles in his arms were so tense from applying so much pressure to the wound that they were trembling, and his shaking limbs were very evident to Leon as the older man crossed the large courtyard to make himself known.

When Leon got closer, he realized just how simply _terrible_ Cloud's appearance had gotten in just three days. It looked like he hadn't bathed, eaten, or even rested since the tournament had ended. His hair was dark and matted down with sweat and sand, and his skin looked no better, especially considering how pale it seemed to be under all that filth, not to mention the heavy circles beneath his eyes.

Leon paused a few feet away from Cloud, just as the younger man let out a soft "Agh," as he struggled to stand, only to fall back into his kneeling position. Cloud's wing slipped out from under his red mantle and flapped irritably as his eyebrows drew together in frustration.

No doubt he was mentally beating himself up over something, and Leon had a feeling it wasn't just because he had let Phil humiliate him.

Cloud was so involved with himself that he didn't even seem to notice that Leon was standing there.

"He hit a pressure point," Leon announced in a flat voice, and Cloud's head immediately shot up, glistening blue eyes snapping open to stare in shock at him.

"_Squall_…?"

But Leon merely stood there in front of him, arms crossed over his chest as he continued, "Striking the nerve of the inner thigh with great force triggers extreme pain and can cause the leg to buckle. Be glad he didn't hit anything a little higher than that."

A bitter, pained grin crossed Cloud's pallid, dirty face. He really didn't look too healthy.

"Great…" he laughed, a harsh, biting sound. "At least I know _you're_ not a hallucination. I don't think any part of my brain has that awful sense of humor…" Once again he tried to stand, but failed and ended up landing on his bottom. "_Shit_…" he growled, raking his clawless hand through his filthy hair. "And I thought today couldn't get any worse…" But then he paused, slowly raising only his eyes to regard Leon with an unreadable gaze. "But you're here now, so that's good."

"I wasn't expecting to come back so soon," Leon callously admitted, still studying Cloud's pathetic, downtrodden figure. 

The younger man really needed some help. And for the first time in three days, Leon was glad he had been put in this terrible situation. If Riku and Sora hadn't disappeared, Leon wouldn't have had the need to seek Cloud out, and he wouldn't have seen the blonde man like this and realized just how _broken_ he really was.

"Why _did_ you?" Cloud asked in a hushed, defeated whisper, blue eyes lowering to stare at his fallen buster sword.

Letting out an audible sigh, Leon lowered himself to one knee, extending a single hand in front of Cloud, face passive but his eyes hard with some indefinable emotion. "Come on," he said, and Cloud slowly raised his gaze to stare at Leon's outstretched arm. 

A moment of silence passed between them, but as if by some unseen cue, Cloud slipped his clawed fingers around the hilt of his sword and with his free hand he firmly grabbed Leon's, letting himself get pulled to his shaky feet. And just for that moment, there was no bitterness, no underlying harsh feelings between them, or dark memories nibbling into their present moods. They even forgot about their facades.

A slow, almost nonexistent smile passed between them, and Leon said, "You look like shit."

"And feel like it too," Cloud managed to say through a groan as he thoughtlessly grabbed hold of Leon to support himself.

Leon forced himself to take the other man's heedless touch with indifference. It was just Cloud, and Cloud needed the help. There was no reason for him to feel weird about his personal space being so nonchalantly invaded. 

"What happened?" he asked.

Cloud sighed. "I was trying to get information out of Phil. Turns out he doesn't like to be threatened."

Raising a single eyebrow, Leon asked, "Information?"

"About Hades, Maleficent and Yami…" Cloud replied, his voice lowering as he suddenly became serious. "But first tell me you came to take me away from here."

"I did." Leon's steely blue eyes narrowed as he stared at the younger man. "Why was Phil kicking you out?"

"He finally got tired of seeing me, I guess," Cloud said, motioning with his head for Leon to start walking. "That and he accidentally let slip that Maleficent was unhappy with Yami. Phil probably got scared that if I stuck around, he'd bring Hades down upon him."

Leon lowered his gaze as he slowly began heading back to the gummi ship, letting Cloud hobble next to him, using a shoulder for support. "So Yami _did_ deliver Riku and Sora to Maleficent."

Cloud's grip on the other man's arm suddenly tightened. "It's true?"

Brow furrowing, Leon nodded solemnly. "Yeah. Their ship never made it back to Traverse Town. We were afraid that was what had happened, so I was sent out to search for Hollow Bastion."

"By yourself?" Cloud asked, slightly wincing before he continued. "I mean…"

"That's why I came here," Leon said, turning his face forward so that Cloud couldn't read his expression. "You're going to help me. But after seeing how you are, we're going back to Traverse Town so you can rest."

The grip suddenly tightened so much that Leon glanced over at Cloud to see what was wrong, and Cloud suddenly staggered ahead so that he stood in front of the other man, confusion knitting his face.

"But what about Riku and Sora?" he asked, voice slightly wavering from his effort to remain standing. "I'm not going to lay around while they're being subjected to likely torture at Hollow Bastion."

Leon's eyes suddenly hardened into a glare, and Cloud caught a glimpse of helplessness in them. He could see the other man's inner turmoil. Leon didn't want to wait around either, but there wasn't much else he could do.

"When we get back, I'll have Donald and Goofy start the search for us," Leon said, resolve in his voice. "You're a mess. You need someone to take care of you."

Cloud blinked, suddenly touched that _Squall_ was actually concerned about him, that _Squall_ was actually going to _take care_ of him. But wait. That didn't sound right.

"What about Aerith?" Cloud asked, but he had a feeling he already knew the answer, so he added, "You didn't tell them about me, did you?" When Leon didn't respond, Cloud knew he was right. Drawing a little closer to the older man, he frowned, staring into Leon's eyes. "Why not?"

Leon met his gaze with a steady glare. "It would have caused them unnecessary stress," he said in a flat voice. "And they wouldn't have understood your situation. It's not time for them to know yet."

Even though he sensed more behind Leon's words, Cloud did not comment about it. "Alright," he said, and he moved as though he was going to begin walking again.

His heart almost leapt into his throat when he felt Leon's arm wrap around his waist to steady him. Sneaking a glance at the older man, Cloud saw that Leon was already fitting him with a calm gaze. Feeling trapped, Cloud merely nodded as he stared into those eyes. He didn't start walking until Leon urged him forward.

Releasing a relieved sigh, Cloud let himself be guided towards the double doors leading out of the coliseum. He was actually leaving. After nine years of darkness and an undeterminable amount of time here, Cloud was finally going to be safe. With people.

With _Squall_.

…this was going to be hard…

~~~

If Cloud had been impressed with the gummi ship trip or Leon's flying skills, he didn't say so, and if he had been impressed by Traverse Town, he didn't show it. Somehow they made it all the way from the gummi ship port (Cid was thankfully absent) to Leon's small home in the second district without being seen by anyone who actually knew Leon. His home, conveniently, was on the top story of a blue and beige building nestled between the second and third districts, with its entrance being in the second, and its grand-view balcony facing into third. It was just far away enough from the street so that people probably wouldn't notice the light on in the window, since Leon was supposed to be out of town and all. No one was expecting him back so soon, and he wanted to keep his presence a secret for as long as he could.

Cloud actually walked up the several flights of stairs on his own to get to Leon's home, and when they got there, Leon merely opened the door and gestured for Cloud to enter. The younger man studied Leon carefully for a moment before staggering into the warm little apartment, a bit apprehensive about the whole situation. He wasn't worried about Leon, no --- he was worried about other people discovering their arrival.

On the way to this world, Leon had explained that Traverse Town was a place where many survivors gathered, so it was easy to forget names, and new faces showed up everyday, survivors from destroyed worlds. He said that even if Cloud was discovered in Leon's home, no one was going to suspect anything directly about who Cloud was; the people were friendly and accepted anyone who wasn't an enemy. And then there was always Leon's word that Cloud was safe, if the people found out about Cloud's wing and 'demonic' powers. The people here trusted Leon with their lives, and would believe whatever he said. 

That reassured Cloud a little, but then there was the whole possibility that Cid or Aerith or someone else _he_ knew realizing that Leon was home, and then coming to visit him, and in turn finding out that Cloud was there too. Anyone could just walk right in. There didn't seem to be any locks on any of the doors, like just anyone could stroll through the door and borrow a cup or something when Leon wasn't home. And since Leon _wasn't_ supposed to be home, Cloud thought that it was even more possible.

Leon, however, didn't seem too concerned.

Not meeting Cloud's eyes for approval or anything, Leon closed the door and motioned for Cloud to look around. "None of us have much here, but I managed to get a space of my own. I'm generally not bothered unless it's an emergency," the brunette explained as Cloud peered into the dark room.

Cloud's eyes adjusted immediately, startling him a little. But he brushed it off, thinking maybe his eyes had grown used to the dark, like another freakish side effect of his extended time in the darkness.

Even though Leon said his home wasn't much (and by Hollow Bastion standards, it _wasn't_ much), Cloud thought he couldn't feel more welcomed. This place wasn't the hard, sandy stone of the coliseum, or the drowning darkness of his past… This place was _home_. There was furniture.

A couch. A _bed_.

Even in a tiny hovel like this, with what seemed to only be a kitchen, bedroom, den, and bathroom, Cloud hadn't felt more at home in _years_. 

It _felt_ like home.

But now he was such a stranger to civilization; it had been so long since he had done something as simple as sitting in a chair. 

And for the first time since he had lost his memories, Cloud _truly_ felt safe. He felt gratitude. Here he was, in Squall's home… with Squall himself. It was like something he might have dreamt about a few weeks ago, only this was _real_. There was no Hades or Phil, or heartless. No darkness. No Ansem or Sephiroth, or having to fight to survive. 

Here he felt almost…

_Happy_.

"Are you okay?"

Cloud blinked at the sudden question and turned to regard Leon, realizing that the other man had already turned on the lights and set his gunblade on a rack on the wall. The brunette was now watching him with what almost seemed to be concern.

How silly. Leon showing emotion?

"I'm… fine," Cloud managed to say, surprised to find his voice hoarse and almost sad. He blinked again, trying to bring his mind back to the here and now.

Something liquid and warm slid down his cheek.

But before Cloud could even realize that it was a tear, Leon had closed the distance between them, tugging off his thick, black gloves and dropping them on a small hall table before he reached a hand up to Cloud's face. Leon slipped his palm under the younger man's bangs and let it rest on his forehead, Leon's steely blue eyes fluttering closed as he felt the skin beneath his hand. Cloud remained motionless because he was unsure of how to act or feel at the moment. 

Squall was being so _nice_ to him… He was getting his temperature checked by _Squall_.

"You're cold," Leon noted, removing his hand and stepping back, raising his eyes to glance at Cloud's buster sword, which was currently hooked to his back next to his wing, half under his red mantle. "You should probably get out of those clothes. Do you have enough strength to shower?"

Cloud was too exhausted to feel embarrassed about the risqué way Leon's words could have been taken. "I feel a little better," Cloud replied quietly. "I should be fine." Though, a part of him was hoping Leon would help him in the bathroom; even just the mental image of a wet Leon cheered him up, but he knew it was a silly fantasy. Leon, helping him bathe? Pfft.

"Good," Leon said, beginning to shrug off his leather jacket. "The bathroom is at the back of the bedroom, and there are clean towels already in there." He paused, turning to hang his jacket on a hook next to his gunblade; Cloud noted how _clean_ and _organized_ Leon seemed to be. Leon had turned back to face Cloud when he spoke again. "Warm water is to the right. I'll find something for you to eat while you wash up."

And with that said, Leon patted Cloud's shoulder and turned to leave.

He was suddenly stopped by Cloud's clawed hand catching his own as he was letting it fall back to his side. Leon froze, feeling Cloud idly stroke his palm before he slid his grasp down to instead hold Leon's wrist.

"Thanks," came the soft, quiet voice.

So much emotion in that one, heart-felt word. It sounded so sad, but grateful, so shy and withdrawn. So ashamed, but _happy_.

Leon felt its honesty, its sincerity, and couldn't help the small, almost unnoticeable smile that fell over his lips. He slowly turned to glance over his shoulder at the other man, grey eyes meeting blue.

"You're welcome, Cloud."

And Cloud fell in love with the man all over again, only this time it was _Leon_, not Squall.

When the brunette finally left, Cloud let out a long breath, realizing that there was no way in _hell_ he was going to be able to ignore his resurfacing feelings, especially when Leon was being so damn _nice_. This Leon was being so different from the Leon at the coliseum. From Cloud's initial impression of him, he had thought that all humanity had been locked away in that man, but somehow, for some reason now, Cloud had managed to open it up a little.

He could see it.

Leon seemed to have a soft spot for pitiable creatures like Cloud. Even though it wasn't the most admirable way to look at his new relationship with Leon, Cloud refused to read any more into it.

He didn't want to end up hurt again.

Besides, Leon was… frigid.

Even if Cloud could bring himself to _love_ again (if it had ever been true love at all), Leon would never feel the same, especially considering what Cloud now was. Squall hadn't had feelings for the Cloud of the past, so no doubt Leon would feel the same indifference to the Cloud of today. The freak. The abomination from the darkness. 

Yes, Leon seemed to have a soft spot… But it was only pity. Pity for pitiable creatures.

Leon, ultimately, was untouchable, and did no touching for himself either.

Still, that didn't stop Cloud from dreaming. He knew it was a hopeless pursuit, and that even _he_ would have trouble _loving_, but there was always lust. Desire.

And Leon was _definitely_ something to desire.

Shit.

He needed that shower.

Forcing himself to think innocent thoughts, Cloud turned and trudged into Leon's bedroom. 

He wasn't at all surprised to see how tidy and clean it was, considering how the rest of the apartment had looked from the hallway. Bed perfectly made, not a stray sock on the floor; Cloud was sure, if he opened the dresser, even underwear would be folded. Moving deeper into the bedroom, Cloud couldn't help feeling that the place just seemed so… unlived in. Even the bathroom was the epitome of perfect hygiene.

Why was Leon so clean? It wasn't like he had anyone to impress.

Cloud felt like such a outsider to this world, this perfect example of civilization. It was so weird, coming back to this type of advanced society after living so primitively for so long, even if he couldn't remember the majority of it. His _body_ could feel it, and that's what alienated him. 

A few minutes passed before Cloud realized that he had stopped in front of the shower stall and was thoughtlessly staring at it. A blink or two brought him back to the present, and he released a sigh, giving in to the inevitable. 

Shower. How long had it been since he had indulged himself in a warm shower? Baths he had had at the coliseum, but a shower… He couldn't remember. At least he still knew how they worked.

First came the undressing. 

Cloud could have left his buster sword in the entryway, close to Leon's gunblade, but he felt even more unsafe without it near him. He wasn't sure how long he had had it, but it had become his closest friend. 

Reaching behind him, he slid the large sword out, careful not to hit anything with the blade as he twirled it around and propped it against the wall closest to him. Then was the tedious process of removing his mantle and armor, and unbuckling his many belts, which took him several long minutes, in the middle of which he stopped and unfastened his shoes and kicked them off.

By the time he had all his accessories off and was left in only his pants and shirt, he saw the grime on his removed accessories already staining the clean floor, and he felt bad about spoiling something so sterile. He would clean it up, but he had a feeling Leon would force him to sleep after he ate something.

…food sounded really good right now…

But first he had to clean up.

Stretching his wing out, Cloud grasped the front ends of his turtleneck and lifted the front of it over his head, letting it fall behind him, caught in his wing. Then, bringing his wicked appendage around, he reached for the shirt and carefully worked the ridges of the wing out of the hole. He was finally depositing the turtleneck on the floor when he heard the shuffling of footsteps in the doorway, and he turned, catching Leon standing there.

The man looked unperturbed, even with a shirtless Cloud in his bathroom. Then again, Cloud wasn't really expecting much from the older man, except maybe Leon staring at his wing. But Leon didn't even do _that_.

"There's nothing to eat in the kitchen, so I'm going to go buy something down the street," Leon said. "I'll be back shortly. I also thought I would tell the king's messengers to go ahead and start the search for Sora and Riku for us."

Cloud nodded stiffly and turned away, undoing his pants. 

"Don't spend too much time in there," Leon added as he left. "I'll be back soon."

It turned out that Cloud _didn't_ spend too much time actually showering. But somewhere in between thoroughly washing his hair and scrubbing the filth off his skin, he had fell into a long flow of thoughts and memories. The ones he could remember, anyway. And somewhere in between wondering about Sephiroth, Cloud's thoughts automatically went to the coliseum, and naturally thought about Squall's reentrance into his life.

From there it was all downhill.

Squall. Leon.

Cloud thought he had been safe from that man, but then Squall suddenly showed back up in his life… He didn't regret letting Squall back into his heart, no. Squall had never really left. He had just been deeply buried under all the dark cobwebs of self-pity and hate, and fear… 

Cloud never really could bring himself to hate Squall. Leon. He had tried, yes, but it was so _hard_. When he tried, it felt like his heart was being crushed under loneliness.

Now here he was, in Leon's home, indulging himself in the fruits of civilization; at the moment it was running water. Sweet, hot running water, with enough pressure to soothe his tired muscles into subordinate relaxation. 

Heh… Hate Leon?

It was almost impossible for him.

Leon just evoked so many different emotions in Cloud, so many dormant feelings, so many _new_ wants.

Ah, and with the way Leon was being so nice… The way Leon was interacting with Cloud…

Even though Cloud was now some freak of nature and hadn't interacted with much of _anything_ in the past nine years, and even though he was currently exhausted beyond belief, he felt _something_. **_A lot_** of something.

How could he _not_?

Cloud was naked in the home of his past and present object of lust. Alone. Leon had _touched_ him… _several_ times. Leon had _smiled_, also several times. 

In the past, that probably wouldn't have been enough to bother him, but _now_… 

Well, as recalled earlier, Leon was _definitely_ a desirable man. That was one of the few things that hadn't changed in nine years.

And Cloud did more than just desire him. Always had. There was always that underlying emotion that Cloud refused to call love --- back then it had been because he had been too young. Now his excuse was that a freak like himself _couldn't_ love.

But still… it remained. It was even _stronger_ now, that taboo feeling.

_Was_ it love?

Whatever it was, it was definitely affecting him.

Just _thinking_ about Leon. That rare smile. Those deep eyes. His gentle touch.

Touch…

Cloud lifted his face, letting his eyes close as the warm water flowed over his face and cascaded down his lean, nude body. It felt like a blanket so soft and light that he couldn't even feel it, only its comfortable warmth. Or like the whisper of hot skin against his own…

Like Leon's skin. What Cloud would give to feel Leon's skin.

Ahh… Or for Leon to feel _his_ skin.

If only he could feel Leon's fingertips running gracefully up the sensitive skin of his wing, or feel that man's hands kneading its fine, responsive muscles and sending throes of pleasurable shivers coursing through Cloud's body. If only he could feel Leon's warm palm skim down his chest and caress the tight muscles of his stomach, to love the sharp angles of his hips with his hot, velvety mouth.

To touch him the way he could only touch himself, where no one else had touched before… 

Despite the scalding heat of the water, Cloud shuddered violently, very well aware of the way his body was suddenly reacting to his inventive imagination.

He hadn't ever felt this way.

At least, he couldn't remember…

Yes, as a blossoming teenager he had experimented with himself, but never had he _felt_ this… There was never a _need_ to do such a thing.

Then again, never were his fantasies so vivid, so _close_… And never had Squall given Cloud reason to believe Cloud had a chance. And now _Leon_ had. There were the awkward stares, the touches, the smiles…

And Leon's _body_… Damn that man for still looking so damn exquisite, so _gorgeous_ and untamed. The way his soft, jagged hair fell into his beautiful eyes and framed his neck, almost like arrows pointing downward to tease Cloud's eyes, to make him _want_ to look. Cloud _had_ looked too. 

When Leon had taken off his jacket, Cloud had seen the way his white shirt had moved against his skin, firm muscles obviously evident under those clothes. Fuck, and those _pants_… They perfectly outlined Leon's shapely ass, the curve of his hips and the lines of his thighs, and what was in between them.

Ahh… _Shit_.

Cloud could feel it.

The pounding of his heart, the rushing of his blood and stirring of long-dormant emotions. Passions.

_Desire_.

Slouching forward, Cloud pressed his forehead against the cool tile, feeling the warm water stream down his arched back. Slowly one hand drifted southward, running down his smooth, wet body to gently take hold of his problem.

He winced.

Even his own touch gave an immediate reaction.

Cloud sucked in his breath, unconsciously tensing as though preparing for some unbearable pain. It didn't hurt though, not really. _Ached_, yes. Gently he stroked, hips rolling with his hand, and just that delicious friction caused his breath to release in a sharp, stuttering gasp. Just that one movement and he could feel the effects deep within himself.

It had been _so long_…

_Too late to stop now_, Cloud thought with a grimace, trying to keep himself from moving too fast into it. _Just think Leon_.

Leon.

Leon's hands, those sturdy fingers on him…

Pushing away from the tile, Cloud turned to the adjacent wall and stretched his wing outward as he leaned against it, using it to support his weight as he spread his long legs and closed his eyes again, focusing on that sharp ache. It was hard to tell where the feeling ended and where the touch began; like how tickling yourself didn't tickle, it was the same here --- pleasuring himself wouldn't be as satisfying as _Leon_ doing it to him, but it was better than nothing. And it _was_ too late to stop now. He would have to make do with his fantasy.

Cloud concentrated on the heat, on the wondrous friction he felt, on the same scene running over and over in his mind of Leon, him and Leon, Leon's hands, body, lips, tongue…

He pressed his head against the tile, wet hair sliding against the smooth surface, and whimpered aloud as he stroked again, falling into a soft rhythm that sent him deeper and deeper into helpless excitement and raw pleasure. His free hand slid up his own body, spreading the little rivulets of water over his hard muscles, and lovingly caressed his slick skin, slowly moving upward to his chest. Fingers skimmed over the contours there and focused in on his almost painfully hard nipples, and he suddenly sucked in a harsh breath through his teeth, releasing it as a desperate growl.

The tempo picked up, the rhythm of heat, friction and skin on skin the only elements that mattered, the only music that filled him. He squeezed, groaning aloud from the intense side effects, one foot sliding out on the slippery tile as he struggled to remain in his half-standing position against the wall, his wing painfully pressed between his back and the cold tile. 

If it weren't for his shaky knees, he would have imagined the tile against his back as the tile on the floor, and that he was actually sprawled out, legs arched in the air and Leon in between them, mouth hot and wet, tongue strong and rough…

"S-Shit… _Leon_…!"

It was a cry breathless with carnal passion, and it came right before his legs finally succumbed to the overwhelming emotions coursing through him, and he fell to the shower floor, the cooling water sliding over his bare shoulders like cold silk.

Cloud didn't stop.

If anything, his rhythm grew more wild, untamed, like some feral demon was trying to force its way out of him. He raked his nails over himself, no longer bothering to stifle his cries as he plunged further into his pleasure, as he quickly came to the edge, teetering precariously between searing red passion and the white cushion of release.

Just as the water cascading down his body was losing all of its warmth, he squeezed and stroked a final time and let out a hoarse half-scream, half-sob, lurching forward into the wet tile as he came, only managing to catch himself with his free hand.

It took a while for the convulsions to stop, and Cloud simply remained that way doubled over with his wing stretched to the ceiling. He stared at the pure white tile in front of his face and watched the water endlessly flow into the drain as thick streams of pearly white essence followed it. Relaxing his wing and releasing himself, he slowly brought the hand up, taking a moment to stare at the substance draped over his fingers as he tried to calm his heart, the hiss of the shower and his own ragged breathing the only relevant sounds in the room. 

He pressed the hand against the tile, letting it dam the flow of water so he could rinse himself off, trying to ignore the reawakening voice in his head that was scorning him for doing it. For giving in so carelessly to his emotions. For getting so damn carried away with it.

Hand clean, he painfully sat up, shifting so that his back and wing were pressed against the wall opposite the shower head and the now-freezing water was pounding mercilessly into his skin.

He sat there, wet eyelashes splayed across his cheeks and chin raised into the air, silently listening to the steady beat of the shower and drain, and feeling his tired body slowly recover from his climax.

Nine years.

His blue eyes cracked open a fraction, staring mindlessly ahead at the shower wall as though it would yield some answers.

How was he going to face Leon _now_?

A shiver raced through his body and he sighed, realizing he was yet again delaying the inevitable. He couldn't escape his feelings, nor would he allow himself to ignore Leon. He needed him, now that Leon was back in his life.

Pressing his hands to the floor, Cloud carefully slid his knees under himself and pushed upward, slowly climbing back to his feet. Once or twice his legs threatened to collapse, so he quickly slid his hands upward, grasping the towelette bar and pulling himself into a standing position.

Ignoring the biting water, he shut the tap off and snapped open the shower door, stepping into the cool air and looking around for a towel. As soon as he had found one and wrapped it around his waist, and was reaching for a new one to dry his hair, Cloud heard a sharp knock on the bathroom door, which he realized had _not_ been closed earlier.

Had Leon shut it before he left? Cloud couldn't remember.

"I'm coming in," Leon announced, and Cloud did his best to look innocent as the other man opened the door and entered.

Consciously folding his wing and clutching a hand at his waist to keep his towel on, Cloud blinked at the older man, who had a bundle of clothes tucked under one arm and was calmly setting a new stack of towels on the counter, not bothering to meet Cloud's guilty eyes. 

Geh, he needed to stop thinking about it… If he kept acting so weird, then Leon would suspect something.

So _what_ if he had just masturbated while dreaming about Leon?

It wasn't like _Leon_ knew.

"These are my clothes. You can borrow them until we get yours cleaned," Leon explained.

Forcing his voice to remain steady, Cloud softly asked, "What about my wing?"

Leon raised his head and turned, fitting the blonde man with a blank look. "What about it?"

"Well…"

Leon suddenly smirked and tossed him the bundle of clothes, which Cloud quickly caught with his free arm.

Underwear, loose black drawstring pants, socks. That was it.

Cloud had been worried about cutting a hole in one of Leon's shirts, but it seemed Leon wasn't even _giving_ him a shirt to wear. "Oh…" Cloud remarked. "Problem solved, I guess."

"I went shopping for food, and bought some things to cook with, so I don't have to risk going out again," Leon said. "I did find Donald and Goofy, and they said they'd start the search for Sora and Riku while I took care of some important business. I didn't tell them about you being here. I didn't see anyone else either, so no one knows I'm back so soon."

Nodding, Cloud managed a meek smile. "Good…" he said, and then turned around and shook his wing out, signaling for Leon to leave.

But Leon didn't. Curious, Cloud glanced over his bare shoulder and saw that Leon was _staring_ at him.

"What?" he asked, and Leon merely raised his grey eyes to meet his blue.

The older man had a slightly suspicious, knowing look on his face, and Cloud suddenly had a feeling that maybe Leon _did_ know about what Cloud had just done in the shower.

"Nothing," Leon replied, and Cloud caught himself before he let a sigh of relief out. 

Leon's voice had no sign of embarrassment or disgust… So that was a good sign. Then again, it sounded like Leon was implying it was his _right_ to be able to stare at Cloud so pointedly. 

Those grey eyes flickered down again, and Cloud _knew_ Leon was definitely studying him. 

"You don't have any scars."

Cloud unconsciously focused on Leon's own scar, which was currently partially covered by his brown bangs. "I don't know why," he said, uncomfortably shifting his wing. The way Leon was staring at him… It made him feel naked. Granted, he was almost there, but he shouldn't feel so awkward. Swallowing timidly, Cloud muttered, "But I _do_ have a bruise from Phil."

And then, as though Leon had made up his mind about something, he nodded and turned to leave, saying, "Get dressed and come eat."

Cloud mentally snorted. 

What had _that_ been about?

Men don't stare at other men that way. They don't, unless they harbored feelings for one another…

And Leon didn't.

So why had he been staring? Was it Cloud's wing?

Could he _sense_ what Cloud felt for him? Or…

Cloud's eyes suddenly widened. 

Had Leon heard him in the shower? 

Cloud had tried to remain quiet, but he _had_ made noise… _Obvious_ noise…

Did Leon know what Cloud had done in the shower? That Cloud had been fantasizing about _him_?

_No. Stop it. Stop being so paranoid, of course he doesn't **know**_, Cloud berated himself.

But as he watched the door close behind Leon, and he was left clutching Leon's borrowed clothes, he couldn't help feeling a sense of dread.

What the _hell_ had he gotten himself into?

He had spent at most three hours with Leon and he had already done _that_… And he still had a few days with him as he recovered, and then it was just going to be the two of them searching the worlds.

Just him… and Leon. Alone. In a small ship.

Shifting his clothes to his other arm, Cloud raked a hand through his wet hair, and sighed in frustration.

_Shit._

_________________________________________________________________________________

No, no! It doesn't end there! Come back in a week or so for the next part! ^^; There will be three parts total to this Side Story, and then I'll get back to the normal Stygian Solace timeline (and Riku and Sora), and get back to work on my other fanfics (that's right, it's not just SS and 180 anymore ^.~) too.

The reviews I got for my last chapter were simply phenomenal. I was so worried about what everyone was going to say, but I have to say that I was VERY pleased with your reactions. I got everything I was hoping for, so I know I'm going in the right direction. And…

_THANK YOU FOR ALL THE FANART!!_ I love you guys! ^____^ 

But don't forget to **review** and give your regards to Stygian Solace on its **_first birthday_**! And don't forget to join the **mailing list** (link in profile), and look at the **birthday page** (link also in profile). ^^; 

Thanks so much for putting up with me for a year already! XD

--Uzumaki


	22. A Side Story: Solitude's Monochrome Hap...

**Note: The Uzumaki Fanfiction yahoo group has been created, so please join if you're a dedicated reader! The link can be found in Uzumaki's profile above. And don't forget to vote in the polls! And we need more people posting! Ask questions too, that's why it's there. ^^;**

_Author Notes:_

Here's part 2 of Leon and Cloud's side story! ^^; Some stuff is revealed about their pasts, and lots of hints about certain plot factors… Ah-hem.

There was a definite lack of reviews for the past chapter, so I'm not sure what to think… But I assure you this side story won't take long to get through, if you're not enjoying it. This is for the people who wanted it, who were curious about what happened to the rest of the cast after Riku and Sora were taken to Hollow Bastion. From the poll at the yahoo group, and from some reviews, I can tell that a few of you were really wanting Cloud/Riku or Leon/Riku… XD And while I would love to write some of that, it just won't fit in SS's storyline. Maybe little hints… Hmm…

Thanks to those who continue to show their support. ^^ I really love all the e-mails, and my mailbox is never really satisfied… So write me, really. Review. Send art. Which reminds me… THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the fanart! ^__^ You have nooo idea how insanely happy it makes me to receive it!  So yummy. Ah! Definitely inspirational.

Here's Mushu, and more fluff for ya. XD

______________________________________________________________________________

**_A Side Story: Solitude's Monochrome Happiness_**  part 2

Mushu had always been a sort of need-be optimistic kind of dragon, always trying to find the positive aspects of bad things, but only when he really needed to, or when someone else needed his support. But after being magically whisked away from his home, his _world_, then being exposed to long arduous hours of a crazy old wizard's philosophy, and then all of a sudden having his only friends disappear on him and end up in the enemy's hands, any sane person would think Mushu would be suffering from a mental breakdown, or at least be wallowing in a fit of depression.

Was he?

No.

Oh no, Mushu was having the time of his life. Granted, he did miss Riku and Sora, and his home world too, but he had discovered something much more fulfilling in his life. Rather, _someone_. 

Cid.

A day after Leon had come back without Riku and Sora, Mushu had decided to abandon Merlin's study as his pastime and very suddenly discovered Cid, and Cid's crude sense of humor. Despite the fact that his home world had been invaded and torn apart by heartless, Cid didn't have any qualms about retelling stories from his past. Mushu had his own stories to tell too, mostly about his times as a lesser guardian. Well, he was _still_ a lesser guardian, but Cid didn't have to know that.

Now Mushu spent his time perched on Cid's head or shoulder, conversing loudly about hilarious past experiences. The two of them had become such great friends, actually, that even though they spent almost every minute together, neither of them was tired of the other.

In fact, the morning after Leon left on his search to find Riku and Sora, Mushu and Cid were comparing their aunts when they entered the gummi ship garage. Little did they know, a surprise awaited them.

"Yeah, and she had this _huge_ growth on her tail," Mushu was saying, and he would have completed his thoughts but Cid had suddenly stopped in the middle of the garage in front of a ship. Mushu noticed the man's sudden shift of moods and asked, "Hey old man, what's up?"

Cid reached a hand up and shifted his toothpick to the other side of his mouth. "Is it just me or is that there a gummi ship?"

Blinking in confusion, Mushu turned to look at the offending ship. "Uh… Yeah?"

A soft snort came from Cid. "Didn't Leon leave in it yesterday?"

"Uh… Yeah," Mushu replied, shifting his hold on Cid's shoulder before looking up at the blonde man.

Cid returned the look. "Huh. That's weird."

Mushu was about to agree when two familiar voices spoke before he could. Turning around to face the newcomers, Cid and Mushu watched as the king's messengers waddled and ambled into the garage, the duck looking even more perturbed than usual.

"…wasting time!"

"Uh-huck, maybe he felt sick."

The duck huffed irritably. "He looked fine!"

Goofy brought a finger up to his chin as he raised his eyes to the ceiling in thought. "Well, maybe he left the stove on at home."

"He could have asked us to start the search three days ago if he was going to make us do it all along," Donald grumbled, waddling quickly to keep up with Goofy's long strides. "Something must have happened!"

"Maybe he went to get that Crow fella."

"Not Crow, Clo---"

Donald abruptly fell silent when he saw Cid standing there in front of the ship.

Reaching up to scratch at his stubble, Cid asked, "What was this about you two starting the search?"

Donald promptly crossed his wings. "Leon came to us yesterday and told us to start the search for the key bearer."

"He said something important came up, uh-huck," Goofy brightly added.

Mushu and Cid exchanged curious looks, and then Cid asked, "So is he home now?"

Goofy gave an exaggerated shrug.

Hmm…

That was strange. Leon didn't abandon a mission once started. That 'something important' Goofy had mentioned that supposedly 'came up' for Leon must have been extremely imperative, especially considering Leon was the one who felt so responsible about Riku and Sora's abduction in the first place. Only something life or death could be more important than that search to Leon.

Unless…

Unless it had something to do with Squall.

Leon had always been touchy about his past.

And, as though making up his mind, Cid nodded. "Mushu." The dragon glanced up again, giving Cid a blank look, who said, "Go see why that bastard came back. Check his house --- you know where it is. Don't come back until he's given ya an answer."

Sitting up and pressing a hand to his scaly forehead, Mushu chirped, "Aye, aye, Capitan!"

And with a flash of red scales and the click-click of talons on stone floor, Mushu scampered out of the gummi garage and into the everlasting night life of Traverse Town.

~~~

"Yo, Leon! Open up!"

A pair of steel-blue eyes snapped open from light slumber and cast a glance around an unfamiliar room, looking for the source of that obnoxious voice. 

Wait.

Why was he in his living room?

Oh… That's right. Yesterday. Cloud was staying with him.

After a very quiet, awkward dinner last night that had consisted of bread and soup, Leon had told Cloud to sleep on his bed, and then they both had retired rather early to escape the uneasy tension between them. He hadn't been able to sleep though, and he doubted Cloud had had much rest either. Cloud had his natural reasons, of course, but Leon was having sleep problems for another reason entirely. That reason?

Cloud himself.

Cloud's sudden reappearance in Leon's life had thrown all of his facades askew. It was so hard to remain passive around Cloud, and Leon didn't think it was just because Cloud had been a prominent figure in his past. There were more reasons than that. Granted, Cloud being a part of his past did have an affect on him because it stirred up so many buried memories (and reminded Leon of unwanted things), but that wasn't the key factor in Leon's current discomfort with the boy-turned-man named Cloud. Neither was Cloud's suffering --- that _did_ make Leon sympathize with Cloud more, because Cloud had suffered so much like he had, in their own different ways, but that didn't excuse why Leon was being so damn nice to him, why he was opening up around him, and _smiling_…

And it didn't explain what Leon felt.

At first he had thought it was guilt --- that he still felt responsible for Cloud and Sephiroth's disappearance all those years ago, and guilt because he saw so much Cloud in Sora, and he had failed Sora, which felt like failing _Cloud_ again. He had a nagging concern that Sora would somehow end up like Cloud.

Yes, it was true he felt guilty, but that wasn't that _feeling_ he felt. It wasn't pity either. He had, at first, thought it was pity that drove him to care so much about Cloud now, but really, honestly, Leon _didn't_ pity him. It was more… admiration. He was fascinated by the fact Cloud had changed so much, and had endured all that pain and suffering and loneliness in the darkness. Leon had no doubt that he would not have been that strong if he had been in that situation.

Well, look at his past already. One tragedy at age nine and he had locked himself away… Seven years later Hollow Bastion fell to Maleficent and the heartless, and another catastrophe occurred, and Squall further built around himself the shell named Leon. 

Squall was weak. He had buried his past with his humanity and had become Leon. 

Cloud… Cloud was still fighting. He hadn't given up yet. 

Cloud was a survivor.

Leon was a ghost.

...anyway…

But if it wasn't guilt or pity that Leon felt for Cloud, what _was_ it?

It made him smile for no apparent reason, it made him want to comfort Cloud and make sure he was happy and comfortable. Leon had _never_ given a shit about anyone before, not _that_ much (not even for Cid, Aerith, or Yuffie), so what made Cloud so damn _special_?

_Because I know he loved me back then, even when everyone else had tried to get past my barriers,_ Leon thought with a sigh. _And even though he has closed himself up so much, like I had in the past, he still feels for me._

Evidence of that was what Leon had witnessed yesterday when he had come home from shopping. 

Cloud. In the shower. Crying out _his_ name…

It didn't take a genius to figure out what Cloud had been doing in there. Leon had politely shut the door to help block out the rest, but the damage had been done.

The image of a totally nude Cloud in the shower, water running down his fully-developed body, cheeks flushed and muscles trembling as he touched himself while thinking about _Leon_… That image was just…

Leon didn't _know_ what it was, but it had something to do with that damn _feeling_ he kept experiencing when he thought about Cloud, or when he talked to Cloud, or when Cloud was close to him. 

He had his suspicions, yes, but admitting them would be admitting that his promises were all lies, and that the past sixteen years of his life had been wasted building inadequate walls to hide himself in.

After that tragedy, and then Hollow Bastion's tragedy, who wouldn't want to forget? That's what Squall had tried to do. He had buried himself under tediously-constructed emotional barriers and moved on with his life as Leon, with only a scar on his face and two white angel wings etched into his back as painful reminders of what he had lost. 

He had tried to forget, yes, but it was useless. And thoughtless. They wouldn't want to be forgotten.

So now he lived as Leon, Squall's stronger ego, the side that was a leader, a role model for the people. Leon was the hero, the one who always fought to win, and _did_ win…

Leon was the liar.

Leon was the one who hid what he felt under masks of indifference.

Somehow Cloud had wormed his way past Leon's barriers and had woken Squall from his eternal rest. Somehow Cloud had made Leon remember. He made Leon _feel_.

And Leon didn't _want_ to feel, for fear of everything being torn from him. _Again_, like it had twice before.

But… no matter what Leon did to suppress that feeling Cloud evoked in him, the Squall in him welcomed it and grew happy. As much as Leon would like to _be_ happy, he couldn't afford it, especially with the other distracting emotions it brought with it. He didn't need happiness to fight the heartless.

That… and he, to an extent, didn't _deserve_ happiness.

Maybe when he finally rid himself of his demons, and when he vanquished the evil, and saved the ones he now cared for… Maybe then he could allow himself happiness, comfort, relief, love…

Wait.

Love?

When had _love_ come into the picture?

Leon didn't _love_.

"Hey **_Leon_**!! I know you're in there!!"

Oh, that's right. Mushu was at the door.

Even though he was not looking forward to facing the little dragon and being bombarded with questions, he knew Mushu wouldn't be leaving any time soon, and it was best to answer the door before he ended up waking Cloud with his loud voice. Hm… Somehow Mushu had known he was home.

Vaguely wondering where he had messed up, Leon rose from the couch and liberally stretched. Then, as he stumbled to the door, he yawned  and slowly brought his arms down again, one hand sliding up his loose white shirt to scratch himself.

When he swung the door open, he was welcomed by an irate eighteen-inch-tall lizard with its arms crossed and eyes narrowed dangerously at him.

"What took you so long?" he demanded, falling onto all-fours and scampering into Leon's apartment. "You look like crap, by the way. Did you fall out of bed or something?"

Leon merely grunted in response, closing the door and pausing at the hallway mirror to look at himself. His hair was sticking this way and that in a wonderful disheveled manner, and his worn-out night shirt was so tousled and loose that it was hanging off one shoulder, exposing the line of his left clavicle. His eyes were a bit droopy, but there were no circles beneath them, but he still _did_ look like he really had fallen out of bed. Or the couch.

Leon returned his attention to Mushu, who was now sitting on the kitchen counter, glaring at him from its high vantage point. "So what's wrong with you?" the dragon asked. "You return the _day_ you leave, and then take ten minutes to answer the door. You sick, Squeon?"

"No," Leon managed curtly, ignoring that annoying name. "I know you're not here for a social visit," he said, letting his voice slowly work out its hoarse sleepiness. He wondered for a split second what time it was. "So tell me what you want, and leave."

"Touch-**_ie_**, geez boy," Mushu laughed, waving a hand. "Cid sent me. He saw the ship in the garage and wants to know why you're back so soon. And that bull you gave the overgrown duck about having 'something important' to do won't work on us. So what's up?"

Leon didn't really have a valid excuse ready to give… He figured that if Cid had sent Mushu, Cid must have realized something big must have happened to Leon if Leon had returned so early. No doubt the old man was curious and a bit concerned (though he would never admit it himself). But Leon didn't want to expose Cloud to anyone else just yet.

"I felt ill," Leon grumbled lamely.

Mushu snorted. "I just asked you if you were sick. You said no."

"I lied."

"Sure you did," Mushu teased, suddenly glancing around as though looking for evidence. His eyes fell on the couch. "Hey, were you sleeping there?"

Leon followed Mushu's gaze to the twisted blanket and rumpled pillow on the sofa.

Shit. He hadn't thought about disposing of evidence.

"Hmm… Leon's sleeping on his couch… And there's quite a mess in the kitchen for only one person living here," Mushu noted as he peered into the sink. After a few sniffs of the dirty dishes, he added, "And it smells fairly fresh." The dragon lifted his head, raising his eyebrows and grinning, showing a line of sharp teeth. "Bring home a girl last night, Le~on?"

There was a narrowing of eyes on Leon's part.

Did they all really think he was incapable of another person's company? Then again, it did seem a bit weird… And there _was_ evidence to show that he had brought someone home last night.

Might as well humor them.

"What if I did?" the man said in a flat voice, and then nodded with his head to the door. "If you'll leave now."

Mushu suddenly hopped off the counter and ran for the bedroom, crying out, "Leave?! No way! I have to see this for myself!! Leon bringing home a woman, haha!"

_Shit!_

Leon sprang after the dragon, but Mushu was too fast.

Digging his talons into the piece of comforter hanging off the bed, Mushu hoisted himself up, fully intending on waking the slumbering woman on Leon's bed.

Only…

Mushu froze, eyes wide.

"That ain't no _girl_!!" he cried, pointing accusingly at Cloud's sleeping figure.

Leon sighed, raking a hand through his messy hair, lifting only his eyes to study Cloud as he ignored Mushu's outburst. The blonde man was laying curled up into a ball on his wingless side, arms tucked to his chest and his wing carefully folded inward, clearly visible especially because Cloud was not buried beneath any covers. No, Cloud was sleeping on the very surface of the bed, fully naked, and the clothes Leon had lent him were neatly folded on the dresser across the room.

He looked so small and helpless, like a young child afraid of monsters beneath the bed. But that was weird… Leon _had_ expected strange sleeping behavior, like maybe the want to sleep on the floor, but _this_…?

Leon hadn't expected this.

…Cloud _did_ look like some kind of dangerous, beautiful animal, in his state of undress in that position… with his wing…

Thankfully Mushu's outburst hadn't woken Cloud up; or at least, it _seemed_ like he was still asleep. Which was good. Leon didn't want Cloud to deal with Mushu or anyone else right now.

Leon purposefully strolled forward and grabbed Mushu from the surface of the bed. No more than a minute later the two of them were seated at the kitchen table. Rather, Mushu was _on_ the table… And Cloud was still resting safely in Leon's room, the door closed.

"So you're hosting heartless now, is that it?" Mushu asked in a grave tone that actually suggested both serious curiosity and light teasing.

Leon merely stared at the dragon, not bothering to look offended or angry. He wasn't really, anyway. "He's not a heartless."

"Then what's with the… uh… wing?" Mushu asked, gesturing to his own wingless back.

Even though he wasn't in the mood to explain, Leon figured it was best to tell the truth to the dragon rather than have Mushu make up his own stories. "His name is Cloud. He and another friend disappeared shortly before the fall of Hollow Bastion nine years ago," he explained calmly. "I found him at the coliseum and he's the one who is going to help me find Riku and Sora."

Mushu lifted his eyebrows. "Is that right? Hm…" Raising a hand, the dragon stroked his mustache in a very human-like gesture, a smirk spreading across his scaly lips. "So he's your main squeeze, eh?"

This time Leon glared. "No," he said firmly. "And you're not going to tell _anyone_ he's here. He's too unstable for questioning, and that's what the others will do to him if they realize he's here. He needs rest and food, not the reconstruction of his social life."

Mushu nodded, lightly smiling this time. "Uh huh. So is this your honeymoon?"

Ever-so-slightly Leon narrowed his eyes. 

But Mushu kept going, laughing and waving a hand. "It's alright. I won't tell anyone you snuck home a heartless for a bed slave, but Cid does expect _something_ from me."

Choosing to ignore Mushu's irksome sense of humor, Leon replied, "Tell him I fell ill."

"But you know that nice lady Aerith will come and nurse you back to your regular perky self, if you had that excuse," Mushu pointed out.

He was right. And no doubt Yuffie would end up tagging along to 'cheer him up' but somehow end up destroying his home. He'd best think of and excuse that would let him have his privacy, and keep Cloud safely hidden.

"Say I wasn't here, and that you went to visit Merlin for a while."

Mushu blinked at Leon's dishonesty. "Just how long do you plan on keeping this a secret?"

"As long as it takes," Leon muttered. "Until Cloud recovers, and Donald and Goofy return with the ship."

"Ah…" The dragon suddenly smirked again. "So what _is_ your status with him? First base?"

Leon frowned further.

"Second base?" Mushu asked, but then immediately continued with, "Oh. Wait, I know! _Third_ base already! No wonder you look so dead! I'm so happy for you, Squeon!"

"Get out."

"No need to be shy about your sex life," Mushu admonished in a 'tsk tsk' tone. "And here everyone thought you were asexual."

"Get _out_."

"Hey, there's no reason to be so damn cranky, Mr. I-have-no-libido," Mushu said with a toothy grin. "So which one are you in the relationship? Male or female? Top or bottom?"

Leon gave Mushu another meaningful look, but the dragon merely smiled back.

"You know, your evil glare of death doesn't work on me." But then he suddenly grew serious again. "No, but… Cid mentioned someone named Cloud to me. Said he was obsessed with you way back then."

Wondering just how many people Cid had already told this information to, Leon slightly nodded. "Yeah. I wasn't much of a friend though."

"Well, that's the past. You seem to be making up for it now," Mushu said with yet another grin. "I don't know much about your pasts, and I don't pretend to, but I will tell you that you're already different now that he's around. Any other day you would have simply ignored me. I think this heartless guy is good for you."

Leon slowly blinked, his hard grey eyes studying the dragon's face. 

Was it true?

But he didn't even have to ask out loud. Mushu answered before he could. 

"I may be obnoxious, but I _am_ observant sometimes."

And yet again that day, Leon found himself questioning his own feelings about Cloud. That _feeling_.

Mushu left soon afterward, having to get back to Cid to deliver the 'news,' the lie that Leon wasn't home. 

…Leon had a feeling that he couldn't trust Mushu with that task…

Geh, but now that he was awake, he might as well get started with taking care of Cloud. Now that Cloud was clean, fed and rested, maybe he would talk. After breakfast, of course.

Slumping down into his couch and sinking into the soft cushions, Leon sighed and tried to think back to his childhood. What _did_ Cloud like to eat?

Of course, Cloud's tastes might have changed over the years, and then there was the danger of the food being too much for his weakened stomach and body. 

But again, Leon was more concerned with Cloud's mind. It was unstable, obviously. And even though Cloud insisted that he had spent nine years in the darkness, Leon had a feeling that that 'darkness' was something less metaphorical. 

Cloud's mind probably hadn't been able to register the events of those nine years into memory, and that's why Cloud merely referred to it as just "darkness." He didn't know what else to refer it as. That's how Leon saw it, at least, and he thought that maybe some reminders of the past would open Cloud up a little more, maybe get him to remember and talk to Leon about it.

First step? Kindness.

Of course, that step was confusing even _Leon_ because of all the foreign emotions it awoke. 

The second step was reminders. Leon was going to slowly bring Cloud's masks down, beginning with the little ones. Tiny, good memories first. Favorite things next, like favorite foods. What better way to make Cloud remember the past than filling him with a breakfast he loved and then having a talk with Squall/Leon about the good things he remembered?

It sounded really silly to Leon, but it was _something_. He hadn't actually thought all of this through. Really, it just came to him, without plan. Leon really didn't even know _why_ he was doing some of these things.

Well, one of the problems was remembering what Cloud liked to eat. Leon's own memory wasn't top-shape because he had _tried_ to forget his past. However, there _were_ some good parts… enough to bring up with Cloud.

…this was _so_ unlike him. He really _was_ trying hard to change, all just for Cloud.

Cloud, Cloud, Cloud.

_Damn it!_

There was that _feeling_ again.

Just _thinking_ that name could effect him like this? What the hell was wrong with him?

Leon buried his face in his hands and sat back, trying to erase his discomfort over Cloud with the comfort of the sofa.

It was lame, yes, but it took that _feeling_ away…

A little.

Shit. How the hell was he going to last like this? Less than a day with Cloud and already his masks were crumbling.

"Damn it, Cloud…" he growled aloud.

"So it's true."

Leon's eyes snapped open and he sat up to regain his composure, only to find Cid standing there in front of his couch, arms crossed and Mushu sitting on his head. Leon hadn't heard them come in…

_Why_ was Cid standing in his living room?

One accusing glare at Mushu, who had a slightly sheepish grin on his face, told Leon what he needed to know. Mushu had failed.

"Sorry, man. The old bat didn't believe me," the dragon said, raising both hands in an innocent gesture.

"I might have," Cid gruffed, "if he hadn't told me that he had been at Merlin's talking to the old man. Merlin was with Aerith, helping oversee reconstruction of district one."

"Caught me in a lie," Mushu said, shrugging.

"So I knew he was covering something up," Cid continued. "Out with it, Squall. What the fuck is your problem?"

As much as Leon didn't, yet again, want to explain things to anyone, he couldn't lie to Cid. No, not when the old man had helped him so much in the past. Besides, Cid had a right to know, and somehow Leon knew he wouldn't harass Cloud with questions like Yuffie or Aerith might. 

Cid might even help Leon.

"I found Cloud," he said, raising his eyes to meet Cid's. "At the coliseum. He's strange. He's…"

"Different?" Cid suggested, rubbing his nose in a graceless manner. "Well, no shit. Cloud fuckin disappeared on us. _Something_ must have happened. Where is he?"

Leon slowly nodded, motioning towards the bedroom. "He's resting. He was working himself to death… Malnourished and exhausted, and very mentally unstable. And… He can't remember much of what happened."

"Shit." Cid stroked his forehead as though some nagging pain was pounding in his skull, which it probably was, and he strolled over to the bedroom door, opening it a fraction and peeking into the dark room. The man's eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly. "A wing?"

Of course he would notice that right away.

"He said it was a side-effect from being in the darkness nine years," Leon explained. "He's looking for Sephiroth. I think he hurt Cloud."

"Sephiroth too… hm…" Cid muttered, closing the door and turning to glance at the brunette. "He's grown a lot."

Leon managed another nod. "I almost didn't recognize him at first… in his gear… so serious."

"Lost all his innocence?" Cid suggested with a raised brow.

"He's certainly changed," Leon said softly, "but he still has some innocence. I doubt he even realizes it's there."

Cid gave the quiet man a firm, studious look. "You don't want me to tell the girls that he's here." It wasn't a question. He _knew_ what Leon was doing. "You think he's too fragile to be exposed to them."

"He's ashamed of himself," Leon said simply. "He blames himself for what happened. From what he can remember, at least."

Mushu shifted uneasily, like he wanted to speak, but after a look from Cid he settled. Then the older man gave Leon a firm look with hard, meaningful eyes.

"You know you ain't his best recovery tool, Squall."

He said Squall, not Leon.

If anyone else had referred to him as that dead name, Leon would have brushed the whole statement off angrily. But Cid had always supported him, always called him Leon and let him make his own decisions. But… Cid was talking to Squall.

Not Leon.

That made his words even more critical.

And Cid was right.

Leon/Squall may not be the best person to help Cloud recover, but Cloud did need a familiar face to help him heal, one who was quiet and understood to an extent the pain of which he had gone through. One who could and _would_ respect Cloud's privacy when it mattered, and would push for answers when they were necessary.

Squall hadn't been the best of friends with Cloud. Actually, he hadn't done much to stop Sephiroth's constant badgering of Cloud. Sephiroth wasn't generally like that, but something about Cloud had brought out his cruel side. Leon was never sure why Squall had never stood up to protect Cloud, or why Cloud had continued to idolize them even after all the abuse. On Sephiroth's part, Squall hadn't understood what drove the slightly older boy to pick on Cloud; he had always assumed it was to protect _Squall_ from Cloud's wants, almost like Seph was being a good friend.

But that wasn't it at all. If it _was_ that, then why was Seph so damn _mean_? He would overwork Cloud on purpose, exhaust the boy to the point that Cloud fell ill often. He would taunt, tease, abuse little Cloud, but Cloud always took it as a reward for being a good, obedient 'friend;' any attention Cloud received from Seph or Squall had been a 'reward' and had driven Cloud even more to please them.

Cloud may have thought the older boys were his friends, but that couldn't be more far from the truth. In the beginning, Cloud had been even less than a slave.

The real situation never looked so bad, however, because Sephiroth was such a good liar. He always got away with his antics. Leon doubted anyone had really understood how bad it had been.

Not even Cloud had known.

…Cloud probably remembered that much. Cloud most likely even understood the situation now, and how bad it really _had_ been, but he had chosen to hide it.

Leon couldn't help wondering why. In Cloud's shoes, Leon would have attacked Squall with harsh accusations. Leon wouldn't have given Squall space in his heart. He would have resented him. Hated him.

But Cloud didn't blame Squall for anything. He didn't even seem to resent _Sephiroth_. Leon didn't know if that was because Cloud was hiding it, because Cloud couldn't remember it, because Cloud had more important things to take care of, or because Cloud had forgiven them…

But whatever the reason, that lack of animosity in the younger man was yet another trait that Leon admired in Cloud. 

Leon wasn't sure how _he_ would have reacted if he had been in the same situation, with little to no memories of what had caused him so much pain, but he _did_ know that he wouldn't have been so damn passive. Like Cloud was.

But then, that memory loss could be all that _was_ holding Cloud from the brink of insanity, from resenting even Leon.

Leon had no way to tell because Cloud just _wouldn't_ talk.

_That_ was part of the reason for his secrecy with Cloud. Leon doubted that Cloud would want to talk with so many faces in the room, past acquaintances or not. It had to be Leon.

_Only_ Leon.

Yuffie and Cid were definite No's. Yuffie was just too unpredictable and loud, and Cid was too busy and impatient. 

Aerith would only make Cloud feel uncomfortably comfortable --- she had that effect on people. Even though she could probably make Cloud feel at home and relaxed, she couldn't sit with him and _really_ communicate. 

Well, Leon couldn't really either, but he had more in common with Cloud, and then there was their past together, with Cloud's infatuation with him. It still put Leon on a high pedestal for Cloud to look up to. Of course, what Cloud thought _now_ when he looked up to Squall/Leon was probably significantly different from what it had been in the past. Leon knew Cloud didn't idolize him anymore, but for all he knew that idolization could have been replaced with curiosity, respect, companionship, bitterness, jealousy…

Resentment, maybe.

Or love.

Hm… Love.

That word was just cropping up out of no where recently.

Who would _love_ a liar like _Leon_?

But it was that slight near-idolization that Cloud held for Leon that made Leon the only candidate to take care of him.

That, and Leon wouldn't _let_ anyone else, which ties back to his whole _feeling_ for Cloud, whatever that was. Maybe it was possession.

"I know," Leon finally said to Cid, his voice deep and withdrawn. "I know I may not be the best person for this job, but I'm the only one who _can_ help him. For now."

"Can?" Cid gruffed. "Or is it that you'll fuckin kill us if we try to help?"

Leon merely closed his eyes and leaned against the wall. "Whatever."

There was a moment of silence, and then…

"Does he still… _y'know_…?" Cid suddenly asked.

Leon's eyes peeked open. "What?"

"Fuck, Leon, stop being so damn dense. Does he still want you to fuck his brains out? Actually, since he's the naked one in _your_ bed, have you already _done_ it?"

Suddenly pushing away from the wall, Leon fit Cid with an intense glare, rightfully telling Cid without words that it was none of his damn business. Hell, Leon doubted that even _Cloud _knew what he wanted; Leon sure as hell didn't.

His glare must have been powerful, for even _Mushu_ shrunk back as though Leon was going to pounce. Cid knew the glare, however. He knew it was Leon's most common defensive technique, and he respected what it meant. With a resigned sigh, Cid scratched his neck and turned slightly like he was going to leave.

"Well, if you need anything, kid," he said, giving Leon a meaningful look, "you can count on 'ole Cid." 

Leon was still standing there a few minutes later after they had left. He didn't have to worry now. Cid wouldn't blabber about Cloud, he knew, and somehow Cid would cover up Leon's secret stay at Traverse Town. And he would keep Mushu from talking too, he was sure. Now the only thing Leon _really_ had to worry about was Cloud's recovery.

…and Cloud himself.

Well, back to trying to decide what to make for breakfast.

Leon ran a hand through his messy hair and retreated to the kitchen.

~~~

Silence.

It was a void familiar to Cloud. It was what he had heard so many years ago when he had succumbed to the darkness inside. He was so familiar with it that he could almost feel it, taste it…

Pure silence.

He knew that melody. 

No matter how hard he screamed, that quiet swallowed him.

He frequently tried. To scream, that is.

He'd done it when he had fallen from his world, wrapped in an unwanted warm embrace and the coiling cold darkness. He had spread his arms out, eyes wide open, and painfully stretched his hands out as though to catch the fragments of his shattered world.

But the light had slipped through his spread fingers.

That was his most vivid memory.

He did not know what it meant, but he knew that was _the_ moment, and that Sephiroth had been the one holding him.

He was sure he had felt pain before then… Pain, betrayal, and a sort of horrible pleasure. Before _it_ had happened, he had been thinking dark thoughts. Somehow he knew that was true, but he could not remember the details.

All he _really_ remembered was that one moment, when his light, his _hope_ had failed. When that hope had devoured his sanity and he had plunged into the darkness already beckoning to him.

His most vivid memory… And the silence had broken only once.

But when…? What had been said?

Warmth had brushed his forehead, and then that voice…

"Cloud."

Wait. That was real!

Cloud suddenly awoke from his slumber and shot forward out of bed, his hands pulling his attacker's arm around as he also twisted, ending up behind the intruder's body, holding the arm at a very painful angle. A little more pressure and the limb would either dislocate or break.

A grunt of pain filled Cloud's consciousness and the blonde opened his eyes, light flooding his senses. He squinted down only to find himself putting _Leon_ in an _arm-lock_. 

Uhm…

Startled, Cloud promptly released the older man and scooted back against the bed's headboard, shaking with embarrassment and already opening his mouth in apology.

But Leon threw a hand up to silence him before he could even speak.

"It's fine," that deep voice muttered, sending small shivers of emotion up Cloud's spine.

Gods, Leon was so damn sexy. That much was obvious. Even that _voice_…

Cloud abruptly put a stopper in his thoughts. Letting his mind wander right now would be a _very_ bad thing, especially because he was naked.

Wait. Naked. In front of Leon. Right _next_ to Leon…! 

Holy shit!

"Some reflexes," Leon was commenting, rubbing the strained muscles of the arm Cloud had almost broken. "Remind me not to wake you like that again."

Quickly wetting his lips and keeping his eyes averted from Leon, Cloud replied, "I'm a light sleeper. My time at the coliseum didn't leave room for comfortable rest --- people trying to get rid of me in my sleep and all because I was the champion… I always had to have _some_ part of my mind awake. For protection." Cloud paused, closing his eyes again as he drew his knees up to his chest. "Sorry. I thought it was an attack. I didn't mean to…."

There was a silence after that in which Cloud could practically _feel_ Leon's eyes on him, but he didn't dare to look to confirm it.

After an hour-like minute, Leon finally gave a small "Hm," and moved to get off the bed. Cloud felt a corner of the soft mattress rise, free from Leon's weight as the man stood. Cloud didn't dare to think, knowing his thoughts would certainly go the wrong way, even though he had just woken up from such a horrible memory, even though he had just embarrassed himself beyond belief yet again. His hormones didn't care.

"Get dressed," Leon said, that wonderful voice breaking the settling silence again.

Cloud loved that voice, even though it was always so blunt… Even though it never asked him how he was, if he had slept well, or if he wanted anything. Cloud knew Leon wasn't that type of caring person, so he would relish those simple commands for their worth, and gain comfort from Leon that way. So what if Leon seemed like a cold bastard with his sparse, laconic sentences. Cloud appreciated the help, even if he felt he was undeserving of it.

What had _he_ done for Leon? Nothing.

And then… There weren't even any questions about _why_ Cloud had slept in the nude (he had actually felt uncomfortable sleeping in something so comfortable, so he had decided to wear nothing), or _what_ Cloud had meant by his small sleep speech. But even though Leon didn't ask those kind of questions, he was still there. 

And that was what made Cloud happy.

So, when Leon left the room without another word, Cloud got up and dressed. When he pulled the bedroom door completely open, he finally smelt it.

Breakfast.

A familiar food, something he hadn't smelled in a _very_ long time…

Leon was in the kitchen rummaging through a large metal box filled with cold food when Cloud entered. Leon didn't have to look up to know Cloud was there.

"Sit at the table and help yourself."

Cloud stared at him for a moment before following his instructions and setting himself at the dining table, carefully stretching his wing out to the side so as to not bother his back too much.

Backed chairs were abominable pieces of furniture for winged people, Cloud decided.

And then his still-sleepy eyes rested on what was placed on the table, and Cloud suddenly had to fight down a powerful surge of emotion.

There was a plate with a stack of pancakes. _Pancakes_. And not just any kind. Chocolate chip banana pancakes with syrup and butter. And a glass of milk.

Cloud had no idea what to think. Or feel.

_Leon_ had taken the time to make him his favorite breakfast from when he was a kid. Leon had _remembered_. Leon had cooked something so complicated and time-consuming, just for him.

_Leon_ had.

Cloud just didn't know what to think!

Well, when he did get a hold of his emotions and suppressed the strange swelling of happy tears inside of him, Leon had already set the table for himself as well and had taken the seat opposite the other man.

Cloud never looked up from his plate, not even when Leon spoke.

"What's wrong?"

Having to swallow a few times before he could find his voice, and even then it was too heavy and deep with emotion for his liking, Cloud managed to ask one simple word.

"Why?"

"Because you need it," Leon replied immediately, casually as he lifted his own fork and took a bite of his food. His plate was full of eggs. Only eggs.

"No…" Cloud said very quietly. He had to clear his throat before he continued. "I mean… Why like this?" he asked. "What the hell do you _want_ from me that you're going to such an extent to be so _kind_?"

He could feel Leon's stare burning into him, but he still didn't dare to look up all the way. The older man was silent for so long that Cloud had almost given up on expecting an answer from him when he actually did answer.

Putting his fork down with enough force that caused Cloud to finally lift his eyes, Leon sighed and rubbed at his brow in a very un-Leon-like gesture. 

Cloud's blue eyes focused curiously on the older man as Leon spoke.

"I don't know." And then --- "Eat."

And once again, Cloud was sadly disappointed.

Funny, for a moment there, Cloud had almost hoped that Leon was going to confess something meaningful. But of course, who was he kidding? This was Leon.

Cloud resigned to the fact that Leon would never change, that he would remain bundled up in his many masks and never open any doors for Cloud to enter. This little charade of kindness was only an act out of pity.

That's all it ever _would_ be.

Managing a short, defeated nod, Cloud returned his attention back to his breakfast.

The words came out before he even knew what he was doing.

"You remembered…"

Once again those steel-blue eyes focused on him, and Leon replied quietly. "Of course I did. This is the only thing you would ever eat."

Heh, that had some truth to it. It _had_ been the only thing Cloud would ever eat, and it used to drive the cooks mad. But he had a feeling that it had taken more than a few minutes for Leon to remember that this was what Cloud's favorite food had been.

Leon really had gone through a lot of trouble for him.

Cloud was reaching for his plate before he suddenly remembered his manners. Silverware. That's right.

…fork and a knife…

Last night during dinner he had managed to use a spoon, but a _fork _and a_ knife_? 

Geh, how tedious.

There must have just been something about a twenty-two-year-old shirtless man with one wing and sleep-mussed hair trying painstakingly to use a fork and a knife that fascinated Leon, for Cloud could once again feel Leon staring at him as he tried to cut up his breakfast.

He felt like such an inadequate child. Everything he did felt stupid and clumsy, and like Leon was secretly scrutinizing his every move.

The suspicion was silly, but Cloud couldn't help it.

"Need help?"

Cloud glanced up, a little startled by Leon's sudden question.

Ah, another act of pity, eh Leon? Cloud wasn't going to give in _this_ time. It was his breakfast, so it was his duty.

"No, I can do it," Cloud insisted in a stubborn mumble, lowering his eyes back to his plate. 

He hadn't even taken a bite yet. His pancakes, after only a minute of trying to cut them, looked like brown mashed potatoes. 

Damn it all!!

He had ruined the beautiful breakfast Leon had made for him!

The scraping of wood across tile caused Cloud to lose his knife. It dropped onto his plate with a graceless *tink* before a large hand reached out to pick it up again.

Leon's hand.

Leon had gotten up and moved his chair to sit by Cloud.

Moving the knife off the plate, Leon reached for Cloud's fork next, who gave it to him reluctantly. It was almost like Leon was babysitting him. He was probably causing so many problems for Leon by being this helpless…

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" Leon asked, his voice as emotionless as usual.

"For ruining breakfast. For causing you problems… For being so damn childish."

Leon was unfazed by Cloud's confession; his hand maneuvered the fork into the mashed pancakes and scooped some up. "You didn't ruin anything. It'll taste the same, whole or not," Leon said, lifting the fork to Cloud's mouth. "And it was my decision to help you, so stop being so damn self-pitying. Eat."

Cloud blinked.

Well, okay.

So he opened his mouth and enjoyed the first bite of his first breakfast in nine years. His _favorite_ breakfast. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was silently screaming with happiness, that he was being hand-fed by _Squall_…

…but his mind was focused on the breakfast. While it was very good, something was wrong with it. Something was _missing_. He didn't remember much, but he did remember the taste of his favorite breakfast.

"It's good," Cloud managed to say in between fork-fulls, and Leon hesitated to hear what the blonde had to say. "But something important is missing." But then Cloud realized he sounded ungrateful, so he immediately added, "I mean ---! It's amazing that you've remembered even _this_ much about me, about what I liked… So thanks. A lot." He raised his blue eyes to meet Leon's, and cracked a small smile. "I mean it."

Leon merely lifted the fork again. "You're welcome. But I do hope you know I expect you to talk. Answer some questions," he said patiently, intently studying Cloud's face. "The information you wouldn't give me before, back at the coliseum… I expect to hear it from you."

Cloud's spirits suddenly fell with this revelation. Of _course_ Leon wanted something in return. Cloud had expected that, but… Why _that_?

He wasn't sure if he was ready to reveal that much information.

Leon must have sensed the shift of moods in Cloud, so he said, "But not right now. We have all day."

Giving a small nod as an answer, Cloud lowered his eyes.

The problem was exactly that.

_All day_.

~~~

But they didn't actually get much resolved that day, or the next day, and somehow Cloud managed to keep his feelings (and hands) to himself. He did know, however, that his placid relationship with Leon wasn't going to last. Soon or later, Leon's patience was going to grow thin, and he was going to corner Cloud and force some answers out of him.

It didn't take long.

Their third night alone, actually, two days after that wonderful breakfast, Leon cut Cloud off in the middle of a tiny rant about Riku and Sora. Cloud knew immediately what was going to be brought up next.

"You keep saying how Riku and Sora's situation seems to parallel your own with Sephiroth," Leon said, narrowing his eyes. "But you still haven't explained _how_."

The two of them were on Leon's large couch, Cloud laying down with his socked feet in Leon's lap, his wing unfolded and hanging off the side.

"How…" Cloud sighed, turning his head to the side to stare up at the ceiling. "It's hard to explain."

"Try," was Leon's blunt response.

"I'm not sure of the details," Cloud said in a quiet voice, and it was evident that he really didn't want to discuss things with Leon. "That's where my memory fails. But I can remember glimpses of emotion, shadows and light… I remember everything up until that _one_ day."

He hesitated, casting a glance at Leon who was staring right back.

"Go on," the brunette patiently urged.

So Cloud buried his head into the pillowed armrest of the sofa and closed his eyes, delving into his hazy memories to satisfy Leon's curiosity. "I suppose I'll start with what brought me closer to you… And Sephiroth," Cloud began, his voice calm and shallow. "That would be when Rinoa died and you changed. I was only six, but I knew what death meant, and that she must have been really important to you to cause you to withdraw from society so much…"

He felt Leon uncomfortably shift next to him. Obviously Rinoa was still a touchy subject with him, even sixteen years after her mysterious death. Cloud would have to bring that up later, if Leon opened up to him again.

He continued talking, not wanting to stay too long on the subject.

"Anyway, we hadn't really hung around much before that… but when you stopped talking, Sephiroth turned to me for attention." Cloud purposefully left out the fact that Cloud had fallen in love with Squall around then, because he had been so awed by Squall's silent strength, and sorrow. He hadn't known it was love until later though. "I think it was like five years between then that I started to follow you and Seph around, and when you began to open up again. I guess I was too happy being with you two to realize what my real relationship with you two was…"

The real relationship… Cloud had, back then, thought that the two older boys enjoyed his company, but he knew better now. It had been a one-sided friendship.

Cloud cleared his throat and continued his story, knowing that dwelling on that piece of the past would only hurt. "Then we started visiting the bastion daily to play. It still surprises me that Ansem never once scolded us for running amuck about the castle. He was really nice," Cloud said, managing a small smile. "One day he asked me and Seph if we wanted to help him out in his laboratory and library. To clean up and stuff… So we consented." He paused here again. "I always wondered why he never asked you instead of me."

He glanced up at Leon and saw the lost look on the older man's face.

"I never knew that Ansem asked you to help him," Leon admitted, a frown settled over his lips. 

"Yeah, he did. It was easy stuff, from what I remember. Just organizing things, really. We never found anything weird, despite all the rumors that were going around about Ansem," Cloud said. "I liked the work in the lab, but Sephiroth was fascinated by the huge library. He spent a lot of time around Ansem after that, remember? Became like an apprentice, almost. I always felt a little left out."

"And you'd then come to me for attention," Leon added quietly, fitting the pieces together. "Sephiroth would get upset and revert to picking on you."

Cloud slipped his eyes close again, remembering. "I always thought it was because he was jealous of me…"

"No," Leon said, his voice so stern that Cloud turned to look at him. "Sephiroth never had any interest in me. Not like that."

Leon sounded so _sure_. 

"Hm.. Well, we were Ansem's helpers for two years, I think," Cloud said, his voice suddenly lowering. 

He knew what happened next… and he dreaded recalling it. _The_ moment. But he had to continue. He could do this… Overcome his fear, his pain… his _darkness_. He would do it and someone else would finally share the burden with him. He'd do it because Leon wanted him to. 

Taking a deep breath, he forced the words out.

"And then one day… something happened."

_                                                                                                                  Does it hurt, Cloud?_

Cloud suddenly shivered and moved to sit up, carefully folding his wing as he settled in the corner of the couch, a good few feet away from Leon. He felt so suddenly vulnerable… and cold…

"What happened?" Leon asked gently, and Cloud was suddenly struck by how _concerned_ he sounded. Had he managed to pull down some of Leon's masks, or was Leon only acting like this because of pity?

No… Leon was the one who told Cloud not to wallow in self-pity. There was something else behind Leon's concern.

But what was it?

_                                                                                                                 Shh, it's okay… Stop crying. _

"I don't remember exactly," Cloud admitted, his voice shaking as he drew his arms around himself and slouched forward, shivering again. "It started like any other day, really… but something happened at the castle," he said, forcing his blue eyes close and turning his head away. "But I don't remember anything except pain."

_                                                                                                                 It won't hurt for long, Cloud._

"It hurt…" Cloud uttered in a harsh whisper, feeling his eyes water beneath his lashes. "I remember a smell… Something I used to like. And then there was a numb, warm darkness… and voices. Seph's. Telling me everything would be okay. Not to worry. That he would take care of me."

_                                                                                                                I promise._

"I didn't understand," Cloud continued, his voice trembling again. He lowered his head and forced himself to continue. "I didn't know what was going on. I still don't know what happened. But I remember the heat… and suddenly wanting to hurt someone..."

He paused for a moment, feeling his own fingers dig sharply into the skin of his arms. That pain was real. The other pain was in the past. It couldn't hurt now, could it?

"And that was when it happened. I think I tried to _use_ the darkness, but it backfired… And we were drawn into it. It was a different kind of darkness from before. It was cold… quiet."

It was getting harder to continue now, but Cloud refused to stop. He couldn't stop. Not now… It was too late.

"It was a pure silence. Even my screams were silent… I remember the feeling of falling, or slowly floating downward, with someone's arms around me."

"Sephiroth?" Leon asked quietly, so as to not break the atmosphere Cloud had created with his story.

"Yes… Seph," Cloud responded in a low whisper. "He's my darkness. I know he is. He knows what happened… That's why I have to find him… As long as he's around, I'll never wake up from this damn nightmare."

Cloud was _not_ expecting what happened next.

A warm arm slipped around his neck and pulled him down. His first instinct was to strike out at the 'attack' but then he remembered he was safe. With Leon. 

Wait, Leon?

Leon was pulling him down… to comfort him…

Mmm… comfy lap.

Leon smelled good, too.

He let himself drape over Leon's lap, tummy down, and stretched his wing out once again to flop over the side of the couch. He rested his cheek on Leon's thigh and sighed, closing his eyes and soaking in the warmth of Leon's body while this moment lasted.

He had needed this, this closeness… This contact. Anything to keep him away from that empty solitude.

So what if Leon was acting strange…

Maybe it was a side of himself he showed no one except Cloud.

Leon… Squall…

He _did_ have a soft spot for helpless creatures.

So Cloud didn't bother wondering about the kind gesture. Hey, who was he to complain? Even if the move was very unlike Leon, Cloud would cherish it. Actually, _because_ it wasn't like Leon, he would cherish it.

Why?

Because it meant he had found a place in Leon's heart… A big enough place to chisel past those walls of ice surrounding his indifference. Leon's masks were gone, if only for a moment.

So Cloud would enjoy this.

And if staying in Leon's usually-unapproachable bubble of space meant that Cloud had to suffer more of his memories, Cloud would continue. And he did.

"My first memory as an adult was waking up at the Coliseum. I don't remember how I got the wing, or where the clothes and weapon came from... But I have a feeling they all tie in with the darkness. The _nine-year_ darkness." Cloud sighed, closing his eyes momentarily as he once again tried to remember… Where the hell had he been for almost a decade? But nothing came. Nothing _ever_ came. "The few weeks after I woke up are a big mass of confusion… But I do remember the stuff with Hades, Hercules… And you," Cloud said quietly, slowly. "I didn't even know it had been nine whole years since Hollow Bastion, not until you said so. I was surprised, even if I didn't show it…"

"Why did you attack me?" Leon asked.

Cloud hesitated, sifting through his scattered memories to his reunion with Squall at the coliseum. "Because I was upset… And because you reached for your weapon first. That, and…." He paused again, lowering his eyelids. "Ever since I had woken up, my memories were a mess. I didn't know what was real, or who to trust… And again, I was really upset." 

Warm fingers suddenly slipped into his messy blonde hair and stayed there. Cloud's eyes slid close again, enjoying the soft touch.

Leon was just breaking all kinds of private boundaries, wasn't he?

"It's fine," Leon said, referring back to the time at the coliseum. "I understand now."

Wetting his lips and swallowing, Cloud continued, "My memories have been so _strange_… Like I'll remember one thing and forget it the next minute when a new memory crops up. It's been kind of stable since the end of the tournament though…"

"You're going back, aren't you?" Leon asked, slightly moving his fingers through the blonde hair. "To the coliseum to find Sephiroth."

"I have to," the younger man said. One of his hands suddenly tightened around Leon's knee. "I tried to force myself to hate you…" he admitted sullenly, almost ashamedly, "especially after our fight. I thought it would be easier on myself if I could just hate you, forget about you… Just focus on finding Sephiroth and my darkness, and move on…" Blue eyes peeked open again, unfocused and distant. "But I couldn't do it. I can't hate you."

Leon didn't say anything. Instead, his fingers slowly inched through Cloud's hair and gently came to a rest on the back of the blonde's neck.

It was a simple gesture, and to anyone else it might not have seemed like anything special.

But Cloud knew what it meant, and he suddenly realized that this person he was talking to, this unmasked Leon…

This man wasn't Leon _or_ Squall.

That touch, that _simple_ gesture meant Leon had become comfortable around Cloud during these past three days. He now felt comfortable about Cloud being so _close_ to him like this. It meant that Leon was human too, and even though he hid it and acted like a cold-hearted bastard, he had feelings too.

What _happened_ to make this man's emotional structure so damn complicated?

Cloud was asking it out loud before he even knew what he was doing.

"What about you, Leon? What's your story?"

The hand on his neck twitched, and Cloud realized that maybe that wasn't the smartest thing to ask right now…

But, surprisingly, the hand remained there, and Leon actually spoke.

"Nothing exciting…" he said, his voice once again monotone. "Rinoa _was_ special to me. I don't think I'll ever forget her. And those two years you were working for Ansem, that was also when your situation with Aerith came up, and then she helped you to get closer to me. I remember."

Cloud tried his best not to blush.

Why the hell did Leon have to bring that up _now_?

"I had no idea you and Sephiroth were helping Ansem, though…" Leon admitted, his voice falling.

"How'd you get your scar?" Cloud asked, turning his head slightly enough to meet Leon's eyes.

"Seifer did it," Leon said, suddenly sighing. 

Seifer. That was one of Leon's friends that had never liked Cloud. The feeling was mutual. 

"It was a few days after your disappearance," Leon continued. "The night before Hollow Bastion fell, people began disappearing. I know now that it was the escaped heartless taking people's hearts, but we didn't know what they were back then," Leon explained. "Seifer and I snuck out to search Hollow Bastion. That was his idea… He believed the rumors about Ansem and thought people were being taken to the castle for Ansem's experiments. We came across the heartless for the first time… Seifer swung at one blindly as it disappeared into the ground. His gunblade passed right over it and cut me."

There was a pause in which Leon's hand slipped back into Cloud's hair and Leon sighed again.

"He was sorry about it, but he didn't show it," Leon said, his tone gaining a rather dark bite. "After that fight he was convinced that the 'monsters' were going to overrun our world. We were only sixteen… Somehow we got separated during the fight, and I never saw him again after that."

Cloud turned his face back down, resting his cheek on Leon's leg once again. "Think he's alive?"

"I really don't know."

"Why were the heartless overrunning Hollow Bastion?"

Moving his hand through Cloud's hair, Leon replied, "Most of the people thought it had to do with Ansem, like Seifer did. But there was no trace of Ansem those last few days… Maleficent appeared and took over. A few of us escaped, and I was forced to become a leader to help everyone rebuild. Cid became my teacher, and Aerith and Yuffie became my sisters. I'm sure whatever is left of our world is dead or gone… I can't imagine what Riku and Sora are going through."

Riku and Sora.

That's right.

They were supposedly at Hollow Bastion.

Probably suffering…

"You see how their situation parallels Sephiroth and mine?" Cloud asked quietly.

"Aa. It worries me," Leon replied in a calm voice. "You have to recover soon so we can find our world and bring them back."

Cloud nodded.

But as soon as he did, he felt Leon start to push him off so he could rise to his feet.

Without thinking, Cloud spun and planted his hands on Leon's chest, pushing him back down. He knew his blue eyes were filled with fear, but he didn't care about masking it. Not right now. Leon looked a little off-put from Cloud's sudden movement, but he said nothing.

"Please stay with me tonight," Cloud pleaded, his face filling with grief. Fear. "I don't want to be alone again. I've been alone too long..."

Leon frowned and looked away as if contemplating some dilemma.

After their long talk, and all of those confessions… Was Leon willing to lower his guard even _further_ for Cloud?

Yes. It seemed he was.

"Alright," he sighed, settling back down onto the couch and pulling Cloud with him. "But you have to sleep."

Cloud nodded again, nestling into the older man's side; he was practically laying on top of Leon, but Leon didn't seem to be complaining.

Cloud would take Leon's kindness for all its worth. He would enjoy it. He would let it comfort him into a deep, dreamless sleep. It would be his first night in nine years that he could actually sleep, knowing nothing would happen to him, knowing that someone was there to protect him.

So, giving his wing one last sleepy stretch as he closed his eyes, Cloud smiled. 

_________________________________________________________________________________

Yes, yes, Leon seems a bit _strange_, but you **have** to remember that this a part of him that usually isn't portrayed _anywhere_. Not in KH (unless you count his soft spot for the Dalmatians), not in most fanfiction. SS's Leon is based a little more on FF8's Squall, who _did_ have his rare kind moments, but even then, SS's Leon has his major differences. Given SS's Leon's past and present, and with his current situation with Cloud, you _have_ to expect some strange changes in Leon. As in the words of Shiva-jo, "I think it's interesting that Leon is kind of being forced to remember things he tried to forget about, almost like being reunited with Cloud is somehow making him into Squall again and interrupting his 'routine' so to speak." So yeah, I think I've made my case.

Also, Rinoa has a significant part in SS's pre-story, so yes, I _had_ to include her. Seifer, I didn't have to stick in there, but I thought I would, since so many of you wanted him to still be the one who gave Squall his scar. I wish I could have given his character some more depth, but it was kind of hard from this point of view. Anyway…

I hope you enjoyed Cid and Mushu.. ^^;; I'm not sure when the final part of this will be out because I have a lot of college work coming up… X.x And finals. AND I'M SICK and feel like **crap**!! So that kinda pushes my writing back a little. 

Please review! I really need the support, especially **_now_**… amidst all this college chaos. And I'll try to have the last of the side story up soon (with all the yummy bits ~.^).

--Uzumaki


	23. A Side Story: Solitude's Monochrome Hap...

_Author Notes:_

Well, here's the last part of the side story, and now you know what Leon and Cloud have been up to! ^^; And now you have lots more hints about Sephiroth and what happened to him and Cloud before Hollow Bastion was invaded. I hope you all enjoyed it, and come back soon for the next chapter (finally), and find out what happens to poor Riku. I really liked writing this Side Story, and I think I cleared up a lot of questions (while raising some more, of course), and this allowed me to give Leon and Cloud some personality at last. 

Anywho, I **_did_** have to have this side story between Leon and Cloud, because if I didn't write it, a lot of you would be "EH? What's _Cloud_ doing at Traverse Town??" and all that by the next chapter. ^^;

______________________________________________________________________________

**_A Side Story: Solitude's Monochrome Happiness_**  part 3

Ten was the number of days it took for Donald and Goofy to come back with the gummi ship, and within those ten days Leon and Cloud made significant progress with the reconstruction of their friendship. Well, their _requited_ friendship, because in the past it had only been one-sided on Cloud's part. 

This time _both_ of them were putting effort into the relationship. Leon refused to admit it out loud though; he didn't want anyone to think he was getting soft.

Cloud no longer had any real problems talking about what he _did_ remember from his past, and Leon was genuinely surprised that Cloud had a lot of fond memories of both Squall _and_ Sephiroth, despite what they had done to Cloud in the past. The only hard feelings Cloud held were from the time period he couldn't remember, his fall into the darkness and the time spent there. Leon learned a lot about Cloud those ten days, both the Cloud of the past and the Cloud of now. 

Cloud's small stories filled the gaps in Leon's own memory and resurfaced some others he had long forgotten. He also learned way more than he intended to about Cloud. Little things, really, stuff he had previously had no desire to learn about, but found himself now captivated by.

He really didn't know why he enjoyed this time alone with Cloud....

But he did learn a lot.

Like, what Cloud and Aerith's relationship had _really_ been. The two of them had actually only been friends for just the last few months they had both been at Hollow Bastion, and it couldn't really be called a true friendship either. Aerith, newly turned age sixteen, had been getting eager suitors on her doorstep for weeks, and because she never showed any interest in relationships or marriage, the young men had started getting violently impatient. Aerith had been afraid that they were going to hurt her, each other, or those close to her because of their impatience, so she set out to find help. One early morning she had seen Cloud training and, impressed with his skill, decided to approach him with her problem for help. He had agreed to try to protect her, sort of like a literal personal knight, but he hadn't really liked being that close to her for those few months. Supposedly, Cloud _did_ have to protect her a few times, and soon he too had become a target because of his small stature and boyish face. No one had taken him seriously until he had beaten them up.

Aerith was fairly talented at reading people, and she had really found an interest in Cloud's personality. Cloud hadn't minded talking to Aerith, as long as she didn't get too nosey, so he would talk to her about anything and everything that came up --- his time at the castle and with Ansem, his training with some of the elders, Sephiroth and Squall… _Always_ Squall. Cloud had talked a lot about Squall, and Aerith had soaked in every detail, enough to read Cloud's obsession all too clearly.  

It had been _her_ idea to try to get Squall to like Cloud back, and she had gotten little seven-year-old Yuffie in on the madness. Both of them had tried makeovers and little rehearsed scenes with Cloud to draw Squall's attention to Cloud. 

Leon did remember that time. At first he hadn't understood why Aerith was hanging around Cloud a lot all of a sudden, and what Cloud's shy advances towards him meant, but it didn't take long for everything to fall into place.

Cloud had _liked_ him, and probably had for a long time. Squall had realized that _that_ was probably why Cloud stuck around him all the time, even though Sephiroth tortured him and Squall constantly ignored him.

Cloud would have suffered through anything just to be by Squall, and he _had_.

When Squall had realized that, he had felt sudden sympathy for Cloud and, despite his anti-relationship ways, he had given in to Cloud's persistence and had given Cloud one chance. One date… Just to get Aerith off _both_ their backs, Sephiroth out of his hair (Seph was acting strangely jealous, but he wasn't sure of _whom_), Cloud out of his mind, and to get on with his own life.

The interesting difference Leon learned from hearing Cloud's side of the story was that Cloud had thought that Aerith was ruining his chances with Squall. Cloud had been perfectly happy just being near the older boy, and was scared that Aerith and her kindness and matchmaking ways were going to frighten Squall away from Cloud for good. Cloud thought that Sephiroth _and_ Squall would make sure of that.

Cloud couldn't get too close, for fear of being forced away forever… Yet, he _wanted_ to be closer.

Thinking back on it, Leon thought that the date hadn't been too bad, even though Cloud had considered it a disaster. But afterward, Cloud had been right about Sephiroth, whose abuse had gotten more cruel and had driven Cloud further away from Squall.

A few weeks later Cloud and Seph disappeared and shortly after Hollow Bastion fell to the heartless.

Leon was impressed with Cloud's silent strength, about how he spoke of these events like he hadn't been the boy named Cloud, like he had just been a part of the audience and not one of the main actors. It was almost disturbing, that withdrawn storytelling, but Leon _was_ impressed. After all _he_ certainly couldn't talk about _his_ past; he even hid behind a new name and made excuses to _not_ bring up his past. His past was painful, yes, but then…

Cloud's had been too. The difference between them was that Squall had closed himself off and shunned help. Cloud had _opened_ up back then and had _taken_ help.

Cloud was stronger than him. Always had been.

…but aside from what Leon learned about the Cloud of nine years ago, Leon learned a lot about the Cloud of now too. In fact, he was certain that _Cloud_ was learning about himself as well.

Cloud had no problems about opening up about his past, but he _did_ have problems talking about what he thought and felt now. Leon didn't have a clue what was going on inside that mind of his… He wanted to know, but when he asked things outright, Cloud would shut himself away. For instance, Leon wanted to know what Cloud expected to do when he did find Sephiroth. What was going to be said? Was there going to be bloodshed? Leon didn't know. Somehow he didn't think Cloud knew either.

Leon did know that Cloud still had feelings for him, judging by that scene in the shower that first night that Leon had overheard…

But _what_ feelings?

One thing that Leon did know for sure, however, was what Cloud thought of himself.

He was hideous, he was a monster and no one could possibly accept him. He was a puppet… and weak. He was _hated_.

Leon believed none of Cloud's confessions, for _he_ didn't think Cloud was some grotesque demon.

It was because of the wing --- it was a literal reminder of Cloud's pain and it made him inhuman and therefore incapable of human contact or a normal life. And because that wing was always there, Cloud was always reminded.

Cloud refused to be touched sometimes, like when Leon tried to help him, or when Cid came to visit. 

Cloud had been very upset when learning that Cid had discovered his stay in town, but Cid had spoken to Cloud alone, and somehow all fears had been erased. Leon really wondered what Cid had told Cloud, and what Cloud had said back, but he wouldn't ask. 

For some reason Cloud had no problem letting Mushu climb all over him. In fact, it was because of Mushu that Leon had heard Cloud laugh.

_Really_ laugh.

Cloud had a beautiful laugh.

But Leon had yet to be the one to make Cloud laugh. He just wasn't funny enough, but he supposed it was in his nature… If he tried something funny, people would think he had gone insane. Then again, Leon thought he was already _well_ on his way to becoming insane.

Why?

In only ten days he'd gone from stony, stoic ice prince Leon to some stranger who actually _enjoyed _another person's company and even went out of his way, _far_ out of his way to make that person happy.

Cid and Mushu had seen the differences in Leon too, and they took pride in reminding Leon about his new kindness, _especially_ in front of Cloud. Cloud never said anything, and for that Leon was thankful.

But that _feeling_ he had for Cloud…

It had only gotten deeper and stronger with the passing days. He refused to think about it, fearing he'd learn its name and have it fully take root within him and control all his actions. It was already making him do mushy things.

He'd hate to see its true power over him.

Anyway, Cloud hated to be touched, but sometimes he seemed to be begging for it, so Leon made sure to answer the silent pleas with an occasional, casual touch like a hand on a shoulder or something… And at night he let Cloud curl up at his side.

Cloud hated his wing. Sometimes Leon caught him glaring into the mirror, just _staring_ at that wicked wing. He had frequently voiced his opinions to Leon about hating it and what it symbolized…

But _Leon_ found it fascinating. He liked the way the wing stretched and shuddered, even when the rest of Cloud's body was still. Cloud had said its skin and muscles were very sensitive to touch, but the bones were very malleable and it didn't really hurt when pulled or twisted at sharp angles. Leon sometimes found himself staring at it and Cloud's smooth, muscled back; by now he was used to the wing being there, but sometimes it still caught him off guard. He was careful to never run into it, afraid of how Cloud would react… but he did find himself _wanting_ to touch it, wondering how it would feel beneath his fingertips.

Yes, Leon was making considerable progress, as much as he didn't want to come out of his shell and take down his many facades. But he couldn't help opening up to Cloud. Granted, he wasn't actually opening up in the social sense, but he _was_ interacting more. He now felt comfortable with Cloud's clinginess (and occasional fear of being touched by _anyone_) and with expressing a smile or two to relax the younger man.

It felt weird to smile… but the small act put him in a better mood. Or maybe that was the result of human contact, of finally letting someone into his life. It was nice...

Comfortable.

It almost made him happy.

That was why, at noon on the tenth day, Leon felt a little sadness when Cid informed him that Donald and Goofy had finally returned. 

His peaceful time with Cloud had come to an end. 

Even though Cloud did not seem enthusiastic about returning to the battlefield, Coliseum or not, he did say he felt able enough to fight. They were to leave tomorrow sometime to continue the search for Riku and Sora.

From the meeting he held with them early that evening, he had learned that Donald and Goofy had found a lot, surprisingly, but the worlds had been like hell to travel through. The surviving citizens were suffering --- their rulers were missing, princesses they said, and there was nothing left to stop the heartless from taking over the entire worlds and their hearts. Several keyholes had been found, but without the keyblade master, nothing could be sealed. Or saved. 

They had not found Hollow Bastion or any world that fit Leon's description of it, but they said that there were plenty more pathways open to search between the worlds, pathways that Donald and Goofy had not been able to navigate through in their current ship. Therefore they had returned for repairs, rest, and for a restocking of supplies. Cid had set out immediately to upgrade the gummi ship using some gummi Donald and Goofy had found during their search of the different worlds. 

They had brought along a few newcomers too. Survivors. An old man, his son, and their pets. Donald and Goofy had found them in a giant whale (Leon was curious about this, but did not ask), and the old man had given them special gummi in exchange for a ride to Traverse Town. Geppetto was the man's name, and Cid had volunteered Leon's place as their temporary home until Geppetto could find a place of his own because the hotel was full of other survivors.

Leon was a bit wary of the newcomers at first, and he wasn't very impressed with the man's wooden son (what the hell?), but Geppetto's kindness won him over. Geppetto was a very kind man, and even Leon could see the good in his heart.

Leon didn't like bringing strangers into his home, but he wasn't going to use it while he was away anyway… So, fifty minutes after Leon had met the strange newcomers, Pinocchio and his pets had settled in the living room, and Geppetto was with Leon in the kitchen making hot apple cider, as per the old man's wishes.

He had hoped to spend a quiet evening with just Cloud, considering it was their last night in Traverse Town for a while, but he supposed he had no choice in the matter. His home _did_ need to be watched while he was gone. And Geppetto's hot apple cider made up for it.

"It's been so long since I've had a whiff of that succulent aroma," Geppetto commented with a warm, breathy old-man sough as he poured the drink into several chipped mugs of Leon's. 

Leon couldn't remember the last time he had had any either, but the drink was a nice idea, especially for a chilly night like this. 

"Where are Donald and Goofy?" he asked the old man, who did not look up from his task at hand.

"I believe they left with that young man with the interesting vocabulary," Geppetto replied. "Cid, his name was, if I remember correctly."

Cid? A young man?

That was the first time Leon had ever heard that, but he decided not to comment on it.

Geppetto spoke again before he could. "I cannot express my gratitude to you for lending your lovely home to a total stranger and his son, Sir Leon."

"It's just Leon," he replied.

Sometimes he got that honorary Sir from people, but it made him feel weird… He did not like the sound of his name with it. He was no honorable knight. He could do nothing.

He was weak.

Further proof of that was the fact that the keyblade, that magnificent weapon he had hoped for years would find him so he could strike revenge against the heartless, had chosen a _child_ as its master. Riku was a strong kid, yes, and so was Sora…

But it was still a heavy blow to Leon's ego.

He didn't deserve to be called a hero. He didn't deserve that honor.

He was just Leon.

"Oho, just Leon?" Geppetto asked with a deep, warm chuckle as he turned to regard Leon with old, kind eyes. "Well, 'just Leon,' I may be a naïve old man, but I can certainly tell a warrior when I see one. Perhaps you would like to share a tale with this naïve old man tonight, like maybe the story behind this _Squall_ I keep hearing about, or would you rather spend the rest of the evening with that nice blonde playing with my son in the other room?"

What the hell was _that_ supposed to mean?

Leon caught himself before he glared at the old man.

He was irked, yes, that the man was suddenly assuming things about him and wanting to butt into his life… just like everyone _else_ seemed to be doing lately…

But the way Geppetto had spoken, and the way he had brought up the subject so nonchalantly, yet _kindly_… It wasn't nosey at all. Geppetto was asking so he could _help_, even though he had only known Leon for an hour. 

Leon didn't need help, but everyone seemed to think he did. 

Why?

The question must have been written on his face, for he didn't even have to ask it. Geppetto answered.

"We all have our troubled pasts, Sir Leon," he said quietly, lifting a mug to sip it gently. He paused to taste the drink, before he raised his eyes to Leon's again. "I will not pretend to know your pain or your past, but I will tell you one thing."

Leon frowned ever-so-slightly. "Fine."

As Geppetto set his mug down and began tapping powdered cinnamon into each of the mugs, he said very pointedly, "Life is too short and fragile to dwell on mistakes and broken promises and all those other things that give us gray hair. Sometimes it is _right_ to wish for something that seems frivolous or _wrong_. Sometimes life is worth that risk, so by all means necessary, _risk_."

Risk for _what_? Leon was perfectly fine with his so-called life, for lack of a better word. No, wait, he wasn't, was he? __

And risk _what_? His happiness? His love? His life?

In that case, how could he risk what he did not _have_?

~~~

So much for Cloud's recovery… So much for his _sanity_. 

Pinocchio was a puppet. Pinocchio was a freak of society. An abomination. Something that could not be considered human even though he had a human heart. He was _exactly_ what Cloud saw himself as. But… Pinocchio had someone who accepted and loved him.

Cloud did not.

The 'child' unsettled him. A _child_. Leon had been comforting him for so many days already, and Cloud had thought he was recovering from his fears… But a _child_ had proven it false.

Cloud wasn't recovering. That fear, that deep self-hatred and prickling darkness was rising again.

As Pinocchio climbed all over the couch and babbled to Cloud, who wasn't putting much effort into the conversation, Cloud slowly curled himself up into a ball, hugging his knees to his chest as he sat hunched at the foot of the coffee table, wing slack against his back.

"Cloud is a weird name," the kid was saying. "Not only does it make people think about those fluffy white things in the sky, it sounds girly too. I once met a person named Star. She was a girl. Leon is a funny name too, but it sounds more like a boy's name than Cloud."

"And Squall?" Cloud asked quietly.

"What's a Squall?" Pinocchio wondered, peeking over the edge of the couch's armrest to blink at Cloud.

"Never mind."

"So is Mr. Leon your brother?" Pinocchio asked, flopping back down into the couch. "I mean, he must be. I've never heard of two boys living together. When a boy and a girl live together, that means they're boyfriend and girlfriend right? Neither of you are girls so you must be family."

"We're friends."

"Oh. So friends can live together too? I don't know, I think that's weird. Daddy says one day I'll live with a girl. I think girls are gross! Do you? Is that why you don't live with one? I bet it is. You're cool, Mr. Cloud, even if you have a weird name and a wing and live with a boy."

Cloud was ready to retreat to the bedroom to escape the brat and his incessant rambling, but he didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings.

"Your drink."

Wait, that wasn't a child's voice.

Cloud glanced up with relieved eyes to find Leon standing before him, his handsome face locked with his usual cold and unconcerned expression. Just like Leon.

"Thanks," he said, managing a small, grateful smile as he took the steaming mug from the other man.

But just when he thought the evening was looking up for him, it took a sudden plunge.

As he brought the mug closer to himself and cradled it gently between his cold fingers, that was when he smelt it. A familiar, sweet aroma he used to know _very_ well… But what was it? Was it in his drink?

"…what is this?" Cloud asked quietly, glancing down in the dark mug, watching the foamy liquid swirl and slosh against the ceramic.

"Hot apple cider," Leon answered before taking a seat on the sofa next to Pinocchio.

Apple cider? That didn't match the smell Cloud was thinking about.

Then again, why was something so seemingly trivial so important all of a sudden? And why couldn't he place it with a name if he _could_ remember that it used to be important to him?

_Don't be stupid, Cloud_, he told himself. _It's just a smell. A smell. Nothing to be worried about._

Or so he hoped. He was no good at dealing with things of his past, especially the parts he could not remember. Somehow he sensed something ominous about this new memory that was trying to resurface.

It wasn't good.

Something about that _smell_…

It was sweet, yet spicy…

Leon and Geppetto were talking, and Pinocchio had gotten up to pester his father, leaving Cloud to wallow within the darkness of his own mind. Cloud couldn't stop thinking about it, and he was much too unsettled to take a drink and risk remembering something that was best left forgotten. It was a shame, really. Cloud had been well on his way to recovery, to moving on with his life with Leon…He had almost convinced himself that everything was going to be okay. That he was fine. Life was fine.

How sad that something as simple as a child and a smell could bring it all tumbling down.

Sucking in a deep, calming breath, telling himself that there was nothing to worry about, Cloud slowly brought the warm mug to his lips.

_It's nothing It's nothing Don't worry_

                                                                                                 _Don't drink Don't remember Run from the pain!_

He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the careful whispers in his mind, the incessant warnings and contradictory babbling. It was just a drink. Nothing to worry about. Nothing to fear. 

But somewhere from deep within the susurrus of words, a strong, familiar voice rose higher than the rest, soft and warm like a wanted embrace.

                                                                                                                      _Does it hurt, Cloud?_

stop!­

                                   **Blood                   **

**                                                                                     Pain                  **

**                                                                                                                                         Hate**

                                                                                                                     _It's too late._

too late too late for what? what did i do? why is this happening? why me? where's squall? it hurts it hurts please stop let me go what is he doing? what is he doing _there_? sephiroth? seph?! seph stop! it hurts!!

                                                                                                                    no, it feels good

it hurts!

                                                                                                                    you love me?

i'm scared!

                                                                                                                    how can you love me?

stop! please stop seph! don't touch me!!_ no!_

                                                                                                                   _Does it hurt, Cloud?_

stop!

                           **Tears**

**                                                                              Pleasure                               **

**                                                                                                                                           Love**

                                                          D       a        r        k        n        e        s        s

A soft *kump* was all Leon had as a warning as Cloud suddenly dropped his mug onto the carpet and began silently crying, blue eyes staring ahead at nothing as his body trembled with emotion. While Leon expected a scared, pale face when he glanced at the younger man, he instead got cheeks flushed with embarrassed anger and hateful defiance.

Something had happened.

Had Cloud remembered something?

"Cloud?" came Geppetto's concerned voice.

But Cloud turned to Leon…

Within a blink of an eye, Cloud had hurled himself off the floor and onto Leon on the couch, face buried into the older man's stomach and fists tightening in his loose white shirt.

No words had been spoken. None needed to be.

Leon understood.

He lowered his eyes and slipped a hand into Cloud's hair, fingers running gently over and over in a soft, comforting rhythm. Almost immediately Cloud calmed down, his muscles relaxing, his fists loosening, and his wing slowly lowering to a resting position.

That was all it took.

That was all it ever took.

~~~

"Cloud is already sleeping in the bedroom," Leon informed quietly as he reentered the living room, one hand buried within his own hair. He seemed exhausted. There was no time for rest though, for he still had to take care of his guests before bed. "I apologize," he added, though he wasn't sure why he was apologizing for Cloud's behavior, which wasn't really Cloud's fault either. "I can bring out some more bedding…" he suggested as he turned to open the hall closet, only slightly worried about sleeping arrangements. "I do not have a spare mattress or anything."

Geppetto waved a hand and smiled. "The couch will do fine for us. And you?"

Leon paused in the middle of digging through the hall closet for extra blankets, his eyes slightly narrowing. "Me?"

"Where will you sleep?"

He hadn't thought of that… Well, there was always the floor. Though, he had to admit he really did not like this devolution of sleeping accommodations. From his large bed, to the lumpy couch, and now the cold floor… Somehow, even though the ten days together had intended to revitalize both men, now that it was over, Leon suddenly felt exhausted. Up until that day, the resting period _had_ been peaceful and _had_ helped him. But for some reason he felt terrible now.

He knew that this last night was going to sour his mood even further. He hadn't been getting much sleep for the past few days, and tonight his having the carpet for a bed was not going to help that problem.

Resigning to this one-night fate, Leon parted his lips and sighed, about to claim the floor for his nest.

But a soft, tired voice from the bedroom door stopped him. "On the bed. Leon can take the bed."

Leon glanced up to find Cloud standing there, large comforter wrapped around him and dwarfing his figure. Cloud looked exhausted, like these past ten days had also done him no good, but there was also a sense of sadness about him… Guilt?

Cloud was telling him to take the bed?

Wait…

"You need it more than I do, Cloud," Leon sighed, giving the younger man a pointed look. "Go back to bed."

Cloud slowly shook his head, blonde bangs softly shifting with the movement. 

…okay, so Cloud was being difficult tonight. No problem. Leon just had to take care of his guests first.

Pulling extra bedding from the closet, Leon dumped it next to Geppetto. "Good night," he said, giving a short nod of assurance. "I'll be fine."

"Sleep well, Sir Leon, and remember my words," the old man replied, gathering the blankets in his arms.

Words? About risking? Feh.

Leon turned away and approached Cloud, draping an arm over the younger man's shoulders and leading him back into the bedroom. No words were said as Cloud complied and Leon shut the door behind them, flipping on the light overhead.

"So what's the matter?" Leon asked, no room for poor excuses in his tone.

"Can't sleep," Cloud replied shortly.

"How do you know?" Leon said, a little impatiently. "You were hardly in here for five minutes."

"No matter the size or comfort, no bed can erase my nightmares. The comfort hurts me anyway," Cloud confessed quietly, lowering his blue eyes to the floor. "Even after this long, I'm still unused to it. Nothing I do helps. Not sleeping on the floor, or nude, or in a corner…"

"You've never mentioned this before," Leon said, slightly narrowing his eyes as he regarded the younger man. 

"I thought I would get better."

"And you didn't?" Leon asked.

Cloud slowly shook his head again, slightly lifting his face as he sat at the edge of the bed, the comforter around him slipping off his bare shoulders. "I thought I had, but…"

Leon suddenly sighed, running a palm over his face in frustration. It was another one of _those_ talks. "What happened?" he asked, his voice softening with concern. "What did you remember?"

"I'm not sure what it was," Cloud admitted, his tone quiet with his own kind of silent frustration. "But it was like everything good in my life was coming crashing down. Again. Like some old out-of-tune piano had been struck and I was the lone chord fading into the darkness."

"What did you remember?" Leon repeated, slowly kneeling in front of Cloud to look up into the other man's face. "Tell me, Cloud."

The blonde stiffened slightly, his blue eyes squeezing shut and brow furrowing in exasperation. "Seph's voice again. This time I remembered a smell though… It was sweet, kind of spicy at the same time. It seemed really familiar, but I don't remember why."

"What else?" Leon asked, leaning closer to place a hand on Cloud's knee.

"Two sides of me… One liked what was happening… The other wanted it to stop. There was a lot of pain, but a part of me liked what was happening…"

"What was happening?"

Cloud's eyes fluttered open to meet Leon's. Those grey-blue eyes were dark with something. Concern? Anger? With a deep breath, Cloud managed to continue, his own words making his skin prickle with fear, shiver from a nonexistent cold darkness that was crawling over his tired body.

The truth was gnawing at him like some incessant hunger.

He knew what had happened.

But he didn't want to say it.

"I don't know…" he whispered, eyes soft with sadness. Remorse. "I'm not sure of anything."

Leon stared at him for a moment, those strangely dark eyes watching, studying his face as though it would yield some answers. Anything. But when Cloud said no more, and it was obvious he wasn't going to go into further detail, Leon decided to let it rest.

Rest…

Rest would be good.

"Go to sleep," he said as he rose to stand, turning slightly away from Cloud to head for the door.

A hand caught his wrist.

"Don't go."

Leon froze, feeling the cold fingers wrap more tightly around his arm. They were shaking. Cloud was afraid.

"Why have me stay?" he asked softly, turning only his face towards Cloud. His eyes did not meet the other man's; somehow he knew Cloud wasn't looking at him anyway.

"Because…" Cloud faltered, searching for any excuses. "Because the bed is big enough for us both… and you haven't had a decent night's sleep since I got here. And…"

"And?" Leon repeated, this time glancing at Cloud.

"I don't want to be alone anymore. I think… I think you're the only thing that has been helping me. Your company."

Leon didn't fail to notice that Cloud's pale cheekbones were now a slight pink.

He was telling the truth though, about not wanting to be alone. Even if that was the only truth of Cloud's statements, it was enough to guilt Leon into agreeing. Besides, what would it hurt? He saw how his company made Cloud feel more comfortable when they sat together on the couch. It was their last night in civilization for a while anyway, and a bed was infinitely more welcome than the floor.

And maybe sharing the same bed would ease both their tired minds and chase away Cloud's nightmares. 

"Get in bed," Leon commanded in a light tone as he began to remove his shirt. He went to his dresser to get a pair of loose sleeping pants, folding his dirty shirt and dumping it in a hamper there.

"Leon?" came Cloud's slightly worried voice.

"I'll stay with you, so get in bed already," Leon sighed. He could feel Cloud watching him as he undressed, but he forced himself to ignore the strange feeling it gave him and just focused on getting ready for bed.

He tried to forget that Cloud was wearing nothing beneath that comforter around him. Somehow that didn't ease his mind though.

By the time he was fully changed, Cloud was curled up under the covers, comforter discarded for use as a blanket, not clothing. Blue eyes continued to watch him as he crossed the room and switched off the lights, giving a small sigh before he too climbed into the bed, pulling the blankets over himself and scooting close to Cloud.

"I'm not used to using a blanket," the blonde admitted quietly, frowning at Leon. His wing gave an uncomfortable twitch from beneath the covers as though to accent his point. It was true though, that Cloud wasn't used to using a blanket to sleep. On more than one occasion Leon had caught him sleeping on top the covers in a fetal position.

"Turn the other way," Leon instructed suddenly, causing Cloud to give him a confused look. He added for clarification, "I have an idea."

So Cloud rolled over onto his other side, his back and wing facing Leon.

"Just clear your mind and go to sleep," the older man said, calmly sliding an arm over Cloud's bare waist and pulling him closer.

Cloud considerably flinched, obviously surprised at Leon's sudden close proximity. Cloud didn't like to be touched after all.

Well, not all the time.

Forcing himself to remain calm, Cloud closed his eyes and concentrated on Leon's warm arm around him, warm body behind him…

Warm hand now sliding up his back…!

Cloud tensed, growling out, "What the hell are you doing?"

"You're cold. I know you don't like being touched, but I won't hurt you," Leon explained quietly as his fingers skimmed across the leathery skin of Cloud's wing for the first time. "Just go to sleep already. I'd rather do this than listen to your teeth chatter all night. Better for the both of us in the end…"

Cloud let out a soft whimper at the touch, shivering a little before letting his wing relax across Leon's body behind him. "I do trust you," Cloud said in an almost inaudible voice. "You know that?"

Leon answered by resting his chin in the nook of Cloud's shoulder and neck. "Yeah. Go to sleep."

So he did.

It was his first dreamless night since before he could remember.

It was also the night that Cloud realized that there was at least one thing he could like his wing for:

Leon.

~~~

After Cloud figured out how to make himself comfortable in the seats of the gummi ship without agitating his wing, he and Leon left the next day without being seen by anyone except Cid. They spent the next week sleeping in the cramped vehicle when they weren't sifting through the heartless-infested pathways between worlds and the worlds themselves. Much like Donald and Goofy, they found nothing but ruin and despair amongst the cities, and had trouble giving words of hope when they themselves were losing sight of it.

Riku and Sora were nowhere to be found. Hollow Bastion seemed to be at the end of a long, arduous tunnel that they could not navigate to in their current states. They needed more strength, more skills, more time.

By the end of the week, Leon's nerves were wearing thin. It had been almost three weeks since Riku and Sora's disappearance, and the only sign that they were still alive was that there were still worlds out there.

Somehow Leon had the feeling that if Riku died, so would the light, and Maleficent would have nothing to stop her from completely swallowing all the worlds in darkness.

It was a great wonder why she hadn't already. Perhaps she needed something more in able to do it. Perhaps she sought something more from this nefarious conquest of hers.

After their gummi ship had taken enough abuse and Leon had trouble concentrating on battles, they decided to head back to Traverse Town... empty-handed. They had found nothing. _Empty-handed_…

Leon had always hated that expression.

The trip had not been a total waste, however. Leon had gotten to see just how demonic Cloud really _was_ on a battlefield; Cloud must have been holding back during all those fights at the coliseum. When Cloud fought against the heartless where there were no rules or spectators, he was brutal. Merciless, like he wasn't just fighting the heartless, but himself.

Leon and Cloud had gained more trust in each other during the trip, and nothing overly dramatic had happened to _really_ change their relationship, or each other. Leon supposed that was good news though.

However, when they finally did return to Traverse Town, they were met with an unwanted surprise that they had actually forgotten about.

Cid was not alone in the garage when Leon and Cloud returned.

Actually, neither of the men realized it until Cloud had already exited the gummi ship and had begun stretching the sore muscles of his poor wing.

An unearthly woman's shriek of fear was their first warning.

"_Heartless!!_"

Cloud spun around, wing taut and his eyes wide with sudden surprise as he faced several women, who all had equally horrified expressions on their faces. They were pale, trembling, staring at Cloud as though he were Death himself sent from the shadows to execute them.

They thought he was a heartless.

Before Cid could silence them or explain Cloud's appearance, one of the women took off running into the city, screaming and sobbing, and the other women followed after her.

"The heartless!"

"He's come to destroy us!"

"Leon has delivered us to the heartless!"

"The heartless are back!"

The men could hear their screams fading into the distance, and very suddenly they knew they had very little time. No doubt there would be unrest tonight, and an angry mob would be here soon to get rid of the 'heartless' Leon had 'delivered.' 

"Leon?" came Cloud's worried voice, his blue eyes meeting the other man's with indescribable fear, ultimate dread. No doubt Cloud was running over and over in his mind what he had been fearing since day one, that the people would not accept him for what he was now, that they thought he was a demon, that he could no longer be considered human because of his wing… and his past.

"Shit, this isn't good," Cid growled, grabbing Cloud's arm and drawing him away from the door and windows of the garage. "Just when the people were beginning to feel safe. I'm sorry, kid," he sighed, rubbing his palm over his stubbly chin. "I had a feeling you were coming back today, but I thought those girls wouldn't be here long. Just wanted help with their heating systems now that the cold season has come…"

"I can't take Cloud back to my place," Leon said, still seemingly perfectly calm as he dropped a large bag by Cid; it was full of gummi and stones they had collected on their trip. "What do you think we should do?"

"Geppetto and his son have already found a small place to live, so your house is vacated…" Cid said, still holding on to Cloud who was staring out the windows as though something was going leap through the glass and slaughter him. "But you can't go back there now that the word is out that _you_ were the one who brought home a heartless." There was a pause as Cid shook his head a growled. "Fuck! I'll take care of the town --- they'll listen to me. Stupid bastards. You two hurry to the Dalmatian House. I'll send Mushu to you if it gets dangerous."

Leon nodded, taking hold of Cloud's wrist as Cid released him. "Understood. What about Aerith and Yuffie?"

Cloud tensed at the names, shooting Cid a worried glance.

But Cid only gave a loose wave of his hand. "They trust you, Leon. And they know how paranoid the people can be. They'll end up helping me calm the crowd that is likely to gather. I can't keep the truth from them now, though, but I can keep them away from Cloud if you want."

"Yes, that would be best," Leon agreed, turning to face Cloud. "Come on and hurry."

"Don't hurt anyone!" Cid called after them as Leon hurried out of the garage, dragging a confused Cloud behind him. 

"Where are we going?" Cloud asked as Leon led him down the many twists and turns of the city, ducking behind buildings whenever they came across civilians. It was one of his nightmares come reality, almost… People knew what he was and were scared of him, hunting him…

Only, he was always alone in those dreams, those fears. 

Reality was much less frightening when Leon's hand was entwined with his own.

"Somewhere safe," Leon replied shortly.

And it _was_ a safe place, if not slightly overwhelming at first. Ninety-nine Dalmatian puppies and their parents greeted Cloud and Leon with friendly yaps and barks as the two men slipped inside the house. Never had Cloud seen so many animals together in such a small area.

Even more surprising was Leon, whose face actually lit up with a smile as the two largest dogs reared up onto him and began begging for scratches.

"Hey Pongo, Perdita. Sorry for the sudden visit," he said, his deep voice betraying only a little happiness as he began to pet both dogs, which were both trying to lap at his face. 

Cloud had never seen Leon so… _pleased_. It was almost disconcerting to see someone like Leon act so lively around these animals, especially after a long week of fighting and the incident that had just happened in the garage.

The Dalmatians seemed to love him. A lot. They were swarming around him, trying to climb up his pant legs and gnawing at the tips of his boots affectionately, and pawing at each other to get close to him. A few had cautiously sniffed at Cloud, but none were particularly interested in him yet.

It was all Leon.

It took a good quarter of an hour before Leon managed to wade through the puppies and make it to the couch, making sure Cloud was following him. As soon as they were both seated, however, they were overrun with the puppies who seemed perfectly content just being near Leon, even if they didn't get a scratch or two.

When they were all settled down for the most part, and Cloud held about five puppies in his lap, one on his head, and about eight curled up under his unfolded wing, he turned to Leon, who had even more dogs around and on him.

"They really like you," he commented softly, watching as Leon idly scratched a puppy behind one floppy ear. 

Grey-blue eyes focused on Cloud and Leon smiled. _Smiled_. "Riku and I saved them from being dispersed by the heartless. Not one puppy was hurt. They're just as enthusiastic about him as they are with me."

Cloud let a hand run down a puppy's back, and watched as the small creature shuddered and curled closer to him for comfort. "You seem so happy with them," Cloud said quietly, feeling a little sadness wash over him. 

He had never made Leon that happy. Actually, he had almost thought Leon was _incapable_ of happiness, after all that had happened.

…would Leon have smiled around anyone else? Would Leon have shown anyone else this weakness of his, this soft spot for the puppies?

"It's a good feeling knowing that I saved their lives, that I made a difference in the world, no matter how small or big," Leon replied. "And they like you too. They don't like Cid much… they never get close to him. But you already have so many close to you."

Cloud glanced down at the puppies lying around him. "So I do."

What difference did it make though?

Leon answered that too.

"It's rumored that dogs can sense the good in people," he said, studying Cloud's sad eyes. "And that they can tell when someone is ill or upset, and they'll give their love to help give the person comfort."

The blonde frowned, staring down at the puppies in his lap. "What are you trying to say?"

The puppy atop Cloud's head stirred and suddenly slid off, landing on Cloud's chest with a small bark of surprise, causing a few other puppies to look up curiously. Cautiously Cloud brought a hand up to pet the dog, which lunged up to lick Cloud's nose affectionately before settling in the nook of his armpit.

Leon chose that moment to continue.

"I mean that maybe you're not the monster you think you are," he said. "People are easy to judge those who are different, Cloud. But these puppies can see what you really are."

"And what would that be?" Cloud asked in a hushed whisper, slowly closing his eyes as a strange warmth filled him because of Leon's kind words. 

"Another victim of a heartless evil."

Several minutes later when Cloud was still thinking over Leon's words, there came a knock on the door.

"I'll get it. Stay here, it's probably Mushu," Leon said, slowly getting up and letting the puppies on his lap steal his warm seat.

He left Cloud reclining on the couch, not particularly worried about who was at the door. He trusted Cid to keep the townsfolk under control. Even if the people thought Cloud was a threat for now, they would listen to Cid and Leon.

Much to his surprise, it wasn't Mushu _or_ a civilian who was at the door when he finally opened it.

"Merlin?" Leon said, squinting tiredly at the old man.

"Heard you were housing a heartless, my dear boy!" the old man chuckled, eyes twinkling with wise mischief.

"What are you doing here?" Leon asked, stepping aside to let the man in.

Merlin immediately swept inside, heading for the dining area. "Since you weren't going to come to me for advice, I thought I would bring it to you!" he said as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Would you like some tea?"

After Leon shut the door, he trailed after him, muttering a "No thanks" as he followed after the wizard.

"No need to sound so gloomy, boy. So Cid tells me this heartless fellow is actually your old friend who hit some rough times in the darkness and because you found him, you're taking care of him."

"Something like that," Leon replied, sitting down at the table where Merlin was now enjoying tea and biscuits. Where he had gotten them, Leon didn't bother to ask.

Their conversation lasted a good two hours or so, and sometime in the middle of it, Merlin left Leon to introduce himself to Cloud, and talk to Cloud as though to ascertain some information.

Leon wasn't sure of the purpose of Merlin's visit at first, but it became clear to him right before Merlin left for the night to leave Leon and Cloud alone in peace.

"It is both my wishes and Cid's that you both stay here for the night," Merlin said, his teapot and cups dancing behind him on his way out. "In the morning you may return to your home, but do stay here." This was where the wizard's voice dropped and became suddenly serious, those wise old eyes staring straight into Leon's. "From what I gathered from your stories, Cloud is very unstable. That unsettled past of his is ready to take over at any moment; it just needs a strong enough catalyst. You mentioned how Cloud and this man named Sephiroth's situation is similar to little Sora and Riku's, so keep a careful eye out. Someone is not telling the whole truth, Leon. I have a feeling the next time Cloud suffers a sudden attack of memories, he won't be the only one hurt by them." Merlin paused, giving Leon a comforting smile. "I'll look more into this Gemini mumbo jumbo. Sleep well."

And with that, he was gone, leaving Leon with even more questions than before.

Later that night when Leon and Cloud were finally settling down on the couch together to go to sleep, Cloud popped the question.

"Why are you helping me, Squall?"

His voice was tired, scared, but also almost unconcerned, like no matter what the answer was, Cloud knew it would be something he did not wish to hear.

Truthfully, Leon had trouble coming up with just one simple response. All of his reasons for helping Cloud were complicated, many of them too complicated for even him to decipher.

In the end he decided to go for the truth. The _real_ truth.

"I _didn't_ know why in the beginning," he admitted, letting Cloud cling closer to him as the puppies began to settle on their entwined bodies. "But I'm tired of answering questions with half-truths," he said, shifting his head so that he was staring into Cloud's face. Cloud stared back, eyes void of any discernable emotion. "So I'll tell you the only excuse I have," Leon muttered, momentarily shifting his gaze away from Cloud's. "I just don't want to see you suffer anymore," he admitted stubbornly, almost embarrassed. "If at all possible, I want to help you regain the life you lost."

Silence reigned after that, luring a semi-happy Leon into a soft, peaceful sleep surrounded by warmth and memories of a better time. It seemed now that he had that truth out in the open, he could forget about his worries for the night, if only just for the night.

He was softly snoring by the time Cloud had worked up the courage to reply, five little words clouded with the sound of real tears.

"I think I love you…"

The only response was a breathy yawn from one of the puppies.

~~~

In the morning they were both awoken by Cid and his announcement that everything was cleared up and it was safe for them to go back to Leon's place. When they got back there, they were greeted with an exuberant Mushu who welcomed them back with charred toast. Leon decided he should probably do the breakfast cooking.

After sending Cloud into the bedroom, Leon set out to make the other man's favorite breakfast, feeling strangely happy this morning. 

"Going to put cinnamon on those?" came Cid's gruff voice from behind Leon as the brunette slid the freshly-made chocolate chip banana pancakes onto a large plate.

Leon turned slightly and gave Cid a confused look. "Cinnamon?" he asked.

"Yeah, cinnamon sounds good! Need to spice these babies up, man!" Mushu cried, snatching the powdered cinnamon from the open cupboard.

Leon shot the dragon a warning glare, and Mushu, only slightly discouraged, began sprinkling a fair amount of the red powder onto breakfast.

Cid chuckled, patting Leon on the shoulder. "I guess you don't remember. Cloud loved cinnamon way back then. Hardly ever ate anything without it, including this kind of pancake."

Frowning, Leon turned to glance over at the pancakes, something about Cloud and cinnamon striking in his memory. It seemed to be true, now that he thought about it. But why hadn't Cloud mentioned it? Granted, Cloud _had_ said that something was missing from the pancakes the first morning Leon had made them, but Cloud hadn't mentioned anything about cinnamon.

"I guess it's alright then," Leon muttered, reaching for the plate.

"And I'll be going now," Cid announced, laughing. "I just came to check up on you and tell you that I'll have the new gummi installed in the ship soon. And by the way, Aerith and Yuffie send their regards and hope Cloud recovers."

With that, they left too, quickly and without a commotion just like Merlin had. It almost seemed like they didn't want to intrude on Leon and Cloud's time together. It was almost a little embarrassing.

As if Cloud and Leon were up to something.

Giving a quiet snort of amusement, Leon picked up the plate of food, grabbed the glass of milk he had poured earlier, and made his way into the bedroom where Cloud was already sitting on the bed, stripped down to just the pair of pants Leon had lent him nearly three weeks ago. 

"How are you feeling?" Leon asked as he set the plate and glass on the night table.

"Not sure…" Cloud admitted weakly, barely lifting his eyes to meet Leon's.

"Cid says that Aerith and Yuffie wish for your recovery," Leon said, beginning to take off his accessories, starting with his gloves. "Cid talked to them before settling the townsfolk down. He told them about us and not to come bother you."

Cloud managed a tiny smile at the news, somewhat relieved that they finally knew of his existence. "That's good." Then he glanced over at his breakfast, feeling a sliver of happiness that Squall had cooked for him again. Only… "There's no silverware."

Leon looked up from unbuckling his many belts to discover that there was indeed no fork or knife on the plate. "I'll get it in a minute. Sorry about that."

"It's alright…" Cloud replied, lazily stretching his wing. He was just glad that he had been able to retrain himself to use silverware, so that Leon didn't have to practically spoon-feed him like a child, like he had that second night.

And a minute later when Leon left to get the silverware, Cloud finally noticed the difference.

The smell.

It was the _right_ smell, the one he remembered from breakfasts at Hollow Bastion. A mix of rich chocolate, batter and syrup, and fresh bananas… And something spicy, yet sweet.

That same spicy-yet-sweet as last time, with the apple cider.

The same smell that had triggered his last flood of memory and painful emotion.

Risking a glance over at the plate, Cloud shivered, seeing the soft red-brown dotting across the pancakes.

He knew what it was now. Cinnamon.

That was the missing piece of the puzzle. It was the smell he had smelt before the end of his childhood and beginning of the darkness. It was the taste he had not tasted when Leon had first cooked for him. It was the spice that he had been obsessed with as a child, the spice that he had for some reason totally _forgotten_.

…because it had been linked to painful memories?

Yes, it had, hadn't it?

Why had cinnamon been present when he had fallen into darkness?

How the hell was it linked to his missing past?

                                                                                                                                      _Is it good, Cloud?_

Cloud froze, eyes wide.

                                                                                                                                      _It's too late._

A heart-breaking scream tore through the quiet air of the small home and Leon suddenly flinched, dropping the silverware he had been carrying back to Cloud. Cloud, who was the one screaming.

Leon burst back into his room to find the blonde thrashing on the bed, curled up and clawing at his wing with his fingernails, tears rolling down his pale cheeks as his body shook with terrible shudders. The sight was something never to be forgotten.

Hesitating only a second to sum up the situation, Leon flew towards the bed and leapt into the fray, so to speak. Dodging a wild kick, Leon twisted around and grabbed both of Cloud's hands, forcing the younger man down onto the bed completely, pinning his wrists over his head as he squirmed and screamed and sobbed.

"H-He's here!! Let me _go_!!!"

What was going on?

Leon took in Cloud's frightened face and bloodied hands from tearing at his own back and felt the dread rise within him. 

Cloud was lost in his own memories right now… Trapped. He didn't see Leon as who he really was.

Well, there was a way to remedy that.

Leon climbed over Cloud, holding the other man down with his body to keep him from hurting himself and Leon. Voice soft but urgent, Leon dipped his head close so that Cloud could see him clearly. "Shh, Cloud! Stop! He's not here!"

Whoever 'he' was.

"_Stop Sephiroth!!_ Go away!!"

"Cloud, it's me, Leon!" he cried, and then paused, correcting himself, "_Squall_! I'm not Sephiroth!"

Cloud suddenly let out a helpless gasp of a sob and jerked his arms free from Leon's grasp, his cold fingers shooting up to clamp around Leon's arms as he leaned up, screaming, "_Squall **save** me_…!"

Leon grit his teeth against the strong fingers digging into his arms and was suddenly thankful that Cloud did not wear his claw to bed. The body beneath his was still thrashing about, trying to escape from his hold, but Leon pressed his legs more tightly into the bed around Cloud's hips, firmly keeping him pinned. He had no idea what had sparked this sudden mental breakdown, but from the way he was crying Sephiroth's name in fear, Leon knew it had to do with what had happened nine years ago. Cloud must have suddenly remembered something. 

Something very bad.

Just what _had_ Sephiroth done?

Cloud was sobbing so desperately that he was even having problems breathing. He was hyperventilating. 

"Shit… Cloud!" Leon cried, cupping the man's tear-streaked cheeks between his large hands. "Cloud! Stop! It's me, Leon! _Squall_!!" He felt the panic rising within him as he leaned closer to Cloud's frightened face, those blue eyes wide with terror. They softened a bit as Leon's words registered in Cloud's confused mind, so Leon tried again, leaning even further so that Cloud could only see his face, nothing else. His own eyes wide with worry, Leon yelled, "Squall is here! _Look _at me, Cloud!"

Cloud's eyes suddenly focused on Leon's and his struggling ceased, the only movement coming from either of them being their ragged breathing. 

It seemed to finally dawn on Leon what had just happened. He had nearly been screaming at Cloud… He had almost panicked. Never had he let himself lose such control, not in nine years… He'd never shown so much emotion, _felt_ so much emotion.

Cloud had managed to invoke that. Not just one emotion, either.

Leon almost felt dizzy from all of the adrenaline coursing through his veins, from the emotions threatening to tear his heart apart. Worry, concern. Fear, anger. Pity, remorse… Love.

Love…

When had love come into the picture?

Neither of them was sure how long they remained that way, just staring at each other and trying to control their thundering hearts, but it wasn't until Cloud blinked and broke the spell that they realized just _how_ dangerously close they were to each other, how intoxicating the proximity was, how quiet and uncomfortable the atmosphere had suddenly gotten. It was like they were both waiting, eyes never straying from the other's, Leon's hands still cradling Cloud's cheeks and Cloud's hands still tightly clamped around Leon's arms.

He was so _close_…

Leon could see the individual droplets of tears on Cloud's lashes. He could even feel Cloud's warm pulse beneath his own body. He could almost _taste_ Cloud's breath. 

When Leon's tongue darted out to wet his dry lips, it was evident that he wasn't going to move off of Cloud any time soon. They both realized that.

Those blue eyes of Cloud's were filling with apprehension, like he was both scared and excited about the immediate future, about why Leon wasn't moving, about why _he_ wasn't struggling.

And soon, Leon began to notice the subtle changes in Cloud. Slowly at first. He could hear the quivering in Cloud's breathing as it slowly began to quicken again, and how his racing heart was beginning to gain speed. How his muscles were beginning to tense up like he was expecting an attack. Cloud suddenly squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed, the tiny beads of liquid on his lashes melding together and slipping down the contour of his face in the form of delayed tears. 

He wasn't scared anymore. Not of Leon, or of the memory he had just had. He was scared of _feeling_.

When his eyes slid back open, he knew they were reflecting what he really felt. What he _still_ felt for Squall. Leon.

Leon took it as a sign. _The_ sign.

And they _both_ attacked.

"_Leon_…!" was all that was said before their lips met in a deep, desperate kiss, both men suddenly violently pushing at each other in a reckless attempt at dominance. Fingers dove into soft hair and clung there like a life support as other hands skimmed over bare skin and admired the firm, sculpted muscles there and downward, fingertips running around Cloud's waist and drawing the younger man's body closer to him.

Their kiss was savage, teeth pulling at lips and tongues forcing their way into the velvety depths of each other's mouths, soft, muffled whimpers escaping Cloud as he let Leon's roaming hands slide over his vulnerable wing.

They pulled away for only ragged breaths, lips swollen and red, their lust-shadowed eyes meeting in silent agreement before they met again, this time tearing at clothes in a frantic search for hot, bare skin.

Neither of the men was sure who initiated what or what exactly was happening, but it happened. 

Cloud found what he had been searching for since he had awoken from the darkness, and Leon had finally let someone fill the empty hole in his life called love. Companionship. Cloud had found his light in Leon, and Leon had found his happiness in Cloud.

They both had risked and gained because of it. 

When they woke later that afternoon wrapped securely within each other's embrace, skin against skin and incriminating evidence in between, it finally hit them.

They hadn't just slept with each other. They'd had hot, violent **_sex_** with each other.

There hadn't been time for desire, or for excuses as to _why_. Something else had driven them into that reckless union. That _truthful_ union.

Cloud had fallen in love with _Leon_, not Squall… And Leon somehow along the way had started to love Cloud back.

Whatever excuses would come later, that truth would remain for now.

Meeting Cloud's worried blue eyes with a smirk, Leon leaned in for a soft, deeply meaningful kiss.

Then he got up, got dressed, and left. Without a word. 

He had to see Cid.

That aforementioned Cid knew exactly what had happened as soon as he laid eyes on the disheveled Leon calmly walking through the cold, rainy first district streets. The man's mouth fell open and his cigarette dropped to the wet cobblestone of the street, and he laughed without any hint of a smile.

"You fuckin' bastard, you actually did it!"

Leon stopped in front of Cid and coolly met the older man's surprised gaze. "That's not important. I know what happened to Cloud."

Cid grunted, reaching a hand up to scratch the back of his head. "Do ya? I mean, _did_ ya? _Y'know_… How did it happen?"

Ignoring the nosey questions, Leon sighed, frowning. "Cloud was raped by Sephiroth. I'm pretty sure of it. He didn't actually tell me, but he had a mental breakdown and was screaming about things…"

"_Fuckin' **shit**!!_" Cid growled out, eyes suddenly dark with anger. "How the **_fuck_** did _that_ happen?! Cloud must have been, what, _thirteen_ fucking years old!"

"I know. I don't know how it happened, either…" Leon sighed, running a hand over his face and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "It worries me that Cloud still wants to find Sephiroth."

Cid began cursing under his breath, so it didn't really register in Leon's mind when Cid suddenly said, "Holy **_fuckin'_** _Highwind_, what in the flying _fuck_ is **that**?!"

Leon blinked, turning to follow Cid's gaze out into the rainy street.

He blinked again.

At first he didn't see what Cid was talking about, for all he really saw was darkness…

But then he saw the white and silver hair and the unmistakable color of skin amongst that cold blackness. 

It was Riku…?

"Riku…?" Leon whispered in disbelief, taking a step into the rain before breaking into a full sprint, Cid not far behind him as the crying sky began pelting them with hard drops of water as they approached the mass of darkness. "Riku!"

Riku was alive! 

Relief began to fill Leon, but it suddenly froze into worry as he saw Riku's state. Clothes indecently tattered and torn, skin ripped and bleeding everywhere…

Tears, not rain, streaming down his face.

Leon's whole world seemed to shrink down to just the scene before him, to just the small boy kneeling on the wet cobblestone, trembling from the cold and unimaginable terror. Just one look at Riku's wide green eyes told Leon all he needed to know.

Sora was gone.

_______________________________________________________________________________

I hope all of you at least gained something from this side story. ^_^; Considering I spent so long on it.

This last part was VERY hard to write considering I had so many different scenes planned, and so very little room to explain them in. This could have been a lot better, but … It's time to move on, I think. ^^

Lastly, yes, Leon and Cloud had sex. Will there be a lemon? Honestly, I think any more details would have spoiled that scene, so I'm not sure. If I do, it'll only be because people asked me to, and because there's too few decent Leon/Cloud lemons out there.

**Review Button**:  Feeeeed meh!

**Note: The Uzumaki Fanfiction yahoo group has been created, so please join if you're a dedicated reader!**


	24. Ch 17: Duty vs Happiness

**Note: The Uzumaki Fanfiction yahoo group has been created, so please join if you're a dedicated reader! **

_Author Notes:_

Thank you SO MUCH for all the reviews for the last update. ^___^ It's the most I've had in a very very long time, and I was so surprised, and honestly touched. I love you guys! I'm so sorry this took so long to write! This is a monstrous chapter, and I'm not just talking about its size, which is longer by my regular chapters by like 2500 words. 

DO NOT SKIP ANYTHING. You will be missing A LOT of important reasoning if you do.

_A look ahead:_

When lives are consumed by seclusion and jealousy. When love begins to flicker. When duty is chosen over happiness.

______________________________________________________________________________

**_Chapter Seventeen: Duty versus Happiness_**

"Move the fuck out of our way!"

So cold…

"Oh my..! That child, isn't he---" 

"What happened?!" 

"Look at his _clothes_…!" 

"So much blood…" 

"Was it the heartless?? Are the heartless back?"

_Sora… Where's Sora…?_

"Squall? Squall! What's wrong?! What happe--- Is that **Riku**?"

Warm arms tightened around him, pressing him against a hard chest.

"I don't know what happened, Aerith. He won't speak."

Leon's voice… Was he concerned?

Where was he?

_                                                         Heescaped,heescaped!Masterwillnotbepleased…Findit.Takeit.Eatit!_

"Move, people! MOVE! We have an emergency here! What the hell are these people doing out in the rain anyway?!"

"Someone find Merlin! He's the closest thing we have to a doctor around here!"

Fast.. everything was moving so fast… Faces, lights, voices… **Everywhere**. 

_It hurts. So cold…_

"Where are you taking him, Squall?! Cid, what--"

"Yuffie, when you find Merlin, send him to my place. _Fast_."

Everyone was hurrying… 

"Alright, but…"

"**Go**, Yuffie!"

"I'm gone!"

So many footsteps, so many different people… **Cold** rain…

"The kid still awake?"

"Yeah… I think he's in shock."

"Still crying?"

_I can't cry… _

"Can't tell… He's shivering though."

"_Fuck_. We knew something like this was going to happen. Scared the _shit_ out of me… 'Least he's still alive."

"I wonder where Sora is…"

"I want to know how the hell the kid got here in the first place. Didya get a good look at the guy who dropped him off?"

"No."

*Slam!*

"We're here."

"About fuckin' time too. You live too damn far away, Leon."

"We need to get the bath ready. Clean up some of these wounds."

"Leon?"

"_Shit_. I forgot _he_ was here."

"Hello to you too, Cid. Wait.. _Leon_…? Is that **Riku**?!"

"Help me take him, Cloud… He just suddenly appeared in the street like this."

"What _happened_?"

"I don't know."

"Kid, go get some clothes on. I'll get the bath ready. Leon, try to get Riku to talk…"

"Riku?"

Voice… Leon's voice.

"Riku… I know you can hear me. Look at me."

_It hurts… Don't want to cry…_

"_Riku_. Lift your head and _look_ at me."

**                                                                                                                   What a pretty little thing.                    Pretty, like you.**

"He's not responding at all… Has he spoken?"

"No… Not a sound. Even when he was crying."

"Is anyone getting help?"

"I told Yuffie to get Merlin."

"No doctors?"

"If I knew of one, I would have gotten his help when I was taking care of you."

"Oh…"

Silence.

Where was Sora?

**                                                                                                                                                                A shame, really. **

_                                                                       Masterisdisappointed.Hegotaway!Escaped!Betrayed…!_

"Leon, about earlier… _You know_… when we--"

"The damn bath is ready!"

"We'll talk about it later, Cloud. Riku needs help."

"Alright…"

"'kay, the bath is up to you two. I'm gonna go see where the hell Merlin and Yuffie are."

"Hurry back, Cid."

*Slam!*

"Help me undress him."

"There's not much _to_ undress, Squall…"

Hands were on him. Warm hands… 

Touching. Trapped. Hopeless…

Pulling…

**                                                                                                    You have no idea how many people have their eye on you, do you?**

Hands, too many hands! 

_No…!_

"He's struggling!"

"Hold onto him! I'll get the rest---"

_Let me go!_

"Riku, it's alright! We're trying to help!"

"_Hurry_, Cloud."

"His clothes… All these cuts and bruises… What if he was…?"

"I don't know."

"There! Clothes are off."

So cold…!

Where was Sora?!

**                                                                                                        Sora named it Anti-Riku. Perhaps to mirror his own thoughts.**

Sudden soft and weightless heat engulfed his tattered body, warming him to the core and immediately snapping him out of his mindless daze. With a silent cry he lurched out of the searing bath water and whipped his just-wet hair around, green eyes wild with fear as he hastily glanced around, unable to stop his muscles from shuddering with tension. 

"Riku---"

Green eyes shot left, landing on a pair of worried faces.

Familiar faces.

_Leon. Cloud._

Scuttling back in the bathtub, Riku pressed his body against the porcelain protectively, staring at the two men with wide, disbelieving eyes. _Surely_ his mind was playing tricks on him again. _Surely _this was just another dream and these were more cruel apparitions to taunt him. He was still in that castle, wasn't he?

With all those books… With that woman. With heartless and Yami and…

Sora.

**                                                                                                        Sora?                                        I'm not your Sora.**

No, not Sora…

Sora was gone.

"Riku?"

Eyes focused back on those faces. He knew those faces.

Leon. Shaggy brown hair, scar… Nice lips.

Cloud. Spiky blonde hair, strange wing… Blue eyes.

He was… dreaming… wasn't he?

Glancing around once again, Riku took in the tiny bathroom and the space beyond the room he could see through the doorway. He was in someone's home…

The water in the tub was already a soft shade of red from all his wounds.

It hurt… everywhere.

Unable to suppress his shivering, Riku shrunk back into the water, staring at the two men with distrust. They were gaping at him strangely, like he was a specimen… or a particularly pretty piece of glass.

"Those bruises around his neck area…" Cloud began quietly, frowning, "Some of them look a day old, some a few hours… Others are just forming."

"How can you tell?" Leon asked, drawing closer to Riku, who flinched and sank further into the pink bathwater.

"I lived at the coliseum for while, Leon…"

"That's right… What about those scratches? The ones all over him."

"Fresh. Look like an animal's claws… Maybe heartless talons."

Heartless. 

Heartless that looked like him. Yellow eyes.

Yami had yellow eyes.

"His lips are chapped and bleeding. Swollen too…"

"This doesn't look good."

Leon drew closer to Riku, slowly, carefully…

But the boy gave a silent gasp and raised his forearm to protect himself, as though defending an attack.

"Riku, we're not going to hurt you. Whatever happened where you were… You're safe here," Cloud said calmly.

His eyes spoke of pity though. Sadness. 

Anger.

"This is getting us nowhere," Leon sighed, bringing a hand up to rub at his forehead.

But as soon as he got those words out, there came the sound of a door slamming shut, and hurried feet towards the bathroom. Anxious green eyes focused on the doorway as more familiar faces piled into the small room, an old man wearing blue passing them to get closer to Riku.

"Merlin," Leon said in quiet acknowledgement. "We didn't know what to do…"

The man's face hovered in front of Riku's for a moment, those wise old eyes twinkling at Riku with hidden knowledge. The boy drew back again, only to find he couldn't go any further, his green gaze meeting Merlin's with uncertainty. The look they shared told all Merlin that he needed to know.

A gentle smile passed over his kind face. "I know," he said softly, though no one was sure if he was really speaking to Leon… or Riku. 

                                                                                                                                                      **You will understand soon.**

A wrinkled hand passed over Riku's eyes, and like a black veil, dark sleep consumed him.

~~~

Warmth… A nice kind of warmth…

A Sora-like warmth.

With lazy, cat-like grace, Riku stretched out and shivered, feeling his muscles scream in protest. But it didn't matter how much he hurt… His dream was over. He was awake. With Sora.

As if to prove that, Riku slid his arms around the body next to him, a hand going up to run fingers through those silky spikes of hair. Riku loved Sora's hair.. Despite its awkward appearance, it was so soft, so fun to play with.

Feeling Sora's body stir next to him, Riku smiled and snuggled closer to the boy, slipping his free hand down the boy's lean body, over firm muscles and up his back to his ---

Wing?!

As fast as any fire spell, Riku shot out of the bed he was laying on, tripped over the covers that were wrapped around him, and crashed into the floor with a breathy cry.

It hadn't been a dream! 

Sora wasn't Sora, Yami had saved Riku, Riku was gone from Hollow Bastion, and…

Sleepy blue eyes peeked over the edge of the bed, soft blonde spikes framing a face that was definitely **not** Sora's.

He had just fondled _Cloud_.

Ergh…

"Leon, he's awake."

A pair of fine boots suddenly came to a rest near Riku's head where it was laying on the floor.

"I can tell," came a deep, familiar voice. He sounded vaguely amused… and relieved.

Riku glanced up to study Leon's face, so many different wonders filling his mind as he took in the situation.

He was in Traverse Town. He had to be. But why was Cloud here as well?

…and why did both men have _hickeys_ on their necks?

Riku also didn't fail to notice that all of them were shirtless. In fact, Riku wasn't even wearing _anything_. As he began to hastily cover himself up, he finally noticed the state of his own body.

He was covered in small white bandages. _Everywhere_. Arms, chest, back, face… thighs… But he had been treated. He could tell because they didn't really hurt at all. Neither did his backside, which should have still been sore from…

From Yami. Yami and his seduction…

"Riku… If it's alright, we wanted to ask you some questions."

Cloud sounded so careful, like he was speaking with a scared child… or a puppy. Riku didn't like being talked to in that way. He knew he wasn't in the best condition at the moment, mentally or physically, but he wasn't _that_ frail. 

He refused to be.

"Alright," he tried to say, but it came out as a choked sigh.

Something he hadn't realized… His throat felt raw, like someone had poured scalding water down it…

His voice wasn't working.

Struggling to his feet, Riku flopped back down on the bed, sheets draped around his waist as he stared up at the older man, green eyes filled with a pathetic kind of despair. 

"Merlin made the assumption you screamed yourself hoarse," Leon explained quietly, almost like the words hurt to admit, to imagine. "Your voice should return soon." He paused to hand Riku a weathered-looking pad of paper and a quill that he had not seen the older man bring in. "The inkwell is on the night stand. This will have to do until you can speak again."

Riku took them with a nod and a sigh, feeling suddenly weary even though he had just woken up.

Drawing up a chair to sit in front of Riku, Leon exchanged a quick glance with Cloud before clearing his throat to begin.

"Riku, I want you to understand that everything I'm asking demands an honest answer," he said, leveling his steel blue eyes on the exhausted boy before him. "We need this information to come up with our next plan of action."

The silver-haired boy gave a tired nod.

Reliving everything that had happened at Hollow Bastion… Was he _really_ willing to do such a thing? 

How could he even _begin_ to describe everything?

"Did Yami take you to Hollow Bastion?" was the first question.

Well, _that_ wasn't so hard of a question… He could start there.

Riku nodded in response and placed the sharp tip of the quill to the pad, taking a deep breath before drawing the first letter. And so began his retelling of events. He wrote of mostly everything he could remember, from Maleficent's nasty threats and his temporary paralysis, and some of Yami's confessions… He even told of the gummi ship (_that_ was likely to make Cid weep). 

But he hesitated when he reached the telling of his last night there. Sora's birthday… Their night together… The next day with Yami.

How could he have been so _stupid_…?

Could he really confess something like that?

"So Yami isn't that bad," Cloud was commenting from Riku's current writing, his forehead furrowing in confusion. "I don't understand…"

Leon had noticed that Riku had stopped writing.

He knew Riku was trying to hide something…

"Riku. What happened after he gave you this Oblivion key chain?" he asked, and though his request seemed gentle, Riku caught the impatience in Leon's voice.

Could he really tell them about Yami's strange jealous visit when he had given Riku the Oathkeeper key chain for Sora? Or his night with Sora, and their lovemaking…? Their promises? Could he talk about the morning after where Sora had seemed so normal? So… _Sora_…

_His_ Sora.

His cute, happy Sora… Who had wanted chocolate ice cream after waking up.

Riku had promised him that they would have some when they got home.

Home…

What was home now?

Destiny Islands? Here in Traverse Town?

He didn't have a home. Never, as long as Sora was missing from his life…

_"You're not staying?" "I'm going to try to find a way off this world. I might be able to get Yami talking, too." "M'kay… Nighty…"_

Did Riku have the strength to tell them that he had let Yami seduce him? That he had _liked_ it? And didn't really regret it as much as he should?

Did Riku have the strength to retell his dream with Yami and Yami's confessions, retell what Maleficent had revealed, what Dark Sora had said…

Did he really have the strength to relive the… the _orgy_ of heartless that looked exactly like him? That they wanted to… _have_ him…

"Riku," came Leon's voice again, trying to prod him out of his thoughts. "Tell us what happened."

Sora was gone.

It was his fault… He had made all the mistakes….

Riku had no one to blame but himself.

He couldn't do anything…

He was so.. so…

He was so **weak**.

Riku pressed the tip of his quill to the paper and released a shuddery sigh, fighting back the sting of tears. Slowly he scribbled a single word, covering his eyes as they watered, knowing his answer wasn't going to satisfy anyone…even himself.

"What did he say?" Cloud asked as Leon took the pad of paper from Riku's grasp.

Blue eyes narrowed as they scanned over the cruel word.

"Nothing."

~~~

Days passed and still Riku refused to explain the events that had separated him and Sora and had landed him with all those wounds… It was not easy for anyone, especially the two men mainly responsible for watching over Riku's recovery. Cloud and Leon had left Riku the bedroom for himself, and it didn't take much for the boy to imagine that the two men were sleeping together on the couch. Or on the floor… 

He didn't care. They made him uneasy… He had always thought Leon and Cloud had been attractive men. But then, he had always thought _Yami_ had been attractive, and look where _that_ had gotten him. 

Those words kept ringing in his head, _"There is quite a difference between love and desire."_

It certainly made sense, but that didn't make it any easier to accept.

Riku had hated Yami. He still _did_ on many levels. Some of the things Yami had done simply could not be forgiven.

But that didn't change the fact that Riku _did_ like him, _did_ desire him, and _had_ slept with him. 

Given up his virginity too…

It was painful to admit. Riku didn't screw up this badly. He _never_ got himself into this much trouble.

He had driven Sora over the edge… It was _his_ fault Dark Sora existed.

He spent his days in Leon's bedroom dwelling on that fact. It didn't take long for him to realize that no matter what he did, he couldn't go back and change what had happened. He couldn't even admit the truth out loud.

Leon and Cloud were worried. He could practically _smell_ it on them.

They had reason to be, though… Riku refused to do anything.

His voice had healed, but he would not talk. His strength had returned, but he would not leave the small apartment. They cooked for him, but he barely ate a thing.

Both of them had tried consoling him on their own… Both of them had talked to him. _Really_ talked, but conversations never got far, considering Riku did not speak with them. Riku had learned what he had missed while he had been at Hollow Bastion, and he had learned that even though Leon and Cloud _were_ technically falling for each other, they were still working out their _own_ issues.

In fact, Riku had been losing his virginity about the same time Cloud had. Unless what Leon suspected about Cloud and Sephiroth was true…

Riku was intruding on their fragile relationship, and he felt bad about it… Well, he felt bad about everything…

But he figured if he left them alone, they would leave him alone.

Oh, how wrong he was.

Leon asked his questions everyday, always asking what had happened, where Sora was…

Riku didn't want to relive it, even if only in his memory. He didn't want to remember at all.

It was _his_ fault. **His**.

It was almost funny how worried they were… He had never seen so many people worry over him. Touching, almost, except he didn't care anymore.

At least, he _didn't_ want to care…

He just wanted something to take the pain away. He couldn't go back and change things, and nothing he did in the future could change things. Basically, he wanted a new life.

Selfish, yes…

But the only other person Riku really cared about hated him now.

He could feel it.

Sora hated him.

So Riku just stayed in bed all day, wallowing in his own self-pity, wallowing in the pity of others… He merely existed. There was no purpose in his life, not anymore. 

He simply did not care.

Once he idly wondered if it was possible to recover from a broken heart… Though, it felt more like his own soul had been split into two, not just Sora's.

A part of him knew what he needed to do, that he still had a mission to finish, but the dominant side of him just wanted to fade away.

All he needed was an opportunity. Something to help him forget.

He needed something… _wrong_.

It came to him on the third night, actually… and it was wearing all black.

Riku had just finished his daily ritual of crying himself into a bitter mood when it came. Leon and Cloud were in the kitchen talking, so neither of them noticed when the bedroom suddenly filled with shadows before the door slid to a silent close.

Riku did.

Even though he suspected the visit would come, he still had Oblivion ready in his hand when Yami slipped out of the darkness.

The two of them were silent as the shadows of the room slowly dissipated, worried green eyes merely staring into calm amber as the newcomer began to approach the bed. Yami was somehow even more gorgeous at that moment, three days after Riku had last seen him. He hadn't changed much at all… Yami wore his long hair up today into a trailing bun, and his elegant black clothes gave him an even more sophisticated look than usual… He looked like a dark spy who had come to take Riku away.

Maybe he had.

"You are doing it again, dear Riku…" were Yami's first softly-spoken words. Even **he** seemed to sound pitying.

Riku sat up and let Oblivion disappear, his silver hair brushing at the high collar of his shirt as he moved to get closer to the edge of the bed, his heart suddenly fluttering with eagerness because of Yami's presence.

_Surely_ Yami could help him…!

"You came…" Riku didn't mean to sound so relieved. "How is Sora?"

The question slipped out before he could help himself.

Yami gave a simple smile. It was not one of his usual smiles, however… This one was sympathetic.

"You would be better off not knowing Sora's current state."

That hurt.

Riku lowered his eyes, feeling the sharp pang of regret he always felt when he thought of what he had done. 

Sora hadn't even tried to contact him yet… And now Yami was telling him he was better off not knowing about Sora.

"You were crying," Yami said simply, reaching out to run a finger under Riku's wet lashes. "But other than your faded aura… You look healthy."

Healthy… But not well. 

"It hurts, Yami…" Riku whispered.

"You want my help."

"Yes."

Yami released a small sigh, neither impatient or tired. It was just a quiet sigh of acknowledgement. "Riku, you are doing it again. Your reliance on others is slowly sealing your other destinies. Please do not throw your life away like this."

Raising a hand to clench at the button-up shirt he had borrowed from Leon, Riku squeezed his eyes shut to try to force back the emotions that had been overwhelming him for days. 

"Please," he whispered. 

Yami's answer was simple. "You do not even know what you are asking for."

Riku further lowered his face, his lips drawing into a pained pout. "I just want to feel wanted…"

Wanted.

That's right.

Just by one person. Not by Leon and Cloud, or the Anti-Rikus… Not by Sora and Dark Sora…

Riku just wanted to be wanted.

Sora hated him now… Sora did not want to even be around him now.

But Yami…

Yami understood.

A white eyebrow went up at Riku's statement. "Wanted?"

For a moment Riku felt foolish… And guilty yet again…

But then, how can you feel guilty about something that was true?

"Hmm…" Yami drawled sweetly, a fine smile spreading over his lips. "It seems you know some of your weaknesses after all."

Riku wasn't sure if that was supposed to be a good thing or not.

"Please?" he said again, slowly lifting his eyes to meet Yami's again.

A warm hand met his cheek as Yami drew near, that smile of his fading into a look of concern.

"I do not want to take advantage of you."

Riku could have laughed, but he managed only a subtle smile as he replied, "It didn't stop you last time."

When Yami did not respond, the silver-haired boy reached out and gently pulled Yami onto the bed, giving him a sad, imploring look.

"Please...." he repeated.

"Please what?" Yami finally asked in a low whisper, gently brushing his nose against Riku's ear, his cheek caressing the boy's tear-stained face.

"Please... help me..."

Sliding an arm around the smaller boy, Yami released a small sigh, pulling Riku closer to him. "Help you...?"

"Help me forget."

_                                                             Betrayed,we'vebeenbetrayed!Masterwantshisheart…Masterneedsit._

He knew he could never forget what had happened, not completely at least… But even if only for a little while… Wouldn't it help ease his pain just a little? Wouldn't it help him clear his thoughts, and put him back on the right track? Even if it was, technically, betraying Sora again, wouldn't it shove him in the right direction again?

It may not have made sense to anyone else, but it sounded like heaven to him.

So much suffering, so much tension and fear and… guilt. 

He just wanted to let it go. Just for a little while…

Didn't he deserve a little break?

No child should have to go through this kind of torture.

"Surely you do not want to forget _everything_," Yami breathed quietly, pressing his face into Riku's warm neck. "About your home, about Sora…"

"No, I don't," Riku admitted, feeling another brick pile onto his already heavy heart. "Just enough to sleep a little in peace," he said, his voice shaking in trepidation. "To clear my thoughts… To…"

The older boy pulled away from Riku, slipping a hand over his slightly trembling lips to silence him before drawing away again. Those amber eyes studied his mouth intently, Yami's frown deepening as he ran his fingertips over Riku's delicate pink skin.

To Riku it seemed like Yami was almost treasuring him, his beauty… but struggling to resist the temptation of indulging himself in it, or afraid to accept Riku's offer to. Because of that strange hesitation, Riku realized that he was wrong about Yami again.

He wasn't just some cold-hearted bastard doing what he wanted…

Yami was just as confused as Riku was. Maybe he even felt just as guilty too.

Perhaps the two of them weren't that different after all.

Drawing away from Riku again, Yami sighed, slightly shaking his head. "Riku, you are going to regret this again."

"I know."

"Then why ask for it?" Yami wondered, shifting on the bed to lean closer to the other boy. Softly he planted a small kiss at the corner of Riku's mouth, as if testing…

Riku made no move to stop him. "Because I'm selfish," he admitted in a suddenly callous voice, "and weak. And I don't care anymore."

That made Yami pause again… but not for long. Those words seemed to fasten the invisible bind between them, and Yami gave into the other boy's wishes.

And Riku gave into his weakness.

Slipping fingers into that gorgeous white hair and ignoring all pretense of reason or affection, Riku pulled Yami closer and delved into his mouth, groaning into the kiss with satisfied relief. 

It was like all of his problems, all of his awful experiences, worries, and expectations were going into that one passionate duel of lips and tongues, each of the boys suddenly struggling for supremacy over the other, both of them striving to be victor in what was neither a fight… or lovemaking. 

It just _was_. It didn't really have a name.

Riku did not love Yami. It was final. The two were using each other. It was merely a _release_. That was innocent enough, wasn't it?

He had nothing but _shameful_ memories.

Here he could forget. Here, with Yami, he did not have to remember.

He wouldn't be ridiculed or treated like an infant... He wouldn't be stared at like he was a fragile piece of glass… or a sliver of delicious meat.

It was just act and react here, just deep emotion and giving into the solace that was desire. He never wanted to stop. He wanted to keep going until every last ounce of passion was spent, until he could no longer remember why he was there, or why he had been crying.

Until he forgot about his pain.

. . . he was **such** a whore . . .

Yami's chin lifted, giving Riku access to the defined muscles in his neck, which the silver-haired boy eagerly devoured with kisses, running lips and teeth and tongue along the sensitive veins and tendons, biting down without remorse of leaving a mark. He moved viciously, without thought or care, his only concern being to please himself by releasing this pent-up _need_ of his.

He vaguely noticed the strong fingers running under his shirt to trace the lines of his firm back, nor did he concern himself with Yami's insistent pressing of his firm chest against his own. The two of them were almost brutal, with Riku tracing the other boy's collar bone with his teeth, and Yami digging sharp fingernails into Riku's shoulder blades, both of them releasing desperate half-groans.

Riku needed this.

He needed this escape.

No thought was necessary here. Just movement. Just desire.

Just...

"F-Fuck...!" Riku suddenly cried. 

He squeezed his eyes shut as Yami suddenly took the initiative and thrust their groins together, the merciless friction causing a wave of pleasurable pain to wash over his tense body. He shuddered noticeably, but Yami didn't relent his attack; rather, he rolled his hips closer, grinding their obvious erections together and causing Riku to gasp aloud again, head thrown back and lips parted in a silent plea.

He could feel the sheen of sweat forming on his flushed skin, making his clothes seem annoyingly thick and heavy… 

After a brief glance between them as if they were searching for approval and understanding, both boys moved for each other's mouth again, taking turns pulling at swollen lips with teeth, and as they kissed they simultaneously reached for the other's clothing.

Already he was forgetting… Already he was too lost in himself to realize just _what_ he was doing.

Yami grasped at the high collar of Riku's shirt and jerked it open, not even pausing to watch the buttons fly before he dipped forward to nibble at the marble-pale skin of Riku's neck. His reward was a gasp of approval from Riku as the boy busily fumbled blindly with Yami's belt. He tugged the clasp this way and that (cursing Yami and his complicated attires) until it was finally free, and with a flick of his wrist, the hateful obstacle was sent soaring across the room.

Moving further down the smaller boy's neck, Yami desperately ran his mouth as far as the ruined shirt would let him, almost worshipping the boy's beautiful skin. With a pause, he pulled the shirt completely open, sliding it off Riku's shoulders and exposing all of the boy's chest, leaving it vulnerable to his bruising but welcome ministrations. 

But that onward trek came to a **_very_** abrupt halt.

A foreign hand suddenly grabbed a fistful of Yami's hair and jerked him clean off Riku. There came a startled cry and the dark-skinned boy went crashing into the hard ground at the foot of the bed, leaving a breathless and confused Riku on the mattress alone.

The intruder was not finished, however.

Leon, eyes dangerously narrowed in anger, jerked Yami back to his feet by grabbing a sprawled-out arm, and then slammed the boy into the closest wall. Yami's head made a sharp **crack** against the hard wood, but he made no sign of pain or frustration, even though no doubt Leon was _not_ being gentle with him.

In fact, even though Leon was baring his teeth and looking positively _livid_, Yami merely met the older man with a calm stare.

"Who the _hell_ are _you_?" Leon hissed, pressing the dark-skinned boy against the wall with his fingers wrapped around the base of the boy's neck, his other hand steadily holding the sharp, glinting edge of his gunblade to Yami's throat.

Those amber eyes narrowed a fraction.

But Yami did not get a chance to speak.

"Leave him alone!"

Riku's voice was hurried, _worried_ as he scrambled off the bed and to his feet, fixing his shirt so that it once again covered his shoulders as he came to Yami's side and defense. There was no doubt in his mind that Leon intended to kill Yami for touching Riku, even if Leon did not know who Yami was anymore.

After all, the mysterious boy had considerably changed since their last visit to Traverse Town. Yami was not the eerily quiet boy just sitting in a corner, watching them with a smile… Not only had his appearance changed, almost like he had gone through puberty at a startling rate, but his personality had too. He had revealed a bit of himself to Riku that no one else knew; he was cunning, intelligent… He knew what he wanted. What he desired. The Yami that Leon knew of would not have been tumbling half-naked on a bed with Riku. The Yami that Leon had known did not have long, fine white hair, high cheek bones and shapely lips, not to mention the gorgeous body of someone who now looked several years older than Riku. The old Yami had been but a mere boy, looking hardly older than Sora. Now he looked almost Cloud's age.

It had been only three weeks since they had left Traverse Town, so it was no wonder Leon did not recognize Yami as he was now.

And even if Leon had, who was to say he wouldn't have attacked him anyway?

Riku himself still greatly mistrusted Yami, and hated him for what he had done to him and Sora…

But then why...?

_Why_ did Yami have such an effect on him? _Why_ did he want him so much? ...and if Yami only wanted him for experimentation, _why_ had he reacted with as equal fervor as Riku had?

Perhaps it was because now Yami was the only person who really _understood_ him, and what had happened. He was the only person Riku _could_ trust. No one else understood the problem, or knew the truth, or loved Riku for what he truly was. Somehow he knew that _Yami_ did. Even if the boy denied any sort of love, besides basic desire, Riku knew it was another lie. Somewhere beneath all the lies and mystery surrounding Yami, there was care. 

Why else did he save Riku from the horror that was now Sora? And those heartless…

Feeling a soft shudder run through him, Riku frowned as he approached the two other men. He had to protect Yami. At least this time.

"Leave him alone, Leon," he repeated, tugging on the older man's arm to get him to release his captive. "I started it," he admitted in a low voice, almost in shame. Maybe it _was_ shame, shame for giving into his weaknesses again, for betraying Sora's love…If there _was_ love still. "Yami was just…" He paused, not sure of what he was trying to say. "Yami was the one who saved me from Sora."

The number of realizations and questions those simple sentences brought up in Leon could not be counted, but each and every one of them flickered in the man's mind before he turned to fix his disapproving stare on Riku. "_This_ is Yami? _He_ brought you here? _Sora_ was the one who hurt you?" were the only three questions he could manage right then, but more were definitely waiting to be asked.   

Riku didn't really want to answer any of them though.

"Let him go, Leon," he said, facing the older man with desperate eyes. "Please."

The tall brunette cast his hard gaze over Riku's mussed hair, swollen lips, and forming love-bites with distaste as he released his hold on Yami, retracting his weapon's blade and shifting to step back, giving them both some room. He wasn't letting the subject drop, however.

Cold grey eyes glowering at Yami with distrust, that deep voice gave one simple command.

"Explain."

"Which part?" was Yami's simple response, still meeting Leon's gaze with a calm stare of his own. 

It created an almost unbearable tension between the three of them, and Riku swore that it wouldn't be long before this uncomfortable conversation turned into something drastically more violent.

"All of it," Leon growled.

Riku, almost tentative about stepping between them again, mentally grimaced as he said, "Leon, calm down… Please."

Wrong move.

The older man shifted his intense gaze to Riku, a deep frown pulling at his lips. "_Stop_ acting like a child who has just gotten caught doing something wrong, Riku. _Stop_ pretending that this is just another sexual excursion between you and Sora," he said very pointedly, keeping his voice steady and meaningful. "I don't _care_ what you were doing. What I want to know is _why_ with _him_ and _why_ the **hell** he looks like that now."

Eyes widening, Riku slowly took a step back. 

But Leon saw the boy's sudden hesitation, his fear… Riku wasn't afraid of Leon himself; rather, he was afraid of retelling the events that had transpired at Hollow Bastion, events that he did not want to relive.

This was an _awful_ way to approach the subject…

Suppressing a frustrated sigh, Leon forced himself to calm down. "Look, Riku, I'm sure you have your reasons. However, you have to remember that you're not alone. No one here wants to hurt you… We just want to know what happened so we can figure out what to do next. We want to _help_."

Surprisingly, Yami was the one who replied, not Riku.

"He is not ready yet, Squall," he said, fixing the older man with a secretive look. "He will tell you all you need to know when he is."

"And what say do you have in all of this, _Yami_?" Leon demanded in a low voice, eyes burning with suspicion.

Yami lifted his chin almost stubbornly, slowly taking a step away from Leon. "I know the _truth_," he nearly bit. "I should think that gives me plenty of 'say.'"

And before either of the two men could stop him, Yami had disappeared through the wall.

Leon wasted no time wondering about Yami's words or strange escape; he spun on Riku with a clearly aggravated expression.

"What the _hell_ was that about, Riku?!"

Even though Riku had not known the man enough to understand him that much, he knew enough to realize that he had upset Leon. Leon was _not_ the type to yell, to show his emotions so… _raw_. Usually he expressed things through masks. He watered his emotions down most of the time to give the impression that he was always calm and in control. 

Like Riku used to.

Leon had certainly changed in the past three weeks. Cloud had done something to crack that strong barrier around Leon's cold heart…

And it seemed Riku had just completely broken the dam.

To put it simply, Leon was _pissed_.

Pissed and **confused**, as he should have been. 

When Riku made no incentive to answer, as always, Leon let out a frustrated growl and turned away, angrily raking fingers through his messy hair. He was motionless for a moment before he slowly turned back around, eyes gleaming almost feral as he glared at Riku.

"We went through _hell_ looking for you, worrying about you and Sora. You at least owe us an explanation," he said, his voice tight with impatience. "Do you honestly think you're the only one suffering, Riku?"

"None of you would understand," was the boy's sullen response, matching Leon's hard gaze with one of his own.

"We can't _try_ to understand until you tell us what happened," Leon pointed out through tight lips.

"Maybe I don't want to talk about it! Maybe I don't need help from you!" Riku cried, that _wrong_ feeling in him returning.

This was wrong. _He_ was wrong.. Leon was only trying to help, so why was he being so stubborn?

…because he had always been like that, hadn't he? Never one to admit his mistakes. He was always right. He could take care of himself…

He _was_ a child, but… He had been fine by himself up until recently.

"Don't be such a brat, Riku," the older man growled.

Him? A _brat_? Had Leon just called him a _brat_?!

"Don't presume to know me!" Riku snapped defensively. "I didn't ask for this burden, for this fucking _destiny_ shit! You have **no** idea what I'm going through!"

"That's right, because you   _won't_   **_tell_**   us!! How the hell was that **thing** with Yami supposed help you?!" Leon demanded, drawing closer to Riku's smaller form. "Where the **HELL** is _Sora_?"

"Yami was just trying to help me! He was _only_ doing what I asked him to…!" Riku desperately said, his voice clouding with tears.

"You can't solve your problems with sex, Riku!" Leon shot back.

But that was the end of it.

"Funny," Riku hissed, eyes dangerously narrowed, "coming from a man who _fucked_ Cloud to run away from his own."

Riku saw the sudden flash of disbelief in Leon's eyes, saw his palm swiftly rise into striking position….

It was all so familiar.

Like being back at home, arguing with his father… Leon had the same stance, same anger radiating off him, the same hand raised and same wild gleam in his eyes. 

And Riku?

Unafraid.

As always.

Riku never flinched when threatened this way, never backed down, never let his punishments get to him. They had never been punishments to him because he had always been honest when speaking back to his parents. It was _their_ fault for not accepting him as he was. His stubbornness was a token of his existence, of his individuality, that he could make his father react that way, and that he could withstand the pain. He was used to the pain.

Even though _he_ had been the one in the wrong with Leon, Riku refused to acknowledge the difference. He refused to back down.

When Leon's hand began to descend, Riku watched it expectantly, almost _welcoming_…

And _that_ was what stopped Leon.

He froze, eyes locking onto Riku's, clearly shocked that Riku held no remorse for his statements, or any fear of what was to come.

Somehow he saw through Riku's perseverance and those calm, so-called unbreakable masks of his.

Riku hadn't even braced himself. Riku _wanted_ to be hurt.

Those narrow blue eyes suddenly softened, never moving away from the boy's own. Something in Leon's resolve seemed as though it were slowly melting… Like he had realized the hardness in Riku's eyes, or had accepted Riku's statement as partly true.

His hand lowered and he tore his gaze away from Riku's strong figure, a deep frown set on his face. 

"…just…" Leon paused, casting a stray glance around the room, not meeting Riku's eyes at all as he turned away to leave. "Just clean up after yourself if you do anything."

And then he left.

That was it.

No more yelling, no punishment… No guilt.

_Nothing_.

Leon wasn't going to hurt him? He wasn't going to punish him?

Very suddenly Riku was unsure of what to think or feel as he remained standing there, staring at the bedroom door.

A sense of helplessness filled him… vulnerability.

"Leon…?" he called quietly --- too quietly for anyone else to hear. 

His green eyes widened a fraction and he slowly glanced over at the wall, shuddering lightly as he brought his arms up to embrace himself.

"Yami…?"

There was no response. His voice seemed to snuff out, like a candle in an open breeze.

He was alone now, wasn't he? He had pushed away, _scared_ away the only people that had cared for him. 

He had _hurt_ them… And they refused to hurt him back.

**_That_** was more painful than _any_ punishment Leon could have given him.

Attempting once more, his tiny voice filled the silent room.

"Sora?"

But again, no one answered.

Lost within his own frailty, Riku staggered toward the door Leon had closed so softly, and pressed himself against it, afraid to leave the room and lose his stability, but afraid to stay and remain alone. 

Right here was just fine, kind of like purgatory… Here he felt almost secure, against the door, his cheek pressed against the cool wood, reminding him of Leon's safe embrace when the man had carried him out of the rain.

Oh yes, Riku remembered that part clearly, though at the time he hadn't been too coherent.

"Leon? What's wrong?"

Riku pulled his eyes open, quickly realizing he had almost fallen asleep against the door. Cloud's voice had roused him from his ill memories.

He sounded close too, not too far away from the door, which led Riku to believe that Leon hadn't gotten too far from the room before he too had stopped to think and reflect. 

"I heard raised voices," Cloud said quietly, but it was still quite clear to Riku from inside the room. "Did he tell you anything?"

"Cloud…"

Riku's eyes widened at Leon's voice.

It sounded…

Well, it didn't sound like _Leon_…

It was almost _pained_…

"Squall, what happened?"

Cloud's tone had suddenly taken an adamant, concerned turn, and he heard shuffling towards the door. The feet stopped just outside, and Riku realized that Leon _really_ hadn't gotten far from the room, barely outside it in fact.

"Cloud… Do you regret what happened? The other day between us."

"Never," was the blonde's breathy response.

Riku heard the creaking of wood, and imagined that Cloud had leaned into Leon in a loose embrace. He could see their shadows through the crack beneath the door.

"He won't tell me what happened," Leon sighed.

"Give him time."

"I'm afraid that what happened to you happened to him…"

Riku saw Cloud's feet step away, and when the blonde spoke again, his voice was a little unsteady. 

"You mean… Sephiroth. But only…"

"You saw his wounds, and the evidence. Merlin _told_ us he was hurt down there."

"But Riku…" Cloud paused for a moment. "What did he tell you?"

Leon's shadow moved away from the door and approached Cloud, and Riku heard the very faint rustling of clothes against skin. The two men were probably hugging again…

"Your wing is shaking," Leon quietly noted.

"I'm worried."

"He'll be fine..."

Leon, however, did not sound the least bit convincing.

Pushing away from the door, the silver-haired boy silently crossed the floor of Leon's room to the bed, eyes catching sight of Yami's discarded belt not too far away. For a moment he considered picking it up, but…

Ignoring it, Riku slipped under the covers of Leon's large, empty bed, and squeezed his eyes shut.

He just wanted to fade away.

~~~

This emptiness was familiar.

Even though it was such a _numb_ feeling, even though it only continued to hurt him, Sora decided that it was comfortable.

It was safe.

And so when he woke to the emptiness inside of him, he could almost pretend it was normal.

A velvety darkness surrounded him on all sides, humming softly to him as it gently pulsed to the same beat of his heart, the only sound in the large room he could hear. It was _so_ quiet he was almost _afraid_ to make a noise. 

Sora carefully pulled away from his pillows, shadows flowing over the light indention his head had made, coating the surface of everything he was not touching. And as he sat up completely, his strange company retracted their arms from around him, moving back to give their master some room.

The Anti-Rikus seemed to really like the faint warmth his body gave off, and always settled in around close to him when he rested. Actually, the only light in the room came from their eyes as they moved around him, but even though there were so many of them, the darkness still swallowed the faint light. However, despite the unrelenting shadows…

Sora lifted a hand in front of himself, watching as sinewy darkness slowly melted off of it, like silk cobwebs.

Even though it was so _dark_, he could see everything perfectly.

An Anti-Riku gave a soft "_Kyuu…?_" next to him, as though questioning him, asking him what was wrong. As Sora turned his head to regard it with tired eyes, he felt another heartless slide its arms around his waist.

They could sense something was wrong with him, and they were concerned.

As disturbing as that may have seemed to him a few days ago, Sora was now comforted by their presence. They made him feel oddly safe, as if he could trust them to protect him if the need arose.

They couldn't save him from _Him_, however…

It happened.

It happened as it _always_ happened, so suddenly, but so softly… The empty feeling filled with a now-familiar presence.

He was not alone.

Sora sucked in a sharp breath and drew his arms around himself, feeling the cold skin of the heartless also embracing him, but the shiver that coursed through his body was not because of the Anti-Rikus.

When he had given up hope and decided to fade away, this _presence_ was what had taken over… when Riku had betrayed him.

"Riku…"

_. . . Sora . . ._

The voice was his own, almost, but drawn out into a delightful purr. Though Sora knew this being was somehow an extension of himself, he also knew it _wasn't_ him… He couldn't explain it. The presence, the _person_ inside of him was very kind to him, but he knew that it had hurt Riku badly… He could _feel_ that Riku was hurt, that he was suffering more than Sora. 

Even though Sora had been distraught, he hadn't wanted Riku to be _hurt_…

_Don't think about him so kindly, Sora. He betrayed you._

"He did, but…"

His own hand came up to caress his shoulder, but Sora was not the one who commanded his body to do so.

_Don't you love what you've become, Sora? An abomination to the light, an angel of silence? We are the same, you and I..._

"I didn't want to hurt him."

_You're too kind, Sora, considering who you are. Stop feeling remorse for that boy._

"I can't, not when I can still feel him… When I can feel him _crying_…" Sora said quietly, closing a fist around his crown necklace, which felt frozen against his bare chest.

Riku was crying.

What had Sora done?

No, not Sora…

_He hasn't even gotten what he **deserves** yet, and you already feel sorry for him?_

"We're bound. We shared a paopu fruit, so now we're bound…"

_What a silly fairytale. You actually believe that?_

"I can feel him even though he's not here," Sora explained slowly, sliding his eyes close as he felt a soft pain in his heart. "What else can explain it?"

_Then how do you feel so empty when I am not here with you, if you are supposedly 'bound' to him and can **feel** him?_

Releasing his hold on his necklace, Sora lowered his hand as his eyes fluttered open, looking sad and distant. 

"Because he feels empty too."

_You care too much, Sora._

"Do you have a name?"

_What?_

"You say you're a part of me, but… You're like another person completely. So don't you have a name?" Sora asked.

The presence in his mind seemed to hesitate, as though contemplating Sora's sentence. 

_I used to have a name, but someone once recently called me an 'id'._

"Id?"

_Yes, Id._

"I'm tired, Id… Why do I always only want to sleep?"

_It's natural to feel that way when you've been betrayed by someone you once trusted with your whole being, with your heart… You're depressed, Sora._

"Maybe that's why Riku sleeps a lot too."

_Stop thinking about **him**._

"Sora?"

Sora blinked, realizing that the voice calling him was _not_ in his head, and he promptly turned towards the doorway, narrowing his eyes upon seeing who stood there. The overwhelming feeling Id gave Sora suddenly fled, and the boy felt suddenly vulnerable as he faced the newcomer.

The Anti-Rikus drew closer around him, sensing Sora's growing unease.

"What do you want, _Yami_?" the boy nearly growled, saying that hateful name with obvious disgust.

It _only_ happened around Yami, this feeling of resentment.

The other boy merely regarded Sora and his Anti-Rikus with a soft frown. "I came to inform you."

"Of what?" Sora asked coldly.

"I visited Riku just now," Yami replied calmly, elegantly raising a hand to push back his long white hair.

"And?" Sora said, not really expecting Yami's next statement.

"And I want you to go see him." 

"See him?!"

Why the hell would Sora want to _see **Riku**_ when it was Riku's fault in the first place that he was this miserable?!

Sora suddenly struggled to his feet, pushing the Anti-Rikus away from him as he moved off the bed, burning with sudden anger at Yami's presence, at Yami's pretty hair and stupid calm voice, at Yami's absurd request.

He hated Yami, _everything_ about that damn person.

"Get out!" Sora hissed, bare feet pounding against the floor as he hurried towards the intruder, eyes almost _dangerous_.

"I know you are upset, Sora," Yami continued in a slightly-hurried voice as Sora quickly approached him, "but he did not mean for this all to happen!"

But Sora would not hear it. The boy angrily shoved Yami out of his room, not even pausing to consider _why_ Yami was letting him, and with a wave of his hand, the darkness forcefully slammed the door for him, sending tremors up the walls.

Yami was gone. Sora was safe for a little while again.

Retreating back into the shadows, the boy slipped into the open arms of his Anti-Rikus… and thought about better times. 

~~~

"You should have seen him… He looked just like him."

"Maybe it was just a coincidence…"

Riku paused in the hallway, just out of sight of Leon and Cloud who were in the kitchen. Even though he was, technically, eavesdropping, he didn't really want to interrupt the conversation that was taking place.

"I dunno, a shit load has happened already," came Cid's slightly hoarse voice; he sounded really tired. Riku hadn't known he was visiting. "It wouldn't surprise me if Yami _did_ turn out to be in some way related to Ansem's disappearance before Hollow Bastion's raid."

Ansem?

Where had Riku heard that name before?

Oh. Ansem's reports. Ansem used to be the ruler of Leon's world…

But why were they thinking Yami was related to that?

"Do you remember the rumors?" Leon asked softly.

"Rumors?" came Cloud's question.

"Aa. When I was young… two years or so after Rinoa's death, there was that huge commotion about Ansem having a child."

"Yeah, I remember that," Cid replied. "No one could prove a thing since he never let anyone see the kid, and no woman was named the mother."

"I spent a lot of time in the castle," Cloud said, "but I never saw the child."

"What are you trying to imply, Leon?" Cid asked.

"When Riku and Sora first arrived here with Yami, Yami looked around Sora's age. Fourteen, right? That would be about the age of Ansem's child, if the child existed," Leon explained. "Something happened in Hollow Bastion, and Yami changed… He holds a striking resemblance to Ansem now, yet he _doesn't_ at the same time."

"You think Yami is Ansem's illegitimate child," Cloud said, and Riku didn't have to see the occupants in the room to know that all three of them had grave looks on their faces.

"I admit it makes sense," Cid grunted. "A hell of a lot of sense."

Riku was about to finally make himself known to the other men, but a knock on the front door deterred him again.

There came the scraping of a chair against tile, and Leon said, "I'll see who it is."

Not long after, the front door was unlocked and Yuffie's voice bubbled in. "Hey Squall! Looking grumpy as usual. Is Cloud in?"

"Why?" Leon _did_ sound decisively grumpy all of a sudden.

"Jeez, you don't have to be so mean. Merlin asked me to fetch him. You forgot didn't you? Cloud was getting lessons from him today."

A startled "Oh!" came from the kitchen and more chairs moved. "I'm sorry!" Cloud called, "I'll get ready right away!"

The blonde man suddenly came flying into the hallway towards the bedroom and crashed right into Riku, sending them both barreling into the ground with twin cries of surprise. When the two of them had time to regain their senses, Riku realized Cloud was sprawled over him in a _very_ suggestive manner, his devilish wing stretched to the ceiling in shock.

Wide blue eyes stared into green, and Cloud promptly flushed with embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, Riku, I didn't see you!" he gasped as he scrambled back to his feet, helping Riku back up as he did. "Are you alright? Do you need anything?"

Riku shook his head. "I'm fine."

"Yo, Cloudie, what happened?" Cid called from the kitchen. 

"Ran into Riku!" Cloud called back, and then with a lowered voice, he gave the silver-haired boy a look that almost seemed _happy_. "I'm glad you're up finally."

"Where are you going?" Riku asked as Cloud brushed past him to enter the bedroom.

"I'm getting a shirt…" the blonde replied, not seeing Riku follow him back into the room.

The boy watched with fascination as Cloud grabbed a sleeveless black turtleneck and began to work it over the many ridges of his wing until he could safely slip it over his head. Even with such an alienating appendage, Cloud was doing his best to fit in… Riku found it very admirable. Cloud must have been really strong.

"Merlin is going to teach me defense and healing magic," the blonde explained, his voice ringing with what could almost be excitement. "He told me the other day that my dark powers didn't necessarily have to be focused in evil ways, and so he's going to help me use them positively. Pretty soon I'll be able to use all different kinds of magic."

Cloud was learning from Merlin?

Why couldn't Sora have done that instead of turning to someone so blatantly evil like Maleficent?

Cloud soon left with Yuffie, and Cid went too, leaving the apartment rather empty and quiet. Riku was just settling back into Leon's bed when the tall brunette came to visit him, silently standing in the doorway until Riku took notice of him.

"That's creepy," Riku commented quietly. "You could at least say something to let me know you're there."

"You were listening in on our conversation," Leon stated solemnly, out of no where, "when we were in the kitchen."

"Yeah, I was," Riku admitted, calmly watching the older man as he made his way to the bedside. But Riku didn't really know what to think about the whole Yami/Ansem business. Yami's identity seemed too _elusive_ to be something as simple as Ansem's child, so Riku wasn't ready to make any theories, no matter _how_ much they made sense. So, to escape the subject, he brought up a new one. "So Cloud finally ventured away from your protection, huh?"

Leon met Riku's eyes with a frown. "I was the one who asked Merlin to help him," he said, slowly lowering himself onto the bed beside Riku. "I realized that, while I was initially helping him overcome his fears by keeping him to myself, he does need other people. He needs a small shove into the open, to help him move on…"

"What do you mean?"

Those grey-blue eyes sternly regarded Riku. "I've helped him as much as I can by staying with him. The others helped with that too, by forgiving him. Cloud's problem is that he doesn't accept _himself_."

Riku looked away, lowering his gaze to stare at his hands clasped in his lap. "You really care about him, don't you?"

"If that's what it means to keep him from getting hurt again, then yes, I do," Leon replied, a subtle hint of a smile on his lips as Riku glanced up at him again. Their eyes met again. "No one wants to be alone, Riku."

No one wants to be alone.

It was true… 

But Riku wasn't truly alone. As much as he considered himself lonely, he did have Leon and Cloud there to help him, and Yami to understand him.

Who did Sora have? Maleficent? The heartless?

Dark Sora?

Feeling the overwhelming guilt swell up in him again, Riku sighed, nervously wringing his hands together. He really did need to tell someone about what had happened. A boy like him couldn't solve anything by himself, no matter what his destiny was.

Leon would know what to say to cheer him up, wouldn't he?

After all, he had helped Cloud already…

Maybe it was time to tell Leon.

"I don't want to feel like this anymore…" he admitted quietly, a pitiful smile crossing his lips as his eyes watered. "I didn't mean to hurt Sora."

Leon merely watched Riku with intent eyes, silently telling him he was listening.

"Sora's afraid of the dark," the boy continued in a soft, melancholic voice. "I used to have to stay with him during storms when the power went out. He didn't like how the shadows moved, he said." Riku paused, squeezing his eyes shut and forcing back emotion as his voice shook with it. "But _now_ how do I protect him? When the darkness is _inside_ him?" he asked, almost desperately. His fingers dug into the soft blanket as though searching for support. "It's not tangible," he continued helplessly as his body shivered. "I can't chase it away with a flashlight. And now... he's _making_ those shadows move. And…"

Tears were building up under Riku's long lashes, and Leon watched with sympathy as the boy refused to let them fall. "And…?" he gently asked, urging Riku to continue.

"And he _loves_ it." 

Slowly Leon reached forward, cupping the kid's chin and raising it so they were facing each other again. Riku still refused to open his eyes and let himself cry. 

"Riku, tell me what happened."

Misty green eyes slid open and the tears slipped away with his stubbornness.

He was weak after all.

"Alright…"

So, meeting Leon's gaze, Riku crawled into the hole of memories he had so painstakingly tried to avoid remembering. Because Riku decided to start from the beginning again and include even more details about Yami and Sora's behavior, the storytelling took longer than he had hoped for. Sometime in the middle of it Leon went to retrieve him a glass of water so he could comfortably continue, but even with his resolve to tell everything, it was difficult admitting some things out loud.

Leon asked his questions when appropriate, but he was silent when Riku told about his and Sora's night together, and how it had ended on the library floor between the bookshelves. And when he retold the events of the next day, about his search for the gummi ship, his run-in with Maleficent, and his… _excursion_ with Yami…

Still, Leon was silent.

Even after Riku hesitated after admitting his attraction to Yami out loud, Leon did not say anything. Actually, his face remained calm, interested… He had at least expected Leon to scold him or get angry or _something_, not just sit there and watch him.

Riku must have been talking for over an hour, so maybe Leon wasn't even listening anymore…

_That_ was proven wrong, however.

"What happened after the two of you finished?" Leon asked, his voice void of any emotion except perhaps gravity.

_Finished?_ That was a kind term for what had happened. _Passed out from exhaustion_ might have fit that better, after being with Yami…

Somehow relieved Leon was being calm about all of this, Riku continued a little more confidently, moving on into the dream he had had, and the events that happened afterward. He ended his retelling with Yami pulling him away from the Anti-Rikus and transporting him to here, Traverse Town.

And now that the truth was out, Riku wasn't sure what to expect.

One thing was for certain, however…

He truly did feel better now that someone else knew his story, his pain… His guilt.

Even though he wasn't sure what was going to happen next, he was still caught by surprise when Leon suddenly moved forward, pulled him into a half-hug and awkwardly mussed Riku's hair. The boy blinked, feeling the weight of the man's warm hand rest there, his green eyes meeting Leon's curiously. Leon was almost… _hugging_ him… That was strange.

Leon really _was_ trying to make things better for them all.

"I could say a hundred things to make you feel better by lying to you," the man said, his deep voice leaving no room for questions or interruptions, "and even more things to make you feel worse by telling you the truth…" His words _did_ have a depressing kind of truth to them, actually. "What I will tell you is what I think you should focus on right now. I know you think you've been through hell, kid, but your life will get irreparable if you continue down this road. Things will only get worse like this. Only more people will get hurt."

Riku forced his eyes shut, letting himself give into Leon's comfort. It was strange for them both to be this close, Leon because he never opened up to or touched anyone (except Cloud now) and for Riku because he wasn't used to being babied… to being so weak.

This time, however, he told himself he _had_ to be weak. He had to give in before he could move on.

"What should I do?" he asked, shakily raising a hand to grasp Leon's shirt for support. "I want to fix things."

At this, Leon pulled away with a vaguely satisfied smirk, though it was only half-hearted, as though it was painful to be so encouraging.

"You still have a duty, Riku," he said. "Remember what I told you."

Duty versus Happiness.

That's right… Riku had been stuck between the two decisions. 

If it came down to things, would he forgo his duty and sacrifice all those lives to be happy with Sora? Or would he accept his destiny and fight Sora to protect the remaining worlds?

Duty.

Or happiness.

Well, he certainly wasn't happy, and he didn't have Sora…

So what was left?

The answer was obvious.

"You're right," Riku sighed, green eyes opening as he lifted his face. "I still have a duty, no matter how shitty my life is."

After all, what kind of hero was he if he even forgot his mission? If he considered his own happiness more important than life?

He had dawdled too much. For three weeks he had been stuck in Hollow Bastion, wasting time, forgetting who he was and what he was supposed to be doing, and for too many days he had been drowning in his own guilt and self-pity after losing Sora. It _had_ been his fault in the first place, after all. If he couldn't fix it right now, he might as well move on.

There were more important things at stake. 

He was the keyblade master. He was supposed to be sealing worlds and finding a solution to stop the heartless for good. And he would do it, even if it meant fighting Sora himself… Because after all, Dark Sora seemed to be the one in control of the whole mess.

"Leon, Riku… I'm back."

The two figures on the bed glanced towards the door to find Cloud standing there, looking a little weathered. Riku blinked and suddenly wondered how long he and Leon had actually been talking if Cloud was already back from Merlin's place. He wasn't the only confused one, however.

"You're back early," Leon commented, rising to his feet. He was already moving to Cloud's side to see if the other man was fine.

"Merlin said I was at a good start," Cloud said, a forced smile on his face that did not reach his tired blue eyes. "He told me to get some rest."

Leon gently slipped a hand around the smaller man's upper arm, slightly frowning. "What's wrong?"

Even Riku could tell something was a bit off in Cloud. He was totally unlike the blonde that had left a few hours ago.

Cloud casually pulled away from the older man and waved a hand. "Nothing, I'm just tired," he replied as he brushed past the brunette to head for the bathroom. "I'm going to clean up a little…"

After watching Cloud's back as the man crossed the room, Leon turned his gaze to Riku as though asking his opinion in the matter.

"I don't know," Riku said, feeling slightly sorry for Leon, who had to put up with all of this angst in his life. Then in a lowered voice, he added, "I'd check on him…"

"We'll talk about our next plan of action later," Leon said as he reached up to scratch at his neck where a few bruises were healing. "I have a suspicion about this Dark Sora… and Yami."

Riku nodded, silently watching Leon enter the bathroom and close the door half-way behind him, as though for privacy. Curious, the silver-haired boy slipped out of bed and padded across the floor to the door, quietly peeking around the doorframe to see what was happening.

Cloud was standing before the hanging mirror, just staring straight ahead with his wing arched slightly out behind him. Except…

The mirror was turned against the wall, so that no reflection could be seen.

"Cloud…"

Leon carefully approached the blonde, who made no sign that he had heard his name spoken, and slowly slipped his arms under Cloud's, skimming his hands over the blonde's hard stomach. Cloud merely let himself get pulled back into Leon's embrace, those blue eyes sliding close as the older man breathed a tender kiss on his neck.

"What happened, Cloud?" he asked quietly, head bowing to nuzzle into the blonde's shoulder. When Cloud did not answer, Leon raised only his eyes to regard the reversed mirror. "Did they call you something?"

Riku was confused at first, but slowly it dawned on him. Leon had said that Cloud had to accept himself if he wanted to heal… And Cloud considered himself a monster because of his past and because of his wing. Cloud had finally left Leon's safe home today, gone outside to get to Merlin's… Someone must have seen him, gotten scared because of his wing…

Leon was reaching forward to fix the mirror, his hand gently pulling it so that it was facing the right way, the reflection of him and Cloud embracing now staring back at them.

"Don't hate yourself," Leon said, his voice deep with concern as he returned his hand back to Cloud and embraced him more tightly, his fingers gliding up the bottom of Cloud's shirt and skimming around the man's waist.

When Leon's palm reached the skin of his wing, Cloud let out a tired sigh and relaxed into Leon's body. 

It was an intimate moment that Riku was probably not supposed to see, but he had. That was the moment he realized just _how_ out of place he was here, staying with them, acting like a child…

He did have a duty to fulfill.

Leon and Cloud had their own lives, and they didn't need to be spending it taking care of Riku, and hiding in bathrooms to express their love for each other because they didn't want Riku to feel awkward.

Quietly Riku stepped away, drawing his arms around himself. He couldn't banish the image of the two men being so intimate with each other… Even when he closed his eyes, they were there.

He had never truly had that kind of intimacy with Sora. The two of them had always been too worried to _really_ relax with each other, to be so in love…

Riku didn't even realize he was jealous of them until he heard the bathroom door close all the way, shutting him out.

Maybe he really _was_ alone.

~~~

_He has forgotten you, Sora_…

"No… He hasn't," came the quiet reply.

Blue eyes flickered down to study the pretty star-shaped pendant Riku had given him. A paopu fruit, the symbol of the beginning of their 'relationship' and undying love. It was a symbol of home, of hope… 

And it was true, the legend. 

He could still feel Riku within him.

_He hasn't?_ came Id's slightly amused question.

Sora's fingers glided over the key chain, his eyes narrowing. 

"No, he hasn't forgotten me," he confirmed, feeling the truth within himself.

Riku hadn't forgotten him at all; it was quite the opposite now. Sora didn't have to be able to hear the whispers of warning his heartless were giving him to know what had just happened.

Riku had made his decision, and it _wasn't_ Sora.

Suddenly Sora grasped the pendant tightly and shot out of bed, hurtling Riku's token of love against the wall, watching as it pathetically bounced off and landed in the darkness surrounding him.

"He's going to fight me!"

At Sora's hurt cry, the Anti-Rikus gave soft murmurs of sympathy, gathering around him to give him comfort.

And when Sora felt their dark embraces, everything was good again.

 _________________________________________________________________________________

Not much happened, but then again… so much _did_ happen. This has been one of the most difficult chapters to write, and I don't mean idealistically --- I _knew_ what I wanted to write, the problem was exactly _how_ to do it. Some of the emotions portrayed in this chapter are some I've never come across in writing, ever, nor in real life personal experiences… So I'm curious as to how this all turned out. __

**Note on Id: **Nope, Id is not the same Id from _Xenogears_. The idea isn't even the same. The only thing Stygian Solace's Id has in common with the _Xenogears_ Id is his name. Well, and maybe the meaning behind his name. 

**Note on Yami:** Okay, don't freak out. Yami's identity is STILL not revealed.

And for those who are worried that the fanfic is winding down to a close, it _may_ seem like it, but it's **not**. ^^; I have the summaries stretched to about 26 chapters with about two more intermissions/side stories, and those remaining chapters may be like three parts each. Who knows. And after that, there's the sequel, which won't be totally plotted out until _KH2_ and _Chain of Memories_ are released. ^^;;

Thanks to Lane for providing inspiration, and to Shiva-jo (Meruhesae) for pre-reading. Thanks for your undying support, reviews (the number went back up! YAY! ^_^), fanart, and random e-mails! They really make my days worthwhile. Phew, _long_ author notes this time.

**Review Button:** Brawr! Feed me!


	25. Ch 17: Your Poison Lineage :Ch 17 Addon

**Title: **Your Poison Lineage

**Challenge: **Yasha-sama's Art Contest (runner-up) Prize:  _"I think I'll take an angsty, citrus if you're willing, YamixRiku. Oh man it sounds like I'm ordering a sandwich doesn't it? A little tomato, lettuce, throw on some horny boys for condiments..."_ For the runner-up prize, the fanfic was going to be no longer than 3000 words. 

**General info:** 2nd person pov from Yami's perspective, add-on to Ch 17, intermission between chapters 17 and 18. 

**Summary:** Yami pays Riku one last visit before he leaves with Leon and Cloud for the coliseum, but falls into deep thought as Riku questions him.

**Notes:** I started this with basically a few lines of dialogue and a few random images that reminded me of Yami… and I combined them to create this piece of prose-like add-on. There are no real spoilers in it, unless you look really hard and understand what Yami's hinting at. 

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**_Chapter Seventeen Add-on: Your Poison Lineage_**

When you were a child, _they_ always used to compare you to the snow, as ironic as it is now, especially now that you are guilty of snatching the maiden by that name from her crumbling world. A lamenting diva and her finale, her song had reminded you of things best left buried. 

Dark snow _they_ called you… A delicate lace of dark snow. Frail and beautifully rare… But cold, bitter. _Dangerous_.

_They_ had had **no** idea.

You can recall those timeless nights curled up alone, running fine fingernails up the bindings of an old tome as you drank it with your eyes, and owned it with your heart. They always intrigued you, their old smell of must and mildew, and the sound they made when shut, almost a rotting polyphony to your ears. You even reveled in their mysterious beauty when they were closed, frayed covers and all.

Then there were the week-long studies where the only sound that could be heard coming from you was a parchment-ridden scratch of a quill too dull to write. The ink well quite often ran dry from those late-night musings when you only dared to write by the dim light of a candle gone sinewy from the strenuous hours locked away in that hollow tomb of a study. The hourglass may as well have been filled with dirt, the way it told time. Once you swore that the stained glass had gone monochrome from staring at it far too long when trying to sift through your labyrinth of thoughts.

One thing you remember well was a skeletal lily sitting in a chipped vase on your well-worn desk, its pretty petals already crumbled to dust… The dust that had probably created the gritty film over that hand mirror bequeathed to you before _they_ all fell to silent graves. Why you had kept that tarnished mirror, you cannot remember, for the reasons are lost somewhere amongst your nuanced memories. You should have discarded it long ago, like you had with that fading portrait of _them_ that used to hang in the foyer…

How beautiful everyone had called it. But it reminded you of your poison lineage and it had to be ripped apart.

At night you had always been plagued with shallow sleep as though you possessed nothing more than a sheer duvet to cocoon yourself in against the frigid union of shadows. After such nights, the new day's dawn often found you pale-faced and your voice thick with cobwebs, too haggard for public eye. You never left your room those days. Ill rumors flourished because of your peculiar absences… _They_ were always too quick with foul news, especially with the kind swarming around a quiet erudite like yourself. You pillaged hearts?

_They_ were partially right, at least. Spare the chatty demonstrations --- you _borrowed_ what you needed. Because of that, you had mistakenly begun to spin this story on your rickety loom. Honestly, consequences of your knowledge-crusade had never crossed your mind. Or perhaps they **had**… and you just hadn't cared.

Yes, you are the host of this dizzying masquerade.

That was what probably drew him to you, something about that alluring darkness you carried. He was attracted by your seducing secrets. That stray messiah, that broken hero endlessly seeking acceptance. Every time you see him you can practically see his bleeding wings, his feathers muddied by falling from that invisible oasis. 

He is your bittersweet Eden. Tempting. Tempting. A Siren that can only be sated by your suffering. And you _are_ tempted. Oh yes. 

Always.

If only _they_ could see your dreams now, no longer haunted by wraiths of a lost prayer, but instead plagued with images of _him_. How those hands felt so velveteen against your tired shell, how his pale, pale skin contrasted so vividly against your own. When you touch him, his gasps are silent symphonies to your ears, a sort of last delicacy to indulge yourself in before the end. Before the truth.

For he won't let you _this_ near when he knows the truth, will he?

"When does desire become love?"

It is the last question you want to hear from him. You know _all_ too well of its implications. You had not come here for another discussion about this, or even for a dance in the sheets. 

This was supposed to be your goodbye.

The rattling breath before the plunge into Otherside, so to speak.

You focus your sharp eyes on him, knowing how they haunt him. As suspected, his frail form flinches and his jade eyes flicker away from yours, settling instead on the splintering wood floor of _that_ man's home. Where _he_ is, you fail to inquire.

"You do not love me, Riku. What you feel for me is merely attraction. Intrigue."

Intrigue. What a familiar word.

He is curious about you as you were once curious about the world, about books and knowledge… You intrigue him, as your experiments intrigue you. Nothing more.

It is almost painful to admit.

"And you know what love is?" he asks quietly, those cursed eyes faintly misting as the boy stumbles through his thoughts. That gaze of his is almost a constant phantom in your own dreams as much as yours is in his. He did not need to know that, however.

Love? You had never _truly_ loved… Unless one counted your unnatural fascination with libraries and the countless pages that filled them.

From the very beginning you had sworn to yourself that you would never leave yourself open, especially around him… But this time he caught that brief hesitation of yours.

Was that _fascination_ filling his pretty face?

"You don't, do you?" he says, voice tinged with awed amusement.

You hide your sharp annoyance under a fake smile. You are used to these by now. "You cannot have those feelings for me, Riku."

"You're right," he almost immediately replies, those alluring lips stretching into a smirk.

Imagine that! _He_ had just taunted _you_?

And what he had said… You are actually surprised to find that it _does_ hurt.

"I _don't_ have those kind of feelings for you," he continues so nonchalantly, as though your heart was indeed made of ice. Or was not in your shell at all. 

His next claim, however, is what shatters that already fragmented lullaby called stability, the careful grasp you had on the destinies around you. 

"…but…" He pauses, raising those eyes again to meet yours. "But I can't shake the feeling that you have them for _me_."

"Do not be ridiculous."

But you said it too fast. He catches the slip-up immediately and leans towards you, narrowing his jade eyes and smirking further. "You're lonely, aren't you?" he asks coolly, snaking one of those silky hands up to your chest to push you back.

This can _not_ be happening.

"I have been alone for the better part of my life. I intend to keep it that way," you say in reply, not letting him know just how well he actually _was_ getting under your skin. Rather, just how well he is making you feel like you want to get into _his_ skin.

But his statement had frightening truth to it. Though you did not wish to admit it, even to yourself, you had gone **far** too long without contact.

So _long_…

"I don't believe you. You're lonely."

He was too close to you, yet he keeps drawing nearer, locks of fine silver falling forward as he leans into you, gently easing you onto the moon-soft bed _that man_ kept. Your eyes widen of their own accord, a dirty kind of fear reflecting in their amber depths. 

He knows he has won.

"What makes you say that?" you try anyway, voice unconvincing even to your ears as you lay between his arms, honestly lost within the beauty of his face.

The way he suddenly slides up your body to settle on top of you… It hurts. He has never _truly_ initiated any of the few intimate moments between you, and for a moment you are truly afraid of him. Of what he intends.

"It's the calm façade you always have on," he says as he rests his pale cheek against your dark attire. "You're like me. All calm, cool and in control on the outside… It intimidates others, you see." There was a definite pause as his hands suddenly slip under yours in a sort of half-hug. "But inside…" he continues, "Inside, you're a totally different person. You're screaming as loud as you can, but no one, not even those close to you, can hear you… You're alone because no one understands you."

"Do not presume to know me." It is your last defense.

"I don't," he admits. "I want to… But you won't let anyone past your defenses."

Those defenses were built when you were too young to understand why. Only something extraordinary would inspire you to break out of your prison. The boy was getting too nosey, too soft on you… How could you have let it go so _far_ already? Why _him_? How did _he_ affect you so?

"If those defenses are breached, Riku, I lose. And I do not lose."

He seems to contemplate that last sentence, his mistrust for you glowing like embers in his eyes. 

Though you had done so much for him, he still held that resentment. Yet…

Though you had done so much _to_ him, a piece of him refused to let you go.

You fascinate him.

His lovely lips puckering thoughtfully, he finally speaks again. "So you'll do anything to win, even if it means sacrificing so many more lives? All the worlds? _Your_ life?"

"Do not let me be misunderstood," you say, only hesitating to give him one of your smiles. He shudders because of it. "Contrary to popular belief, I cherish life and its mysteries. I strive to protect it, not to destroy it."

He lightly frowns, staring at you in a way that suddenly makes you realize you are trapped in your own words.

"Popular belief?" is what he says. "Just how many people do you _know_, Yami?"

Loneliness. It was a refrain, a _motif_ like in one of your old tomes that you did not wish to read again. And again… And again… But like in all songs and old books, refrains and motifs must be repeated. The one you shared with this boy held no significant part in the ending anymore. 

However…

Slightly inclining your head and meeting his _intrigued_ eyes with your calm indifference, you merely smile, lifting one hand. You skim your long fingers over his shapely hips and up the tight muscles of his chest, reveling in his beautiful shell as your other hand pulls his angelic face down to yours. As his warm, eager lips meet yours in an embrace that is almost sweet, you cannot help slipping your fingers down to the taught muscles of his back as he arches over you.

Though you do not feel the curve of his wings or the burn of blood on your hands, you see it.

The _anti-hero_.

Yes, this refrain you share with Riku has no meaning… 

But the last chapter before the climax **always** holds the most surprises.

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**Notes:** This was a HUGE challenge to write, and I'm VERY pleased with the results. It's my first time writing something this long using so much prose, and my first time even attempting 2nd person pov. Lastly, it's my FIRST one-shot! I did pretty damn good for a less-than-3000-words one-shot. My first one-shot! WOO!!

This is for you Yasha! XD And for Lane too, for reminding me all the time that Yami's not just sexy, he's insanely complicated. Hehe.

As for Yami's identity, this scene actually did not touch upon his **true** identity. I know a lot of you are convinced you know who he is, but you're still overlooking some of KH's most basic facts. ^^ You have to study the facts if you want to know who Yami is. I hope it wasn't too hard to understand…

**Please review!!!** Let's try to make it to 700 reviews! ^^


	26. Ch 18: For His Beloved part one

_Author Notes:_

YAY! 700 reviews!! And so many wonderful responses and questions to the last two updates! I really wanted to answer them, but my author notes are already pretty long each chapter, so I'll do my best to explain everything in future chapters. ::nodnod::

Eh heh… Sorry for the extremely slow update this time. College caught up to me, but summer is here now.

Thanks to my many kind readers! I'm very fortunate to have so much great feedback, even after months of not updating! Thanks to my fan artists—each new piece of art really brightens up the stressful times in my life, and I never grow tired of the ones I already have! And, of course, thanks to Lane and Shiva-Jo (and now Dark Ki!) for their feedback, support, and inspiration! Oh, and thanks to Stajj for giving my copy of KH back to me. :)

OH, and I HATE this new FF.net uploading technique!! It kills my symbols!! 

_A look ahead:_

He would walk to the end of time, overcome any obstacle, and sacrifice any life, including his own. He would defy destiny herself… All for his beloved.

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**_Chapter Eighteen: For His Beloved _**_– part one_

---

"Here we aaaare!"

The door was thrown open and Yuffie hurried inside, her fingers fumbling for the main light switch. Riku remained standing in the doorway, green eyes empty but attentive as the dark interior of his once Traverse Town home was suddenly illuminated with the flickering glow of a dirty ceiling fixture. A heavy, warm air crept out of the small home, smelling of cobweb and discarded happiness.

He hadn't wanted to return to this place to live alone, but he needed to get away from the overwhelming emotions Leon and Cloud were suffocating him with.

Besides, this place was his house, the one he and Sora had put so much effort into restoring when they had first arrived in Traverse Town, the one they had shared with Yami, who had never actually stayed there. It'd been their haven against the darkness, against their loneliness… Whenever Sora would have nightmares about Destiny Islands, Riku would sneak into his bed and comfort him. Whenever the boy had cried for his lost friends and mother, Riku had held him, calmed him…

But now Sora wasn't here.

Who would save Riku from _his_ darkness?

"Aerith and I kept it safe like we said we would," Yuffie said cheerfully as she turned back to Riku. "And we didn't lend it out to anyone while you were away. Everything's still in place as you left it."

Riku nodded once, and the girl seemed to take it as a good sign.

"Alright then! I'll leave you to it."

She gave him an encouraging smile and was already slipping past the fifteen-year-old out the door when she paused in mid-step, glancing hesitantly back at him. Riku noticed with wry amusement that even though she was in such a hurry to leave him, she was still concerned about him.

"Um… You know, Riku," she began quietly, "we're all here for you."

He had expected that. In monotone he answered, "I know, Yuffie…"

She studied him for a moment, reaching out as though to ruffle his hair, but stopped half-way and, with a sigh, she let her hand fall back to her side.

"And Merlin wants to talk to you still," she reminded, voice soft with pity.

Keeping his gaze away from her, he nodded, moving into his house with heavy footsteps.

Riku didn't like Yuffie like this. He wanted her fake cheerfulness, her intoxicating optimism at the wrong moments, and her satisfying criticisms when no one else dared to speak… This sympathetic version of Yuffie sickened him as much as the air in this building did.

"You can't ignore him forever, y'know," she was continuing. "I'm sure that if you continue to refuse to go to him, he'll end up coming to _you_ anyway."

Stifling the urge to roll his eyes, Riku nodded again. He already knew all this, but… she was only trying to be a good friend.

"Anyway, I'll come check up on you later. Aerith and I have a surprise…" she said, giving him another smile. "Cheer up, alright?"

"Yeah…"

He listened as she left and softly closed the door behind herself. He waited, knowing she was stopping just outside the door to regard the person waiting for her – the person Riku knew had been following them.

"I'm not so sure about this, Leon…" Yuffie said quietly, but still loud enough for Riku to hear her, just inside the house.

"It's what he wanted," Leon replied, his voice leaving no room for questions. It was the voice of one of his masks, the boy noticed.

Suddenly Riku felt _very_ alone.

He moved away from the door and windows, past the tiny dining area and den into the empty, empty bedroom. The smell lessened here, but the air seemed to grow heavier. The room was still a mess from their haste to get ready that morning they had left for the coliseum.

And it was here that he remembered. His rumpled unmade bed seemed to mock him, and Sora's articles of clothing strewn about the room looked like pieces of a shredded picture. Fragmented memories, they were…

They seemed like such an eternity ago.

Yet…

He still remembered waking up to Sora's cuddling and cute little snores.

He still remembered the way Sora would kick off the covers in the middle of the night and end up leeching body heat from Riku until morning, or the way he would sprawl out and try to take up as much space on the bed as possible, even if it meant draping himself across Riku.

As much as he had complained about it, Riku had never minded.

He missed it all, even Sora's cold toes rubbing against his calves all night.

Forcing back the now-familiar sting in his eyes, Riku crossed the floor of the bedroom and stopped in front of one of the nightshirts Sora had grown fond of sleeping in at night. The older boy had hated the baggy clothing, but now…what he would _give_ to see Sora wearing it again, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and yawning so cutely, lazily...

Letting a sad smile creep onto his face, he gently picked the shirt off the floor and curled it into his arms, clutching it to himself as though he were afraid it would disappear just like everything else important to him had.

It still smelt a little like Sora… if he tried hard enough to imagine.

This wasn't healthy for him, dwelling like this, but how could he _not_?

He pulled the shirt away from himself, squinting at it through tears.

"I have to get out of here…"

It wasn't until he was already on the street that he realized he had spoken aloud, and that he had left his door open, and that he was still carrying the shirt like his last treasure. He didn't care who saw him or what they thought of him as he fled his house, or even if they followed. He just ran. And though he wasn't focused on where he was going, his feet led him to the white doors of the Dalmatian's House. He burst through them and collapsed on the nearest couch, eyes painfully squeezed shut, his face buried in the shirt in his arms.

He didn't look up, even when the puppies gathered around him, whining in concern, or when he felt a strong hand drape a heavy blanket over his trembling body.

Just as he was succumbing to an exhausted sleep, he gave a resigned sniffle and buried his face further into the sad reminder of his best friend. With a small shiver, Riku vehemently thought.

That place may have been his house, but it would never be his home. Not without Sora.

----

"Yes, yes, that's right… Good. No, you stir the cup. Quickly, he'll be awake in a moment—"

With a groan Riku reached a hand up to shield his eyelids from the light, sleepily wondering where it was coming from, where he was, what the things moving around him were, and why the air smelt like tea.

"Ah, he's awake, and with good questions, at that…"

Cautiously he peeked his eyes open, only to snap them shut again.

"Too bright…" he grumbled, flinging an arm over his face.

The familiar voice suddenly turned sincere. "Oh dear, I apologize."

And then the light abruptly disappeared with a soft _pop._

Now awake enough to remember just where he was and that the warm bodies around him were puppies, Riku cracked his eyes open to regard his unwanted visitor. Well, at least Merlin was unwanted company for _Riku_ at the moment; everyone else seemed to enjoy the crazy wizard's tea talks.

Huh, funny… The tea was already set for him, and on a table Riku knew hadn't been there originally. Merlin really went out of his way to make him comfortable/to annoy him. It rather irked him, but he had a feeling it was meant to. Worst of all, the old man always seemed to know exactly what he was thinking, planning, or what was to come in his near future.

The reason why Riku had avoided visiting his house was that he didn't _want_ to know what Merlin suspected about him, what advice he wanted to give him… His future scared him now.

But here he was—Merlin had caught him anyway. Part of Riku suspected he actually did want to know what the old man had to say, if he had answers for Riku's problems… True, Riku hated showing that weakness, letting people help him, but nowadays he was just fed up with trying to solve things on his own.

"So you caught me," Riku muttered as he carefully sat up, forcing the puppies curled up on his chest to slide onto his lap with sleepy _yaps_. Sora's shirt was still clutched in one of his hands.

Merlin gracefully lifted a biscuit to his mouth, raising his bushy eyebrows as he regarded the kid on the couch. "My dear boy, I wasn't aware it was supposed to be a chore."

"Whatever." Snorting, Riku pulled Sora's shirt into his lap and moved himself closer to the table. "So what did you want to lecture me about?" he asked, lowering his eyes to his knees, his fingers playing with the memento there. "My attitude? My wasting time? Everything?"

"The answer is **D**, none of the above," the old wizard replied, sipping his tea. After a moment of ignoring Riku's blank stare, Merlin set his teacup down with a soft _clack_. "If you must know, I've come to discuss some information and theories of mine that you might like to hear."

"Theories, huh? Like what…?" Riku asked as he slowly reached out to the tea, slowly dragging his prepared cup towards himself.

Merlin's eyes studied him as he took a steady gulp of the copper liquid, and it wasn't until he was reaching for a biscuit of his own that the old man smiled in encouragement and began to speak again.

"First and foremost, you cannot fight your battles alone, internal or physical."

Riku let out a dry laugh at that, pointing his now half-eaten biscuit at the crazy wizard as he spoke with his mouth full. "They all know I don't do well in teams," he pointed out, pausing to swallow before he continued. "Even if I fight with others, I go off and do my own thing, like at the coliseum. Same goes with my 'internal' battles as you say. No one can help me with those…"

At this Merlin smiled, and Riku had a feeling that the wizard had been waiting for him to say that. "Ah, but that's where you're wrong, dear boy."

Raising an eyebrow, Riku asked, "What do you mean?"

"You're very well aware of what I mean," Merlin pointed out with a warm smile. "But to help solve these problems, I believe you are lacking something crucial. Trust."

Riku narrowed his eyes, his fingers tightening around his teacup. "I've been betrayed by people my whole life and you want me to _trust_ them?"

Patiently Merlin shook his head. "No, no. Perhaps you have been trusting the wrong people for the wrong things," he said. "Not everyone betrays you, Riku. Because the betrayals cause so much pain, they simply outweigh positives." Here his eyes seemed to twinkle mischievously as he studied the boy. "I can think of a few people who have done nothing to harm you, Riku."

With a sigh Riku nodded, frowning down at his tea. "Yeah, I know…" he mumbled, fidgeting with his biscuit, "but how can I trust them if I don't even trust _myself_?"

"Other people trust you to do what is right, because you are their savior," the old wizard pointed out.

"But I've already made too many mistakes!" Riku said, glancing up at Merlin with desperate eyes. "I can't afford mistakes _because_ I'm the keyblade master! Mistakes mean disasters, people losing their lives—"

"You hold the keyblade and the gift to set things straight again," Merlin interrupted calmly. "As long as you listen to your heart, you can never do wrong, Riku. That is the power of the keyblade."

"Then where was the keyblade's power of so-called _righteousness_ when I gave myself to Yami?" Riku asked, hissing as he lowered his voice, his free hand clutching Sora's shirt in his lap. "Where was it when we were first taken to Hollow Bastion and introduced to Maleficent? How about when countless heartless with my face were tearing into my body?!" He pounded his fist on the table, crushing the biscuit in his palm. "Where the _hell_ was the keyblade's power when Sora began to give into the darkness and needed _my_ help the most?!"

Merlin merely gave him a placid frown. "The keyblade," he said, "was indeed there. However, you ignored its power."

And at that statement, Riku said nothing, the wizard's words ringing in his head with startling truth.

He was right.

All those times Riku had mentioned, he _hadn't_ been listening to his instinct, to his heart. He knew Maleficent was evil – he had felt it from the moment he met her – but he had chosen to ignore the warning and decided to risk the stay at the castle. With his sexual encounter with Yami, he _knew_ it was wrong, but he had given into desire anyway, betraying both his head and his heart, hurting Sora in return. As for the Anti-Riku nightmare, he had actually tried to fight them off… but not _really_. By the time he had been surrounded, he had already given up to them, and the keyblade had just been a weapon, a tiny comfort against an army of heartless. He hadn't used his gift.

Had he listened at all to his heart? No. Just his mind, just his hormones, just his fear…

Why did such a powerful gift come to _him_ of all people? A person who ignored it.

Nervously clearing his throat, Riku lowered his eyes, studying the biscuit crumbs coating his hand as he spoke.

"So what do I do now?"

Merlin sipped his tea again before replying, his voice almost playful despite the mood of the conversation. "What do you _want_ to do, Riku?"

At that, Riku gave a pathetic little smile. "Well, I _know_ what I want, but it's impossible…"

"Why is it impossible?" the old wizard asked.

Riku glanced up, blinking. "Because… I have more important things to worry about, I guess."

"And what, my dear boy, is more important than love?"

"My duty," Riku replied.

That twinkle returned to the old man's eyes, a hand reaching up to stroke his beard. "And why can't you have both?"

Why, indeed, Riku realized.

Merlin continued. "By all means, protect the people, save the worlds and fight the darkness… but do not forget to love Sora and seek his love in return. Without love, there is no meaning."

Riku slowly nodded, accepting his words. "I told Leon I wanted to fix things," he said, "and I do! I was just worried about making more mistakes.. but you've told me that as long as I listen to my heart and let the keyblade guide me, I'll be fine, right?"

"You are a knight, Riku," the wizard said with a smile as he reached for another biscuit. "Truth, might, valor, virtue… and _wrath_… And because you have a duty, and someone to fight for, you have all of the right characteristics. You just need to _believe_ and have faith in others as well." He paused to regard the boy with a curious look. "Tell me, Riku. Do you know what a trinity is?"

"Um… three of something?" Riku guessed, finally beginning to brush off the crumbs from his hand.

"It is a union of three people to create one group," Merlin explained. "One powerful, divine team."

Still cleaning himself, Riku peeked up through his bangs. "You mean you want me to work with two other people as a team."

"I am suggesting that if you wish to successfully carry out your duty and also help Sora, you should seriously consider working in a trinity," Merlin said. "Not simply three people with a similar goal… But a trinity. Three people as one."

Riku lifted his head, pursing his lips in thought. "And just who would the other two people be?"

Tracing the rim of his teacup, the old man smiled. "The head of the trinity is creation of light," he said. "That would be you, Riku."

The boy nodded in agreement, even though he wasn't sure what exactly it meant. "Right."

"The next is guidance, or protection," Merlin continued peacefully. "You must find someone you can trust to protect you when you are weak, someone who _knows_ your weaknesses, Riku."

Again Riku nodded, his brow furrowing as he considered the words.

"The last of the trinity is the healer," the wizard said. "You must find someone you can trust to comfort you when you need it, heal you when you are injured – someone who can share your pain."

Okay, this was getting a little complicated… There were only a few people he actually knew here and _almost_ trusted.

But Merlin wasn't finished yet. "The trinity signifies the bonds of love that cannot be broken. If you do not trust them, Riku, and if they do not trust you, the trinity will fall and the power you have together will fail."

Well, that was lovely.

"I guess I should start thinking about who to pick for my trinity, huh?" Riku said, giving a tired laugh as he lifted Sora's shirt from his lap and placed it on the table. "Any suggestions on where to look first?"

Merlin gave a secretive smile. "Look closest to home and follow your heart."

Wonderful.

But yet again, the old wizard wasn't finished. "Before you go, I have something for you," he said, gesturing down to the table where a dark leather-bound book and sleek writing pen were resting next to Riku's teacup. Riku didn't even want to fathom where they had come from and why he hadn't noticed them appearing there. "The book is empty, before you ask," Merlin said. "I'm giving it to you to write your thoughts down. Writing, I find, does wonders for the mind."

Riku picked them and the shirt up with a nod, finishing his tea as he moved to get off the couch and away from the crazy old wizard. He paused next to the man's chair, managing a grateful smile.

"I know it may not seem like much," Riku said, "but… well, thanks." Hesitating, he glanced down at the black pen and journal in his hand, frowning. Reaching up to scratch the back of his head with his free hand, he added, "I'm going to go eat… if anyone is looking for me."

And he _did_ leave to go eat, choosing a familiar diner – the one he and Sora had gotten kicked out of for indecent activity in public. Sitting opposite the booth he had shared with Sora that night long ago, Riku ordered that mysterious blue 'soda' drink and a simple dinner plate. As the waitress sauntered away, Riku set his new journal onto the table, Sora's shirt strategically placed next to him where he couldn't forget it.

The book was made of a dark, smooth leather, a simple belt sewn around the whole thing to keep it closed from prying eyes. Curious, he unfastened the buckle and pulled the cover open, running his fingers along the fine material. The pages were an off-white and roughly textured and as Riku slid his palm over the first page, he felt the diminutive ridges the ink of the lines had created. _Really_ fine quality. It almost reminded him of the old tomes he had gone through at the Hollow Bastion library.

But… Just what was he supposed to record in it? Merlin had said to write down his thoughts, but…

Ergh.

"Stop thinking about it, Riku, and just write, you idiot," he muttered to himself and uncapped the fountain pen he had also been given.

As the ink touched the first line of the first page in his new journal, he was suddenly surprised at how quickly the words were now forming in his mind, and in what shape they had decided to take.

A letter, of all things, and to the one adult he missed the most from home, the only person he had considered close enough to be a real parent.

Seiya, Sora's mother.

With a sort of reminiscent smile, Riku wrote.

_I suppose I can blame all of this mess on you, Seiya, and all those stories you used to tell me and Sora when we were younger. Dragons, faeries, witches and monsters that crawl in the dark. Where did you come up with all those stories anyway? Well, it probably is your stories that made me crave to see other worlds, but I know it's wrong to pin it all on you. _

_I could have pinned the blame on my own parents too, their strict ways driving me to dream of a far-off land away from them. _

_You did know that I considered you my mom, right? Well, I was over at your house often enough to have lived there._

_I really miss those days now, just hanging around with Sora and you, eating your cooking as you secretly tried to drive us closer together. Yeah, I look back now and realize that you did know I had a thing for Sora, and that we'd eventually get together. _

_Well, we did. And now we're in deep shit…_

_That is my fault though. _

Riku paused in his writing as the waitress set his food down, his blue soda madly fizzing inside its glass. Remembering his and Sora's initial fear of drinking something so seemingly-hazardous, he smiled.

_I really miss him…_he wrote, his smile edging downward with sadness. _Rest assured, Seiya, I'm suffering for hurting your baby boy. _

_I wonder what he's thinking right now… Sometimes I think I can feel him, you know, like he's inside me. Maybe our hearts really are connected by the paopu fruit. _

_Sometimes I wonder where all of you are. You, Kairi and Tidus and the others, my parents… Are you all heartless now?_

_And then, I wonder all the time why I, of all people, was chosen by the keyblade. I'm only 15. Why wasn't someone like Leon picked? Or even Sora?_

_Doesn't matter now, because I have it, and everyone's looking up to me, praying for me… I get to save them all._

_I've really come a long way already. I'm still on the road to recovery, but good ole Leon and Merlin have helped with that. I need to find my trinity or whatever, for one… And then, I think, I'm going to start working on restoring what worlds are left. There's still time for a lot of them, before they're completely overrun by the heartless. _

_That's really weird too… I mean, ever since I got the keyblade, I actually have felt some weird things inside of me, like it's speaking to me. I think if I concentrate more on that power, I can tell a lot more about the heartless and what they want. _

_Hmm… But who to pick for the trinity?_

_That's what I need to concentrate on the most._

Closing the cap on his new pen, Riku frowned at the two pages he had filled with his gibberish.

Well, he didn't feel any different for writing that down, like Merlin had hinted at. It had just depressed him further, kinda…

He did get one thing straight though, and that was that he really needed to concentrate on finding two people to complete the trinity, and then on readying himself for traveling to other worlds. He'd need some practice to polish up his skills since he had been sitting around so long here in Traverse Town already, and his muscles needed a good work out. He'd also need a lot of supplies like food and potions…

"Hey Riku!!"

Geh.

Lifting his face from his journal, he saw Aerith and Yuffie enter the diner and make their way over to him, several suspicious large bags clutched in their hands. Suddenly he recalled that Yuffie had mentioned earlier that she and Aerith had a 'surprise' for him.

"Where the heck did you go, Riku?!" the girl huffed as she slid into the booth opposite his at the table, Aerith calmly sitting next to her and setting the bags atop the table.

"We went shopping for you," the older brunette explained, "and it took us quite a while to find out where you were."

"Yeah, we finally asked Merlin and he pointed us here," Yuffie said, and Riku blinked at that, wondering how the old wizard knew _exactly_ where he was. "But anyway," she continued, "Leon said that you were going to try saving worlds again, now that you're all healed and stuff, so we all decided you needed some new clothes!"

Riku blinked again, a little fearful for his wardrobe. He remembered all too well what the two girls had picked out for Sora when the boy had gone shopping with them. "Er…"

"Leon told us to be more conventional and pick out something easy to fight in," Aerith assured with a sweet smile, seeing the look on the boy's face.

"As if he didn't trust us," Yuffie sighed. With a frown she focused on Riku's plate and glass. "You look like you're done eating. Ready to go try on your new stuff?"

As much as he dreaded being their dress-up doll, he was rather curious as to what they had gotten for him. He wasn't one to turn down their 'kindness' anyway, considering they had gone through all that trouble and money for him.

"Sure," he said finally as he closed his new journal and buckled it shut.

But twenty minutes later after he had paid for his food, picked up his stuff, and followed the girls to their small house in the third district, he wanted to run and hide again.

"So far so good!" Yuffie chirped as she zipped up the sides of Riku's new boots.

He hadn't gotten a good look at them like the other parts of his new 'hero outfit' (as Yuffie called it), but the boots were made of a strong, resilient type of material that reminded him of his old shoes, but they were lighter despite how heavy they initially looked. He hadn't been too sure about their black and dark purple design at first, and the useless looking belts and zippers decorating them, but when he took his first step in them his worries all faded away.

"Wow, these are really comfortable…" he said, tilting his head to get a better look at them. "Definitely a lot easier to move around in, I think."

"Yeah, that store was new," Yuffie said as she stood back up. "The guy specializes in sporty stuff, but he had a few designer items. These babies were on sale."

Aerith, who had been working on placing the many accessories now adorning Riku, looked up from her work at Riku's waist. "When Yuffie kept mentioning we were shopping for the keyblade master," she said, "most of the items we bought were immediately put on sale."

"You're famous, Riku!" the ninja girl grinned. "Now, step back and let's have a look at you."

Feeling a little weird about himself, he did as told and managed a sheepish smile as he glanced into the body-sized mirror Aerith and Yuffie were now holding up. He took one look at himself and all the belts and straps embellishing his limbs, and asked, "Er… is all this really necessary?"

"Yes, of course!" Yuffie said, putting a hand on her hip and looking indignant.

"Perhaps not, but it really does look nice, Riku," Aerith said with a pleased smile.

Well, it actually did look rather cool, despite how awkward all the accessories made him. The new hoodie, for one, was especially interesting with its deep purple color, sleeveless zip-up design, and a curly golden heart decal etched into the left breast. Unfortunately it seemed a little small for him because it cut off at his abdomen and bared his belly button.

Though, he had the suspicion it was _supposed_ to be like that.

The pants were a different story altogether. In fact, they _worried_ him. Well, he liked that they were extremely long and zipped up at the sides, and were made of a shiny black material that contrasted with its many silver accessories… but it was those aforementioned accessories that bothered him. He would have liked the pants more if they were less… complicated?

One of the legs looked like it had been cut off at one time and then hastily sewn on again with thick silver lace, not to mention the fact _both_ legs had countless pockets with odd buckles and zippers everywhere. The back of the pants were a whole new level of weird, with two long belts hanging down like discarded suspenders, small silver rings sewn into them that allowed them to be attached elsewhere.

"I don't think he likes the pants," Yuffie commented quietly.

"Well, you did find them in one of those odd stores," Aerith replied.

The younger girl huffed. "I happen to like them."

Ignoring them, Riku inspected the two belts crossing his waist, connected by silver chains at the front and leather pouches at the sides. Those were actually kind of nifty, and he decided he could carry a few potions in them. As for the mini leather belts and white straps crossing parts of his arms… Well, they seemed useless, but they were kinda cool too. He in fact did like his new wristbands and how they reminded him of his old ones.

His favorite part of the new outfit was the gloves though. The gloves were almost exactly like his old pair from home, down to the size and detail, only they had a curly golden heart etched into them much like his new hoodie.

The overall outfit did go together, and he was impressed with how it felt on him, but… It reminded him a little of Leon and Cloud's usual outfits.

"So, what do you think?"

Riku glanced up from staring at himself in the mirror to find both girls waiting for his reaction. With a smirk he ran a gloved hand through his long silver hair before placing it on his hip.

"I have to say you two have weird style, but I really like it," he admitted, glancing back at himself in the mirror. "It'll take some getting used to. We'll see how it holds up against the heartless."

"Oh it will," Yuffie assured with a grin. "We made sure to pick the strongest materials we could."

As they set the mirror aside, Aerith turned to Riku with a smile, clutching her hands in front of herself. "But now that we're done, we have to send you off to see Leon. He wishes to speak with you."

"Yeah, I figured," Riku said with a small laugh as he gathered up his old clothes, shoes, Sora's shirt, and his new journal and pen. "He probably wants to know my plan of action or something. Truth is, I have no idea…"

"If it's more convenient for you, we'll return your things to your house, Riku," Aerith said, gesturing down to the pile of stuff in his arms. "It's getting late and I'm sure Leon will want to get the meeting over with as soon as possible."

Hesitantly glancing down at his journal, Riku frowned. Well, it wasn't like Aerith was the type to snoop, right? She wouldn't read it. "Yeah, that's a good idea," he agreed and handed her his things. He paused as she took them, his eyes lowering a little. "Um… Thanks. I really mean it. About everything."

Yuffie, who had been cleaning up the bags on the floor, came over and ruffled Riku's hair and slung an arm around him. "Hey, no problem!" she said, moving him towards the door. "It's the least we can do for ya, y'know? Now you better hurry to Sasha's Café and Bar where he's waiting. Oh, and tell me what they say about your new clothes!"

When the door closed behind him and he was standing in the slightly busy streets of third district, Riku realized he was smiling.

"Amazing how such a ratty day in the beginning can turn out good in the end," he wondered to himself, lifting his chin as he blinked into the neon-lit streets.

Deciding he'd better get a move on, Riku took off into the scattered crowd, heading for the door that would lead him into the first district.

But when he got there, a flash of long white hair caught his eye.

Feeling his heart jump with recognition, Riku froze, his eyes completely focused on the building that the figure spying on him had disappeared behind. There were only so many people with white hair that would have been following him.

That was a little weird though. Riku hadn't seen him in days, but… what need was there to _spy_ on him? And why do it, knowing Riku would see him?

A little troubled about it, the boy momentarily forgot his rendezvous at the café and decided to follow his stalker. Cautiously he rounded the building that the person had disappeared behind, and he stopped in his tracks, the chains on his belts jangling together at his abrupt halt. Hand slightly extended just in case he needed to summon his keyblade, Riku took a guarded step forward into the busy plaza, searching for his shadow.

But the shadow found him instead.

He managed to take one step before a tanned hand suddenly grabbed his and quickly pulled him into the dark alley by the building. Riku turned with a frown to find amber eyes regarding him with a contemplative stare.

"I need to talk to you," was Yami's hushed greeting.

Okay, that was a little worrying… Since they had known each other, Riku had never seen Yami so … cautious. Creepy stalking, dark alleyways, hushed voices – what was the big deal?

Not to mention how painfully Yami was holding onto his wrist.

"Nice to see you too," Riku muttered, glaring at the other boy.

His greeting wouldn't have been so rude if Yami had been a little more straightforward about wanting to talk to him in private. What was with the stealthy approach anyway? It was like he didn't want to be seen with the keyblade master or something.

The taller boy noticed Riku's uneasiness and, as though suddenly realizing how weird he was acting, he loosened his grip, giving Riku a worried look.

"I apologize…" he said, lowering his eyes. "I did not mean to scare you."

"It's fine," Riku replied. He hadn't been scared, but… something was really off about Yami. Well, there was _always_ something wrong about the boy, but he was acting really different now. Timid, almost.

A lingering gaze moved up Riku's body to meet his gaze with a pleased smile. "You look… ravishing," he said, and at that Riku fought hard to keep back a startled blush. "If I did not know better, I would say you were trying to impress someone. I admit I _am_ surprised you let those women dress you up."

"I didn't really have a choice," Riku replied, embarrassed and a little frustrated at being complimented only when Yami was trying to stall what he really wanted to say, for Riku knew that was what he was doing. "What do you want, Yami? Spit it out."

The smile fell at Riku's impatient words, the strange worried look returning to Yami's face. "I did not want to have to do this," he said softly, almost like he was talking to himself.

Brow furrowing in sudden concern, Riku asked, "Do what, Yami?"

"I tried to end this before, but you would not listen," the taller boy said, his voice taking on a tone that suggested he actually did not want to say what he was about to say, but it was imperative that he did.

His amber eyes narrowed solemnly as he stared down at Riku, his grip tightening around the pale wrist in his hand again. Riku winced slightly, more out of surprise than pain at Yami's strange hold. Glancing from Yami's hand to those eyes again, the silver-haired boy frowned, tugging on his wrist.

"What do you want?" he growled, not liking this situation at all.

Yami wasn't supposed to be acting like this! It was like he was another person entirely, or he was only doing this because someone was threatening him, or whatever other reason was that would explain why the hell Yami had to sneak around to meet with him, to act like he _shouldn't_ be seen with him, to talk like he would never be coming back...

"From this moment forth," Yami said in a calm voice that fooled neither of them, "I will no longer provide you with my services. I have dawdled too much on my mission."

Wait, what did that mean? Yami was actually leaving?

…to do what?

What was more important than keeping an eye on the keyblade master?

In an irritated voice that masked his growing fear, Riku hissed, "You mean _missions_." This time he managed to pull his hand away from the other boy, still feeling the imprint of Yami's tight grip on him. "So what's your next experiment, Yami?" he asked flatly, eyes trained on his wrist as he rubbed the aching from it. He was afraid to look up, or to show any emotion, or even to say what he really wanted to say. "Whose life are you going to destroy next?

Long fingers gently cupped Riku's chin and lifted it as Yami leaned forward, eyes drooping as he whispered, "Mine, Riku. Mine."

Caught by the sadness that had filled those words, Riku could do nothing as the soft hand slipped from his chin and trailed up his face into his silver hair. As Yami tenderly ran his fingers through Riku's hair, Riku focused on the other boy's lush lips, expecting them to descend on his any moment and steal a last kiss…

But they never did.

Yami stepped back and let his hand slip away, and the silver-haired boy parted his lips to speak or to ask anything. But Yami beat him.

"Farewell, Riku."

The amber-eyed boy turned to leave without a spare glance, and Riku finally realized Yami wasn't playing. Eyes widening a fraction, he moved to follow the other boy, his gloved hand reaching out to grab the tail of Yami's dark shirt.

"You're serious…" he said, trailing off in disbelief. "You're serious, aren't you?"

Yami stopped briefly, glancing quickly over his shoulder. There, spread across his lips, a familiar amused smile told Riku all he needed to know.

Then… he was gone.

All those times before when Riku had wanted Yami to disappear, it had never happened… Yet now when he actually wanted Yami to stay, he had said his goodbye instead. They had never been friends, or even that close, but… they'd had a sort of mutual appreciation for each other, the kind no one else could have ever hoped to understand. Only Yami knew and respected Riku's weaknesses, and only Riku saw Yami as a real person—not a stranger with a dangerous purpose, not his enemy that needed to be defeated, not a shadow on the wall to be ignored...

Riku had never trusted him, from their first shared glance in Snow White's dying forest, to their union in the black sheets of an unknown man's bed at Hollow Bastion. But that didn't mean Riku hadn't _respected_ him…

And now they were enemies again. Rightfully so.

A strange smile passed over Riku's lips and he laughed at the irony of it all.

Even though Yami had said his farewell, he knew they'd be seeing each other again soon—as enemies probably, but their eyes would still meet, and they would both remember. There was no _real_ goodbye.

Still, as he left the alley and headed towards first district, he couldn't help feeling as though a burden had suddenly been lifted from him.

When he approached the café, he saw Leon already waiting there, a tentative Cloud sitting across from him wearing his mantle to hide his wing, and a smoking Cid lounging at a table nearby, his feet propped up as though it were his home.

Feeling a little timid all of a sudden—after all, Riku had been such a bother to them for a while now, plus he felt a little weird in his new clothes—he hesitated in the middle of the crowd, wondering what he should say when he got there.

But then he realized what a coward he was being, and just decided to suck it up.

Trying to adjust his new hoodie one last time, hoping maybe this time it would cover his stomach (it didn't), he straightened his shoulders and boldly strode towards the café.

Cloud was the first to spot him, his blue eyes sharply focusing on him as the boy walked through the thinning crowd. "You're here," he said simply, his words causing both Leon and Cid to notice the boy as well.

Riku gave an acknowledging nod as he came to a stop before them. There was a minute of silence before the boy realized they were _staring_ at him.

Fighting back a strange smile, he explained, "Yuffie and Aerith went shopping. They wanted me to have a new outfit on my next mission." Honestly he was he surprised that a simple change in wardrobe could silence the three men (and get him a compliment from _Yami_). Well, maybe it _was_ a big change, considering he had been wandering around in lazy clothes since he had gotten back to Traverse Town, and now all of a sudden here he was, stylishly dressed for adventure and ready to talk to them.

Cid snubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray on the table and let out a low laugh, sliding his feet off the table as he sat up. "If I didn't know better," he said as he scratched at his stubble, "I'd say those girls were nuts. Then again, I'm not one for style or anything, since I think Leon dresses like a fairy too."

At the next table, cold blue eyes narrowed at the older man, and Leon decided to speak up. "Shut up, Cid. Riku, I'm glad you finally decided to join us. There's a lot to talk about."

Slowly Riku nodded, a little disappointed for some reason. He slid into the free chair at Cid's table, sitting on it backwards to face Leon and Cloud behind him. He up looked just in time to see an embarrassed Cloud nudging Leon and mouthing, "He's only fifteen" and "Stop staring!"

Both men then glanced at Riku, masks back in place, and Riku gave them an amused smile in return.

"So where do we start?" he asked, brushing his hair aside before crossing his arms over the back of the chair.

"There's a new tournament at the coliseum," Leon said, "and both Cloud and I want to check it out. There's a chance we might run into some old friends. The problem is Phil, who might not let Cloud enter again."

Riku glanced at Cloud, who nodded at Leon's words.

"After that, there's a problem," Cid said. "While you were gone, kid, both the king's messengers and Leon and Cloud took the remaining gummi ship to explore the surrounding worlds. They couldn't get very far with the current limitations on the ship."

Frowning, Riku asked, "What does that mean?"

"It means that you need to find some strong gummi. I'll need it to build you a better ship so you can get to the worlds that _really_ need your help," Cid explained.

"And to get back to Hollow Bastion," Leon added solemnly.

"And where would I find this strong gummi?" Riku asked.

Cid nonchalantly waved a hand. "Well, Leon and Cloud will be going with you. I'm sure you'll find something with the three of you looking."

At this, Riku blinked, the Obvious hitting him like, well, the obvious.

Leon and Cloud!

DUH!

They could be part of his trinity! He trusted them enough, certainly, and both men fit the roles Merlin had described concerning a trinity. One to protect him, the other to heal him. Though Riku wasn't sure which man would play which role, he _knew_ they were perfect.

"Alright," Riku said with a pleased smile, leaning his chin on his crossed arms. "I'll go with you two to the coliseum, if you come with me to the other worlds. I'll need the help."

"It's my understanding that Donald and Goofy wanted to go with you to do that," Leon said. "It's their mission to follow the keyblade after all."

"But with only one shitty gummi ship available, they'll have to miss out, won't they?" Cid smirked, winking at Riku when the kid glanced back at him.

"So I guess you're stuck with us, kid," Cloud muttered from behind his mantle, a tiny smile in his eyes.

Riku laughed, realizing all his worrying had been for nothing. All along they had been planning on dragging him with them, and all along they had been waiting for him to become part of _their_ trinity.

As the three older men regarded him with their own unique smiles, Riku returned their kindness with one of his own and happily nodded. And for the first time since Hollow Bastion, he felt free of the guilt that had been tearing at his heart.

----

Fourteen hours later a well-rested and prepared new trinity of men passed through the gates into the coliseum, each member feeling his own kind of resentment towards the place even though they all had wanted to come back here.

Riku took one look at the scroll hanging on the wall of the long list of current participants in the new tournament, and muttered, "Here we go again…"

Next to him, Cloud gave him a withering look, and the boy remembered that this was only his _second_ tournament, as opposed to Cloud's… _whatever_ the number was. __

"Come on… Let's see if Phil's feeling generous today," Leon sighed as he began crossing the courtyard. "He might still feel a little animosity towards Cloud from a few weeks ago."

Raising an eyebrow at that, Riku followed them. "What exactly happened anyway?" he asked, staring at Cloud's back and the flowing red mantle as they walked.

"I threatened him so he would release information on your whereabouts," Cloud replied. "Something to that effect at least. Phil wasn't happy."

Riku hid a smile, slowing his pace a little to let them walk ahead; he figured it was best to let them deal with the satyr's wrath alone. And despite the surface layer of happiness he felt for finally getting on with his duty as the keyblade master, he still couldn't get over the loneliness he felt because Sora wasn't here with him like before. This time in the gummi ship on the way over, it had been Leon and Cloud interacting, not Riku and Sora. He was just thankful the two men hadn't been excessive about their new relationship, remembering Riku's suffering and respecting his presence.

Deciding to settle down under the giant golden statue to the left of the coliseum lobby, he leaned against the figure's large foot and brought one knee up, letting his other leg dangle over the side of the outcropping.

The small crowd at the coliseum had grown from the last tournament, it seemed, and Riku wondered how so many people had been able to find this world, let alone get to it. Many of the people looked like residents of this world, but others were castaways, probably like many of the Traverse Town residents who just find themselves there in a strange world with nowhere to return. And then there were the actual warriors who had come from afar, just to participate in the new tournament. Riku easily spotted these people, but none of them looked too threatening.

He wasn't really set on winning the tournament as much as he just wanted to work out his muscles some. After so long without the practice, he needed to immerse himself in a good fight. Or fifty.

Distractedly playing with a strap hanging off his pants, Riku watched the people in the courtyard mill about, some sitting in groups talking, others sparring for fun, and many just waiting around in corners for something to happen. He caught a few people watching him with interest in their eyes, probably because he looked so young (though he had a feeling his weird attire had something to do with it too), but he tried not to stare back, instead keeping his eyes roaming around the different faces, never staying at one group for long.

And then he saw it. Or, at least he _thought_ he did.

A young girl stood across the courtyard, painfully familiar violet eyes watching him from under auburn bangs.

Riku's breath caught in his throat as he stared, watching a smile cross the girl's face as she lifted a single hand, and waved. Green eyes widened as he leaned forward, disbelief filling him as he continued to stare, scared that she would vanish if he looked away. Without even realizing he was, he had begun to slip off the ledge and cross the courtyard, a cold sense of suspicion inching its way over him, tensing his muscles as he slowly made his way over.

It _couldn't_ be her.

"Hey Riku, what the hell are you doing?"

A hand suddenly clamped down on his shoulder and he flinched in surprise, looking up with large eyes to find Leon frowning at him.

"I—"

Riku opened his mouth to speak but he had no idea what to say, his gaze immediately flickering back to the spot the girl had been standing. Though he expected it would happen, he was still disappointed when the girl in white and lavender no longer stood there. She had disappeared.

If she had even been there at all.

Leon followed his gaze, but after seeing nothing of importance, he turned back to Riku, a little concerned about the boy's obviously disturbed expression. "Hey, come on. Let's go sign up – Cloud's waiting for us. He might need some help with Phil."

Swallowing nervously, Riku nodded as he looked away, letting Leon's warm hand guide him towards the stairs.

Kairi was a heartless now. Everyone from Destiny Islands, save him and Sora, had been taken by the darkness. He knew the apparition he had just seen _couldn't_ have been her, but still… Seeing it reminded him of the dream he'd had of her, how she had accused him of not searching for her.

Maybe… Maybe she _wasn't_ a heartless and after the fall of Destiny Islands, she had ended up on some other world? What if she was waiting for someone to find her?

"What's wrong?" Leon asked him as they passed into the lobby, his usual cold tone fixed with a little concern. "You look like you saw a ghost."

"I might as well have," Riku replied, shaking his head. "But I'm fine."

It didn't seem like the older man believed him, but when they saw Cloud and Phil glaring daggers at each other, the matter was dropped and Leon hurried forward to take care of things.

"Oh great, you guys again," the satyr groaned as he spotted the other two men approaching. He defensively crossed his arms across his hairy chest. "Look, the tournament's full, okay? I can sign you guys up, but you can't fight unless someone else drops out, or we get a couple more contestants to enter as well. Gotta have an even number, y'know?"

"So you're not mad at Cloud then?" Riku asked, a little confused.

Phil snorted, waving a hand at the blonde man. "Yeah, sure, he can enter. If there's a stroke of luck, like I said before. Tournament's full. Besides, just because he's pissy don't give me the right to exclude him from the list. He _is_ a past champion, y'know." He leered up at Cloud. "How's the leg?"

Both Leon and Cloud glared.

Riku could have laughed, remembering how the two older men had fought so much when they had first been reunited here; and now, at the next tournament, they were already so synchronized, moving together and finishing each other's thoughts.

Something was a little off about Cloud though, he noticed, like the way the blonde kept nervously glancing over at him and giving him _that_ look—the look that Leon gave him a lot too, as though they were seeing someone else when they stared at Riku. By now, Riku was _very_ familiar with that kind of stare.

But why was it bothering Cloud so much right now?

As Leon and Phil went into the specifics of the tournament that the man was still determined to enter, Riku instead watched Cloud, studying the face behind that mantle. Something was obviously bothering the man, the way his eyes stared through everything, unfocused and reminiscent. It almost seemed like Cloud was listening to someone speak to him, though no one was.

Riku moved to stand by Leon and, breaking his conversation with Phil, the brunette glanced over at him to see what was wrong. That was when he finally noticed the staring match between Riku and Cloud, and how vacant and scared Cloud's expression suddenly seemed. However, when Leon touched the other man's shoulder and called his name, the spell broke.

Blue eyes flickered up to meet Leon's worried face, and Riku watched them exchange a look that spoke a hundred silent words.

"What's wrong?" the boy asked, glancing between the two men.

From under blonde bangs, blue eyes shifted back to Riku, and Cloud muttered, "We're not alone."

Before anyone could ask or even think about the cryptic sentence, they were interrupted.

"Hey, you!"

Three men and a satyr turned as one to regard the new voice. A woman.

With raised eyebrows, a skeptical Riku took in her feminine appearance, from the purple dress enhancing her curvaceous figure, to the pretentious expression on her pretty face. She took one look at the strangers in the lobby and her lips tilted coyly upwards.

"Oh," she said with reserved surprise, mostly to put on a show, "I didn't know you had more guests, Phil."

The satyr suddenly waved his hands in frustration. "Not you again!" he groaned. "What do you want _this_ time?"

If anything, Phil's irritation only made her smirk grow. "Yeah, I'm lookin' for Hercules," she said, running a dainty hand through her thick brown bangs, flicking a lock of her hair as she brought the hand down to her hip. "Y'know, big guy, lots of muscles, harmless personal—"

"Herc's not here," Phil interrupted, impatiently tapping a hoof against the floor.

"Huh, is that right?" she said in a casual tone as she began crossing the lobby towards the four of them, her lips pressed into a pleased smile. She stopped in front of Leon, who gave her an unimpressed look. "Hey, the name is Meg. Here for the tournament?"

"Stop pestering visitors and go back to where you came from," Phil said to her, putting his hands on his hairy hips. "Hercules left to see his dad this morning after the new guy beat him."

This caught the attention of both Cloud and Meg, who sharply focused on the tiny satyr.

"Hercules lost?" Cloud asked in surprise.

Right after he did, Meg said, "You mean the, uh, tall mysterious _gorgeous_ stranger beat Herc?"

"Yeah," Phil said, "like I said, the _new guy_. Showed up one day and said he was looking for something. The guy _reeks_ of power, so Herc wanted to test the guy's strength." He paused, scratching the back of his bald head. "Let me tell you, it was a _painfully_ short fight. And, of course, Hades couldn't pass up the opportunity to challenge someone who could defeat _Hercules_… But that fight didn't last long either."

Cloud opened his mouth to speak, but, intrigued by the story, Riku cut him off in an excited voice.

"I want to fight him!"

All eyebrows went up at that bold statement, and then Phil started guffawing, his obvious amusement making Riku frown.

"I'm serious!" the boy said.

"You, Kid…?" the satyr managed to hiss through his laughter. "What makes you think you can beat this guy if the strongest man in the world _and_ the lord of the underworld both lost to him?"

Riku merely shrugged, a determined look on his face nonetheless. "Well, Cloud's fought Hercules before, right? Cloud was the reigning champion until Yami defeated him, and I beat Yami, so—"

Here Phil interrupted while everyone watched them argue it out. "You mean that pipsqueak _friend_ of yours beat the creepy kid, not you."

"We were a team!" Riku pointed out, a little piqued that Phil reminded him about his defeat. "Anyway I think us three can take this new guy on."

"Uh uh, no way kiddo," the satyr said, shaking his head. "It's a one-on-one match. _Platinum_. Get it? You can lose one at a time against the guy, but there ain't no teams in this kind of fight."

"Why not?"

"Easier to account for damage that way."

"Whatever," Riku sighed, turning to face Leon and Cloud. "Either of you gonna fight this guy?"

"I have a bad feeling—" Cloud began to say, but Leon cut in before he could finish.

"I'm more interested in the new tournament," the brunette admitted. Glancing down at Phil, he asked, "You said earlier that the heartless are back, right?"

"Yeah, lots of new breeds," the satyr replied. "S'kinda weird, if you ask me."

"Then I'll fight in the Platinum match alone!" Riku said, crossing his arms over his chest.

Phil gave him a disapproving look at first, but the longer they stared at each other, the more worry filled the goat-man's face. Finally, he gave in, shaking his head as he said, "You can enter, but you better watch yourself. This ain't no kiddie fight, understand?"

A wide grin crossed Riku's face at his victory.

"Understood!"

No more than fifteen minutes later, Meg had disappeared, Leon and Cloud had wandered off to the spectator stands, and Phil was escorting Riku to the correct arena where he would be fighting in the Platinum Match. Before they had left, Cloud had warned him about being careless, and once again mentioned he had a really bad feeling and that he sensed something weird. Leon on the other hand, with just a quiet "Defend wisely," had given him several expensive-looking bottles of potion. On his way down the hall Riku had taken a better look at the bottles and realize they weren't _just_ potions, but Elixirs.

Were they really that worried about him?

Who _was_ this mysterious new guy that everyone feared so much?

"Alright, here we are," Phil announced, stopping in front of an unimpressive sandstone door. "Just gotta wait for the introduction. It's almost time. Be sure you're ready, Kid. This guy is ruthless."

Riku did a quick check of his potions, making sure they were within easy reach before he turned to the satyr with a question. "Hey Phil."

"Yeah?"

"What did the guy say he was looking for?" he asked.

Phil, who was staring at the door, merely shrugged. "Said something about his 'other half,' whatever that means. Oh, and better watch out, kid, his sword has a _long_ reach."

Arching a single eyebrow, Riku smirked. "Er, thanks…"

"Man, I bet the crew isn't looking forward to sweeping up the arena again," Phil laughed, letting out a low whistle. "The guy sheds like crazy."

Sheds?

Frowning, Riku blinked down at the satyr. "What do you mean by _sheds_?"

"Like I said, he _sheds_ black feathers," he replied. "From that damn one wing of his."

That was when the announcer outside began to introduce the match, and Phil turned toward him, clapping his hands together. "Alright, Kid, this is it!"

"Wait!" Riku said urgently. "One wing? Like Cloud's?"

The stone door began to slide open just then, sunlight streaming through from the growing crack, and Phil pushed Riku forward. Realizing he wasn't going to get an answer from the short creature, Riku closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and called Oblivion to him.

Only when he felt the comfortable weight in his hand and heard the keyblade softly sing to him did he raise his head and slip his eyes open again. The arena walls loomed in the distance, the smell of ancient blood and sand filling the warm air as it drifted into the hall to greet him.

"_Go_!" Phil hissed.

So Riku did.

With soft footsteps he entered the silent arena, ignoring the many eyes watching his every move as he approached the center fighting ring. As the door began to slowly slide shut behind him, he heard Phil call out to him one last time.

"Good luck, Kid! You'll need it…"

Silence reigned in the arena again, save for the occasional murmur from the crowd, and jingle of Riku's belts and zippers as he stepped into the ring. Boot-tread scraping against the sandy stone, Riku took his position in the empty ring, keyblade held firmly in his right hand as he waited, his silver hair and the straps of his pants fluttering softly in the light breeze.

Behind him the stone door came to a gritty, final halt.

And all at once, the sky ripped open.

Riku raised an arm to shield his eyes as a beam of light shot out of the heavens and crashed into the ground in front of him. Strange colorful shadows of archaic symbols swirled and faded in and out in the sky and on the arena floor as the blinding glow in the middle took shape. Dark feathers slowly drifted earthward, dancing around the dissolving light shower, and a crouching man was revealed.

Cautiously Riku took a step back, gripping his keyblade more tightly in his hand.

As if sensing the boy's defensive movement, the man lifted his head and slowly rose to his feet, the creaking of leather and shuffling of feathers deafening to Riku's ears in the deathly silent air. Beautiful silver hair fell down the man's back, pushed aside by an impossible appendage.

One wing. But _not_ like Cloud's.

The nightmarish black wing stretched out, individual feathers twitching into position as the man began to turn around to face Riku.

_Regal_, that's what he was. Divine and _gorgeous_.

Frigid green eyes met the boy's own, and both men froze.

The resemblance _was_ there, Riku realized as he stared at this man who could have easily been _him_ in ten years. The silver hair, the eyes, the same condescending smirk—that wasn't there anymore.

There was no doubt in his mind who this man was. Goodness, people had been dropping hints to him forever now about the man who looked like him, the man who had once been Leon's best friend, the man who now tortured Cloud's past.

"Sephiroth."

Recognition lit the older man's eyes at the name, and a low, curling smirk pulled at his lips as he studied Riku, the soft breeze gently tossing his long hair against his back. Narrowed green eyes leisurely traveled over the boy's smaller body, from his attire to his pretty face… to the keyblade.

As if satisfied with his opponent, Sephiroth shifted a step backward, reaching to grasp hold of the hilt of what was indeed an exceptionally long sword. His lips pulled back into a feral grin.

Riku sensed the barrier go up around the fighting ring, trapping him in with this nefarious angel. There was no time. Not for an introduction, not for any questions, or even to dodge.

Sephiroth struck faster than sound.

As a sharp blade even taller than him came slicing through the air, Riku barely had enough time or strength to bring Oblivion up to meet it. Just before the blade struck, he had the sudden fear that the metal would slice clean through the keyblade, but the magical weapon held strong against Sephiroth's powerful swing. And as fast as the man had lunged, he was gone again, leaving a small cloud of feathers in his place, leaving Riku staring at nothing.

"What the—"

The boy had a split second to dive forward to escape an attack behind him, blade passing just above his hood as he rolled on the ground and to his knees, spinning around with his keyblade poised to block _another_ strike.

This time when Sephiroth disappeared, Riku was ready, already twirling Oblivion in his hands to stab behind him, feeling the spearhead of the keyblade hit its intended target.

_One point for me,_ Riku mentally ticked off. _But **holy shit** this guy is fast!!_

Wasting no time in case of a counterattack, Riku spun around and to his feet, bringing his blade up to defend himself as Sephiroth's sword came down upon him again. From behind their grinding weapons, Riku saw the man's lips curve into another sinister smile.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he recognized Cloud's voice suddenly screaming at them, and the crowd muttering in fascination, but the fight had already begun and neither opponent could afford to notice the distractions. Everything else disappeared as Riku met Sephiroth's eyes, and returned the smile.

The wicked wing stretched out and with a giant wave of it, Riku's opponent flew backwards across the ring, dragging his boots against the stone to slow his velocity. Then, with a quick push off the ground, Sephiroth arched his wing again and flapped, hurling himself back at Riku with renewed force. This time the boy stood his ground, ready to block, and as soon as the blade touched Oblivion, Riku swung the attack aside and swiped at the man's torso, only to be met with empty air.

Growling at the man's quick tricks, Riku was turning to strike when a powerful kick came at him from the side, knocking him clean to the ground. He landed on his back with a startled gasp, having missed the attack completely, but he didn't let it keep him down. As soon as Riku's back connected with the stone, he rocked his weight backward, and, using his arms for extra strength, he shot off the ground with his heels arched in front of him.

His feet connected with Sephiroth's ribs as the man tried to duck out of the way at the last moment. Fingers wrapped firmly around the hilt of his keyblade, Riku rolled back into his fighting stance as his opponent also turned to face him.

After their blades met again, he lost track of time, thought and emotion leaving him as he simply moved with the fight, letting his body fall into the strange rhythm of the duel. The keyblade became a part of him again, helping guide him when Sephiroth's blade came too close, flying gracefully and perfectly through the air where he sent it. Once or twice Oblivion left Riku's hand when he hurled it at his retreating opponent, only to have its secure weight return as he ran to follow it, already moving in for an attack by the time it circled back to his waiting hand.

The men danced and twirled around each other, testing and watching, green eyes steadily focused on one another as they fought. The incredibly quick Sephiroth caught Riku off guard more than once, but only used the flat end of his blade to deliver the damage, while Riku carelessly put all of his strength into his keyblade each time he struck.

Sephiroth's smirk and black feathers surrounded him, pulling him into a thoughtless waltz of advance and strike, feign or parry, always act and react and trying to keep up with the pace. Silver hair swirled before his eyes and he'd immediately lunge, and Sephiroth's blade would either deflect it, or miss entirely.

Even though Riku knew he was getting in more than his fair share of hits, it was obvious Sephiroth wasn't going to tire or give up easily.

This wasn't a real fight, and even though he was having fun, it was pissing Riku off. He wanted Sephiroth to _fight_, not play—but something about Riku obviously interested the other man, whether it be his looks or keyblade or whatever. It couldn't have been more than two minutes yet, but to Riku the fight was dragging, and he wanted to get this over with.

As he shifted his weight and prepared to drive Sephiroth into a defensive stance, he was a little surprised when the man met his keyblade and instead of counterattacking, he simply lifted his wing and disappeared. Confused, but expecting his opponent to come from behind him as usual, Riku spun and raised Oblivion to block an attack that never came.

Lowering his blade, Riku blinked, quickly shooting a glance around the arena to find Sephiroth.

He was completely on the other side of the ring, long silver hair flowing freely around him as he raised his arms and curved his wing out.

"Sin Harvest."

Riku was already charging at him with a cry, footfalls quick and agile as he sprinted across the distance to his opponent. Time seemed to slow before Riku as a pink haze settled around him, momentarily clouding his vision of Sephiroth and his low, secretive smile.

All at once hell descended, ripping Riku's strength from him, turning his muscles into liquid and squeezing his innards until he let out a choked scream, stumbling in his sprint before he wavered and crashed to the ground in immense pain. But as fast as it had come, it was gone again like a gasp in the wind, like how he couldn't seem to keep his own breath because it hurt too much. The ache settled over his drained body, and he shuddered, desperately trying to get to his knees but only managing halfway.

It felt as though everything good in his life had been sucked away, from his strength and determination, to his happiness and love.

Sin Harvest? What kind of strange magic was that…? Did it feed off sins?

"_Riku! Get up!_"

Slowly his surroundings were returning to him and his will to fight was fleeing, his ears filled once again with familiar screams. Through tears of pain, Riku glanced up with a grimace to spy his opponent flying at him.

No, he had to continue the fight…! He couldn't lose _here_!

With trembling fingers he reached for an Elixir, knowing it was what he needed to regain his strength, _everything_, but Sephiroth was already there!

The man suddenly vanished in a cloud of feathers, giving Riku a few precious moments to recover, but would it be enough…?! He pulled the cap off the bottle, weakly raising it to his lips as a dark shadow cast over him from behind where his opponent now stood.

He was too late!

"_Riku!!_"

Sephiroth raised his sword high above him—

Riku tilted his head back to swallow the bitter potion—

And as the sword descended upon the defeated child, the barrier around the fighting ring shattered into a shower of crystalline magic, and a flash of red, black and blonde intercepted the blade before it hit.

A heavy buster sword drove Sephiroth back, a long red mantle sweeping around the fallen Riku as a familiar figure shifted its weight forward to defend him.

Cloud had saved him.

Cloud had broken into the ring and stopped the fight.

_Cloud_ had been the one screaming.

Blue eyes filled with the utmost distress met cold, calculating green, and Sephiroth smiled.

"Cloud," he said, his pleased voice making the blonde's strength falter, "I've been searching for you."

---

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Hehe, well, that concludes the first part of Chapter 18! Expect the second part whenever I can squeeze it out—it has all the important stuff!!

Yes, yes, I'll get to Cloud's reactions and all the yummy details in the next part. You have to remember that the main story chapters are all from Riku and Sora's perspectives (mostly). Thank you for your patience!

Oh yes, and credit goes to Dark Ki for the basic concept of Riku's new outfit. X3 Thanks, hun!

**Review Button: **Mmmm… Commentary 3

**_Note:_**_ The Uzumaki Fanfiction yahoo group has been created, so please join if you're a dedicated reader!_


	27. Ch 18: For His Beloved part two

_Author Notes:_

I know a lot of you are worried I'm going to focus too much on Leon and Sephiroth and Cloud too much, and not Riku and Sora who are the main characters in this, but trust me…. The FF characters' story is very much Sora and Riku's, and I have to tell it in order to move on in the plot XD

This second part is dedicated to Ms,Shatia Hamilton/Mistress Nashya for a belated b-day and because she works so damn hard without asking for much, and she's provided me with lots of inspiration through her art, comics, and fanfic! Also, thanks to Joanna, Dark Ki and Lane for helping my slow brain and for listening to my late-night whining about… everything. Hehe.

OH, and say happy birthday to _"A Complete 180°"_ on its **first** birthday! Double update today, so don't forget to read that fanfic too!

_A look ahead:_

He would walk to the end of time, overcome any obstacle, and sacrifice any life, including his own. He would defy destiny herself… All for his beloved.

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**_Chapter Eighteen: For His Beloved _**_– part two****_

---

As Cloud's mantle swirled around him, Riku gazed up at the two men with wide eyes, his keyblade held in front of him. Though he had heard many voices come from the magical weapon since it had first come to him, he couldn't recall ever hearing a human's.

Oblivion was singing Sephiroth's thoughts and emotions to him, even as the man spoke.

_I've found him at last. _Relief.

"Cloud."

At Sephiroth's voice, Cloud's hold on his weapon wavered slightly.

_A flinch? He is scared of me? It can't be… _Fear.

"I've been searching for you," the silver-haired man said calmly to the blonde, his tone betraying the emotions that actually raced through him.

_The look in his eyes… _Uncertainty.

But Cloud's greeting was less pleased, less relieved. It was obvious he did not feel the same way Sephiroth did about finding each other. In a cold, gritty tone, Cloud said, "As long as you exist, I can't wake from this nightmare."

Realization. Disbelief.

Sephiroth's emotions flowed into Riku, causing the boy to shiver as he kept his keyblade raised in front of him, listening to the thoughts that came from the mysterious warrior.

_He's forgotten everything. _

Everything happened so fast, each spark of feeling and fragment of thought came to Riku in a split-second rush that he had a hard time making sense of them.

Cloud was now pushing his blade against Sephiroth's and hissing, "You are my darkness."

_I am his darkness now? _

Despair whirled into Riku's own emotions.

No… Acceptance.

_If this is what fate had in store for me, then so be it._

Even before Sephiroth's thought finished, he had begun to speak, his voice empty of his earlier pleasure in finding Cloud. Another mask had slipped on.

"If that's so," he said with a chuckle that held no emotion, "I shall draw you into the darkness…" __

Riku saw Cloud's feet shift in preparation, and soon after felt Sephiroth's defensive reaction to it. Spreading his wing in a graceful arc, Sephiroth spoke with a wicked smile pulling at his lips.

"…Into the nightmare that forever deprives you of light, from which you can never awaken."

_I won't **let** him awaken. Never._

Possessiveness.

Riku lowered the keyblade, awe filling him as he studied the two men before him. Countless complicated emotions ran through both men, yet they were standing there with impassive faces, swords locked in what could very well be the beginning of a terrifying showdown.

Sephiroth's internal words made Riku realize that there was much more behind their story than just a maybe rape and nine years of darkness. These two had a story far more complex than anyone could understand.

And now that Sephiroth realized Cloud remembered nothing of those nine years, he was understandably upset. It didn't show on his face or in his tensed muscles, but the emotions were there, warring within him.

For some reason, Oblivion wanted Riku to know…. It had never translated thoughts of a human before—only heartless—so why had it started now?

But as the boy lay there wondering, Cloud's foot slightly grated backwards against the stone as he struggled to keep his blade locked with Sephiroth's.

"Riku, _go_!" he hissed, never moving his eyes from his enemy in front of him.

Realizing the blonde was at a disadvantage with him laying there, the elixir-healed Riku scrambled backwards away from them. He was turning to quickly leap to his feet when he felt a strong hand wrap around his arm and jerk him away from the fighting ring. Riku glanced up in surprise as he stumbled for footing, seeing the unique decal of white wings etched into the jacket of the familiar figure now half-dragging him away from danger.

"Leon, where are we going?!" he demanded with sudden confusion. "The fight is back _that_ way! Aren't we going to help Cloud?!"

"We'll just be in the way," Leon replied calmly as he threw an impatient look over his shoulder at the boy. "It's their fight now."

Riku fell silent, his green eyes narrowing as he studied the man guiding him towards safety.

Leon had tried to hide it, but Riku had seen the angry helplessness on his face. Leon _did_ want to help Cloud, he did want to fight, to demand answers and punish Sephiroth for whatever he had done to hurt Cloud.

From what the boy had learned about them, nine years ago Sephiroth had been Leon's closest friend and had constantly picked on young Cloud, who'd had a crush on Le—Squall. Why had Sephiroth raped Cloud, if it was a rape at all? And now, from what he had learned from the silver-haired man, none of it made any sense. Why had Sephiroth been so crushed to learn Cloud had forgotten everything? Why were they going to fight now?

What was their story?

And how had Leon felt when he'd learned Sephiroth, his missing best friend, was actually alive and was supposedly the cause of Cloud's misery? How had Leon felt when he'd learned about the rape?

How did Leon feel _now_ knowing his former best friend and his current lover were out for each other's blood?

It was obvious Leon wanted to act.

Riku saw it in him. But…

He also saw that Leon knew his own strength. As much as he wanted to charge in there with his gunblade and take control of the situation and sort it all out, he knew he couldn't. He didn't have the power _or_ the right.

What he did have was the duty to protect _Riku_.

As Leon pulled him up onto the first step of the arena's seating, Riku noticed that the crowd was leaving, a mixture of amazement, disappointment, and fear on their faces.

"What's going on?" the boy asked, following Leon's lead up the steps.

"Phil called for an evacuation of the arena," the brunette replied. Before Riku could ask why, he added, "Cloud broke through the protective barrier around the fighting ring, so the audience is no longer safe from whatever happens there." He paused, glancing back at the silver-haired boy with a frown. "None of us have seen Cloud's true power. Or Sephiroth's. There's no telling what damage they can do together."

Riku turned to have a quick look at the two men in the ring, but their blades were no longer locked together. They stared at each other from opposite sides of the arena, hands tight around the hilt of their swords, the air around them almost crackling with the tension between them, like any slightest movement would set them off.

What Leon had said was true.

There _was_ no telling what damage they could do, especially considering no one knew their story, how they had become the non-humans they were now, how they had gotten so powerful, and where they had been for nine years. And from what Riku had felt when fighting Sephiroth, he knew that man's powerful had catastrophic potential.

As if sensing Riku's thoughts, Leon pulled on Riku's arm to hurry him and said, "You put up a good fight."

Riku glanced back up at the man, a little surprised. A compliment from Leon? The boy smiled a little at that, but he knew he would have lost if Cloud hadn't come between them. Sephiroth had had the power to end the fight from the very beginning, but he had chosen instead to study Riku… Maybe that was why, according to Phil, Hercules and Hades had lost so quickly to Sephiroth—they hadn't interested him as opponents, so he had finished them off without hesitation.

Because of that, Riku wanted to know just what had interested Sephiroth about him. He wanted to know all about this one-winged angel.

"Why is Cloud going to fight him?" the boy asked, recalling how Sephiroth felt about Cloud, and how Cloud truly didn't understand anything… How _no one_ understood anything, and Sephiroth held all the answers.

"I don't know," Leon admitted, his angry look returning. "I couldn't stop him."

A curious frown crossed Riku's face. "What do you mean?"

The brunette glanced at him again as they reached the top step, his eyes guarded as he spoke. "When you were being led away by Phil for the match, Cloud told me he was hearing things. A voice. That's why he'd had a bad feeling…" He paused to glimpse at the two men far below in the arena. "Then when he saw Sephiroth, everything came together, and he lost it… I don't know what went through his mind, but I couldn't stop him. He flew down the steps, not caring who was in his way, but the barrier around the ring kept him from interfering."

"He was the one yelling at us, but the fight had already begun," Riku remembered. "And he broke the barrier…"

The sound of boots on stone below them interrupted their conversation, and both of them turned to watch as Cloud and Sephiroth stormed across the fighting ring towards each other.

Riku had thought the men were fast fighters before, but _now_…

His eyes couldn't even keep up!

In a split second the two men met in the middle of the arena, their blades meeting with an electric _clang_ and a brilliant flash of magical energy and sparks that disappeared as quickly as they were created. Cloud's mantle softly floated around him for a moment as it rushed to catch up to him, but then it was flying again as the blonde man pushed off Sephiroth's strength and stretched his wing to rise into the air the instant after their swords connected.

As Cloud gracefully somersaulted over the other man, Sephiroth was already deftly spinning on one foot, his boots rising off the gritty arena floor in a small leap as he turned to face the airborne Cloud. Sephiroth wasted no time, sharply flapping his wing and shooting forward to attack Cloud, who was at the apex of his flip and upside down as he fell earthward. The buster sword came up in one smooth motion to deflect the attack and the blonde landed safely on his feet, crouched and already springing forward to swipe at Sephiroth's feet as the silver-haired warrior leapt away, and Sephiroth met the attack with his own blade.

Riku watched the two men with awe-filled eyes, scared to blink or look away for fear that he would miss the fight. In the time he had taken and released a single breath, Sephiroth and Cloud had exchanged more attacks than Riku remembered executing in _his_ fight no more than five minutes ago.

They were impossible to keep up with.

The instant Sephiroth blocked Cloud's attack, the blonde leapt into the air after his opponent, their wings sending them higher with just the slightest movement as they spun around each other, Cloud throwing one blow after the other at Sephiroth as he rose to the other man's level, who easily deflected each attack. By the time Cloud was at the same altitude as Sephiroth high above the fighting ring, Riku had stopped gaping and begun to notice how the two men moved with each other.

Riku had always considered fighting like a form of dancing, but with these two it was _true_. The way they interacted and traded attacks, dodged so easily and flew through the air around each other – it was like a game, only Cloud wasn't smiling and enjoying himself.

Dancing, and at the impossible speed they were fighting…

It told Riku that these two had fought many times in the past, but not like this. During sparring Riku could easily read Sora's fighting moves and was able to fight with the boy as one team, sensing the boy's movements so well that they almost moved in a dance – that was exactly how Sephiroth and Cloud were fighting right now. Back on Destiny Islands, Riku had turned Sora's challenges into this kind of ballet so many times that it was impossible for him to miss the technique when he saw it.

Except, to Cloud this wasn't practice. He was fighting for real, but Sephiroth was easily turning their fight into something he could control. Riku assumed that because Cloud couldn't remember those nine years with Sephiroth, he didn't realize his body was falling into the rhythm of fighting he usually shared with Sephiroth.

At the very moment Cloud reached Sephiroth's level as they exchanged blow after blow, Cloud suddenly pushed away from him to gain some space. Sephiroth acted in that instant and lunged after him, Cloud reacting quickly to meet his blade. This time as they began to throw attacks at each other, Cloud was on the defensive, moving only to dodge and deflect Sephiroth's deadly sword as the silver-haired man waved his wing and spun around the blonde, cutting downward at his legs again.

Cloud was already deflecting it however and barrel-rolled through the air upward to throw off more attacks as Sephiroth came from above. Using his wing to thrust himself forward, Cloud rose from below Sephiroth with a kick that the other man easily avoided; anticipating the dodge, Cloud swung to hit the evasive Sephiroth, who parried the large blade.

The attacks were happening so fast that Riku could barely tell who was defending and who was offensive. And as he watched them back up and then shoot through the sky towards each other again, he felt a growing sense of fear, knowing Sephiroth held the fight firmly in his hands even though Cloud couldn't see it.

Their blades hit again and again, the flashes of energy created each time so bright that they left after-images in Riku's vision. Beside him he could almost feel Leon's worry as he too watched the showdown with unblinking intensity. He had mentioned earlier than no one knew the extent of Cloud and Sephiroth's power, but somehow Riku knew Leon hadn't really imagined it would be _this_ extreme…

But the fight had hardly been on for thirty seconds, and both witnesses knew neither of the fighters had even begun to tap into their real power.

That fact was almost frightening.

To avoid a sharply angled swing from Sephiroth, Cloud rolled backwards in the air, hovering a mere half-moment before thrusting his wing out and pushing against the air to lunge at Sephiroth, who was slowly backing up to accommodate the attack. As Cloud brought his buster sword down in a powerful swing that actually looked like it would hit its target, Sephiroth disappeared into a fading sphere of darkness and black feathers.

Riku frowned, recognizing the teleportation trick.

Unlike Riku who'd had trouble keeping track of Sephiroth because of the trick, Cloud knew immediately where to look. Gelid blue eyes flickered up to see the one-winged angel reappear high above the fighting ring, one gloved hand stretched out, waiting for Cloud's hand in a gesture that could have been either mocking or genuine.

A scowl crossed Cloud's pretty face and, without a moment's hesitation, his demonic wing spread and pushed against the air. He flew up to meet his opponent, and Sephiroth readied his sword, their blades connecting with a sharp scream of metal on metal as Cloud reached him, the energy from their connection so bright this time that Riku was forced to blink.

"Riku, get out of the way!!"

No time to be even confused as to why Leon was suddenly screaming at him, Riku abruptly found himself crashing into the arena's stone seats, Leon on top of him. Behind them, where they had been a second before, Cloud was being thrown into the wall.

In the instant Riku had blinked, Sephiroth had taken complete control of the fight and powerfully shoved Cloud away to summon a spell. Cloud, who had been unable to right himself before he crashed into the wall behind Leon and Riku, was just barely regaining his senses when he noticed the spell being cast.

"Stay down, Riku," Leon directed as he got back to his feet, his grey-blue eyes focused on Sephiroth and his dark magic.

Sephiroth never got to finish his spell though, for as soon as Cloud righted himself, the blonde spread his wing and pushed himself back into the air, snatching his buster sword from the stone seats where he had dropped it. By the time Riku had picked himself off the seat where Leon had thrown him, Cloud had already reached Sephiroth, his large blade swiping fiercely through the air. The silver-haired man cut his spell short and disappeared just in time, Cloud's sword passing through nothing as its missing target reappeared behind him.

As Cloud flapped madly to turn in time to deflect an attack from Sephiroth, Riku realized this fight wasn't going to end any time soon, with the way things were going. The two men didn't even really have a reason to fight. Cloud believed he had every right to hate Sephiroth, but it seemed Sephiroth was only fighting because Cloud had come to him expecting trouble when, on Sephiroth's side, there seemed to be none.

What was this showdown of fate going to solve when it was over?

Nothing.

And though he knew Cloud had worked so hard to find Sephiroth to have this fight, and though he knew Sephiroth was his enemy too, Riku didn't want anyone to get hurt. He didn't want to watch this pointless dance anymore.

But what could he do? Charge down to the fighting ring, look up at the two winged men and scream at them to stop? Throw his keyblade at them and hope it attracted their attention?

_Dammit, Riku, why do you have to be so weak?!_ he growled to himself, clenching his fists at his sides. He was the keyblade master, wasn't he? Why didn't he have special powers or anything that came even close to being magic?! _All I know is how to fight…I'm supposed to save the worlds, aren't I? How can I do something like that if I can't even stop a fight and protect someone close to me?_

High in the air Sephiroth's silver hair flew freely around him as he swiftly moved to confront Cloud over and over, Cloud's mantle curling behind him like a silk snake as the blonde desperately repelled each attack, skillfully waltzing through the air to avoid the long, sharp blade of Sephiroth's sword. He looked like an injured bird trying to escape a cat's evil play.

Riku had to stop the fight somehow.

Glancing once more at the two men locked in their fierce battle, Riku turned and leapt up the last step, sprinting through the archway out of the arena. He heard Leon call after him, but he couldn't stand there helplessly anymore. There had to be _something_ he could do.

He raced down the corridor towards the lobby, almost barreling into Phil who was hurrying toward the arena.

Phil! Surely the satyr would know what to do!

"We have to stop the fight, Phil!" he said as he slowed to talk to the short creature.

"Easier said than done, kid," he replied in a no-nonsense voice. "None of the warriors here can go up against either of those guys."

"We have to do _something_ at least!" Riku cried as Phil walked past him, his two hooves clicking quickly against the stone as he rushed to the scene of the fight.

"Look, the only thing a kid like you can do is just watch and wait," the satyr said gruffly without turning, waving a hand to dismiss Riku.

Releasing a soft growl, the silver-haired boy continued his run to the lobby to find someone to help, and, now far behind him, Phil called after him:

"If you see Hercules, tell him to hurry up. Need to get this arena sealed off until the fight's finished."

"Hercules…?" Riku echoed quietly, recalling earlier how Meg had been looking for the man. Maybe Hercules was back? Phil may not have been any help, but Hercules was famous for being a hero. He had to have someway to help.

With renewed hope, Riku broke into a run down the corridor again, passing archway after archway leading to empty arenas until he reached the one that led to the lobby. He skidded to a halt just inside the room, spotting Hercules immediately and Meg, who he was talking to.

What really caught his attention, however, was the brilliant white horse behind Hercules. It stood there, lazily flicking its long blue tail as it pawed a hoof at the sandy stone as if it were bored. Two large wings were folded into its back.

Wings!

That was _exactly_ what Riku needed.

Forming a haphazard plan, Riku hurried over to the creature, only providing "Herc, I'm taking your horse!" as a warning as he prepared to mount it. The horse gave an irritated snort at him and he hesitated in front of it. The creature's sound of vexation seemed to snap Hercules out of his dazed conversation with Meg.

"Huh?" The hero paused in the middle of talking to glance over at his horse, noticing the boy for the first time. "Oh hey Riku," he greeted. "Phil told me what happened to your turn in the Platinum Match. Sorry you didn't get to finish."

Disregarding the statement, Riku said in an impatient voice, "Cloud's in danger! I need wings."

Hercules gave a wide, friendly smile. "Well, I'm sure Pegasus won't mind if you ride him."

The horse looked from his master to the kid who wanted to ride him and glared, thrusting its nose into the air stubbornly, but still lifting its wings to let Riku climb onto him. Well, that had been surprisingly easy. Hopefully the horse was good at following directions.

"Thanks!" Riku called, skillfully swinging himself onto Pegasus. "C'mon, horsey… We've got a fight to interrupt!"

The creature whinnied dumbly, almost like a bird, but it seemed to understand him perfectly, for as Riku grabbed onto its short Mohawk-like mane, Pegasus turned and stormed through the archway up the stairs into the bowels of the coliseum. The wings folded around the boy, cupping him safely to Pegasus' back as they charged through the corridor. Riku had never ridden a horse before, but he had very little time to admire the beast's graceful power as it ran.

"Here, it's this one!" Riku cried, releasing one hand to point at the upcoming archway. Pegasus hardly slowed as it turned and burst through the threshold into the arena, Leon and Phil a mere blur as the horse rushed past them.

Without warning Pegasus pushed off the stone and into the air, spreading its magnificent wings and flapping to gain altitude in one powerful, fluid movement. Riku gave a cry of surprise as they lifted off, his fingers tightening in the blue mane as he pressed himself closer to the winged horse to keep himself from falling.

In the middle of the fighting ring Cloud and Sephiroth were still dueling, but the battle had gotten significantly more dangerous by the looks of it. Sometime while Riku had been gone, Sephiroth must have gotten a successful hit, because Cloud now had blood trailing down his left arm. Their moves seemed more desperate than before, terrifying power and dark magic fueling their attacks. Riku never took his eyes off the pair of one-winged men as Pegasus circled the arena, waiting for instruction from its rider.

Feeling the wind on his face rustling his hair and hoodie, Riku let a small smile cross his lips, excited about actually flying despite the circumstances he was doing it for. He could feel Pegasus' muscles rippling beneath him with each powerful push of its wings, and he felt comforted by the creature's silent strength, knowing he'd need its help during the confrontation that was about to happen.

Stretching an arm out, Riku sucked in a deep breath and concentrated, calling Oblivion to his waiting fingers. Its familiar weight appeared in his ready hand in a swirl of dark light and warm air, its black crown key chain dangling proudly from the hilt. His other hands clenched into Pegasus' mane, Riku exhaled and narrowed his eyes at his destination.

"Let's go."

With a colorful whinny that could have been a war cry, brave Pegasus gave a powerful wave of its wings and shot forward into the fight. Somewhere below them Riku heard Leon call out to him, but it was too late. As Cloud brought his mighty sword down and Sephiroth spun to deflect the attack, Pegasus flew between them and Riku intercepted both of the blades before they met. Cloud's surprised gaze met Riku's green eyes, and then the silver-haired boy was whisked away again on Pegasus. As the horse circled to make another pass, the blonde man's determined face had returned and he was already swiping at the distracted Sephiroth, who easily avoided the attack.

"Stop fighting, both of you!" Riku cried, Pegasus bringing him in between the two men again. He held his keyblade in front of himself, showing them he was ready to fight either of them should they try to continue their battle. "There's no point to this!"

Cloud shot him an incredulous look, as though he couldn't believe what Riku was suggesting, but Sephiroth was merely smiling at the boy.

"Riku you shouldn't be up here!" Cloud called, lifting his buster sword in preparation. "Now move!!"

"What the hell are you fighting for, Cloud?!" Riku demanded, keeping his face turned towards the man as Pegasus pranced in place high above the ground. "Don't you want to know what happened to you during those nine years? Shouldn't you be asking questions instead of trying to kill the only person who knows the answers?!"

As Cloud formed a stubborn scowl, Riku turned to face Sephiroth to yell at him too, but the silver-haired man was already nodding in acknowledgement.

"He's right," Sephiroth said calmly, his strong voice leaving no room for arguing. "As delightful as it always is to engage you in combat, Cloud, there is much to talk about." He paused, giving the man a curling smile that hinted at dark, secret things. "You've always been excitable, Cloud, but after we have both been searching for so long, I did not expect such a rough welcome from you, especially considering the circumstances in which we last left each other."

"And which circumstances would those be?" Cloud sighed, looking for all the world silently pissed.

Riku wondered for a moment how often the blonde let down his mask and actually got upset at someone. He, Leon, and Sephiroth were all too… complicated. Maybe if they all stopped _pretending_, they would actually understand one another.

"Put down your sword, Cloud, and then ask Sephiroth when we're all on the ground and calmed down," Riku said, giving the blonde a meaningful look. "The only reason you're fighting is because you're hurt and confused about something nine years in the past, so stop. And let's find out what happened."

Hesitantly, Cloud glanced down at the buster sword gripped firmly in his hands, gaze slowly traveling to Riku and Sephiroth; and, as if remembering something, he turned to look at Leon far below them.

With a sigh of resignation, Cloud nodded and lowered his blade, his blue eyes finally softening. With that one sigh, all of the fighting spirit seemed to pass out of him and he relaxed, shoulders loosening and buster sword swinging lightly at his side as he raised his free hand to wipe at his sweat-drenched bangs.

"Alright," he said, giving Sephiroth a solemn glance. "Let's talk."

---

A low sob filled the deafening silence in the dark, dark room. Sora had been crying dry tears for so long that he'd forgotten why. Cracking his tired eyes open, he glanced down at the shredded cloth around him… and remembered why again.

Pieces of his once-new clothes were scattered around his Hollow Bastion room. Just hours ago he had gotten tired of seeing the painful reminders of his old life, and had effortlessly ripped them apart.

Why…?

He wanted to forget it all.

He didn't want to remember shopping with Aerith and Yuffie for the new clothes and being embarrassed about their teasing. He didn't want to remember how different and mature he had felt when putting them on, as though he had shed his childhood and become someone more fit to be Riku's boyfriend. He didn't want to remember Riku's pleasant surprise at seeing the new Sora, and how easily aroused he was whenever Sora got too close…

Sora didn't want to remember any of it, so he had disposed of the evidence.

But… why did it hurt so much now?

Almost funny, it was… These new clothes had been so important to him a month ago that he had decided to drag them with him to the coliseum. He even remembered how relieved he had been when he had found them unharmed in his bag after waking up in Hollow Bastion. Funny how one's opinion can change so vastly in so little time.

Though, now that their sad remains lay scattered around him, Sora couldn't help feeling the sadness that filled him. That was why he had been crying, as silly as it was. He was getting so tired of this never-ending cycle.

As though sensing his change of moods again, a few of the anti-Rikus curled in his bed with him moved closer to comfort their master, their yellow eyes staring emotionlessly up at him. Yet, this time when their cold arms slipped around him, he was suddenly filled with overwhelming disgust at their existence.

He pushed them away with a distressed cry and squirmed to escape from their dark embraces, ultimately falling off his bed in his panic to get away from them. One by one their heads peeked over to gaze at him laying on the plush rug below, and with a shudder he avoided their eyes.

He had to get out of here.

Struggling to his feet, Sora turned away from his heartless and the suffocating darkness, and slowly pulled his bedroom door open.

Dim light from the hallway poured in, momentarily blinding him as he brought a hand up to shield his eyes from it. He couldn't remember the last time he'd left his dark room; the only time he had seen light had been the moonlight in the evenings when Yami would bring him his dinner and talk with him, even though Sora never put much effort into the conversations.

He hated Yami. He was sure the feeling was mutual, but at least Yami was trying to be friendly.

That boy was up to something…

Staggering down the hall, Sora had no idea where he was going, so long as he was far away from his dark room and the abominations he had created to fill the hole in his heart Riku had created with his betrayal. They hadn't worked, those heartless… They only made the hole bigger.

He must have wandered for hours, never really getting anywhere, his eyes never really interested in looking at anything except his own feet. It was dark by the time he found himself someplace new, and with only a fraction of fear he realized he couldn't remember the way he had come.

Oh well.

It wasn't like anyone was expecting him back any time soon.

Trying to rub the aching cold out of his arms, Sora went deeper into the castle underground, because that's where he was. It was dark and musty here, and very miserable—and, judging from the barred rooms that lined the hallway, this place was a prison of some sort. A dungeon, perhaps.

Definitely an undesirable place to stay.

He was considering turning back when he heard the sound of heavy feet shuffling against the granite floor. Curiously he squinted into the darkness, even though he could see fine in it. Ahead he saw two large hands grasp the bar door of the next cell.

"Who's there?!"

Sora flinched at the sudden voice booming through the darkness, its angry echoes ominously rumbling around him. It hadn't been a voice, so much as a growl… a _deep_ growl…

Someone was in that cell…?

Just what kind of person was being held captive in the dungeons of Hollow Bastion? Who did the mistress of the castle and Yami find so threatening to them that they had to lock this person down here?

It had to be something dangerous to them. But… Yami was one of the strongest fighters Sora knew about, and that woman was possibly the most powerful sorceress as well, so just _what_ could they consider dangerous enough to lock down here?

Taking in a deep, shaky breath, Sora took a quiet step back, ignoring his quickening heart and the fear now itching at his skin.

Ahead, the hands disappeared from the bars of the cell, and Sora listened as the person inside the cell began to sniff frantically at the air as though searching for something it _could_ smell, almost like a dog…

"I can smell you. Come out where I can see you!"

Shuddering, a very stiff Sora took another step back, thoughts of fleeing and never coming back entertaining his scared mind.

He should leave. Everything about this place was telling him to leave, not to bother showing himself, not to investigate this criminal…

Everything except Sora himself.

Yes, he was quite frightened, but it was his nature to snoop. Like when he once thought monsters lived in the secret place at home, but still explored inside with Riku to find out for sure, it was in his nature to explore here as well, even if there was the possibility of a monster springing out of the darkness to get him.

There was no Riku this time to protect him, but he told himself it didn't matter anymore. He was now strong enough to take care of himself.

He wanted to see what kind of person had been sentenced to stay here, in Hollow Bastion's dungeon.

Curiosity won him over as it usually did. Holding his breath to calm his thundering heart, Sora bravely closed the distance between him and the cell, cautiously peeking around the wall through the door of iron bars to see who was inside.

Out of the shadows came the looming figure of a man—no, _beast_—covered head-to-clawed foot with fur. His once-regal clothes were frayed and stained, a long tattered cape adorning his hunched back as he stalked back towards the bars, spotting Sora's scared face peeking at him. His angry eyes narrowed at the boy, clawed fingers wrapping around the bars of his door with crushing force as he opened his maw to show his many pointed teeth.

"Who are you?" the beast demanded in a cold voice tight with fury. "Come closer where I can see you."

Trembling but still curious, Sora stepped into the open, his blue eyes wide and afraid even though he knew the creature was securely locked in the cell. Though, the bars looked like they could succumb to the beast's strength if it put the effort into it. Someone must have cast a spell on the bars to secure their strength because, otherwise, the beast looked like he could punch through a wall if he wanted to.

Sora glanced briefly at the two curled horns atop the beast's head and his almost cute ears before meeting the creature's eyes, wincing a little at the strength behind the glare focused on him.

"I said _come closer_!!"

Gasping, the boy backed away even more at the thunderous command, violently shaking his head to indicate he most certainly did **not** want to come closer.

The beast's lips pulled back and he released a hideous roar so loud Sora could _feel_ it in his bones. With a cry of his own, Sora scrambled farther away from the cell and turned to flee, his heart wrenching with fear.

Behind him he heard the beast give another scream, this time in the form of a word, and as it trailed off into a pathetic cry, Sora realized it had been a name. The beast was crying for someone.

And though the creature scared Sora, he realized he felt pity for him, this beast without a name locked away in the deep dungeons of Hollow Bastion. What had he done to end up here and did he even belong to this world? Who was the Beast waiting for, the girl whose name he had called…?

Before Sora realized what he was doing, he had returned to the cell, standing close to the door and staring curiously at the beast huddled inside. Two cold eyes met Sora's and the boy gave a small, friendly smile. His fear wasn't gone, but his curiosity was stronger now.

"I'm Sora," he said in a soft, steady voice, watching the beast's eyes widen. "Who's Belle?"

---

"It was nice of Phil to close off the public bath for us so we could all talk privately," Riku stated absently as he watched Leon gently tend to the long cut running down Cloud's naked arm. "I mean, usually he's a prick…"

Realizing no one was actually listening to him, Riku let his voice trail off, and sighed. It really didn't surprise him that neither of the men were listening to him, even after what he'd done for them. So what if he had risked his life by flying a winged horse into a terrifying showdown? Now that Cloud was with Leon again, the two men were all that mattered to each other for the moment.

Well, not really…

Maybe Leon was too pissed to hear anything, and maybe Cloud was too lost in his thoughts to care.

"I'm pregnant with Cid's child too, by the way," Riku continued casually. "He attacked me one night in my sleep. Never saw it coming…" He paused, glancing from Leon to Cloud to see if there was any reaction. There wasn't. With a bored frown, Riku muttered, "Obviously you guys didn't either."

"I'm not hurting you, am I, Cloud?" Leon asked quietly, his eyes glancing up at Cloud's solemn face.

"No… Sorry to worry you…"

With an impatient sigh, Riku got up from his spot next to them and liberally stretched, glaring at them briefly before turning toward the bathing pool.

"Riku. Where are you going?" Leon asked, actually noticing the boy was leaving.

Giving the man a pointed frown, Riku replied, "To talk to Sephiroth, since that's why we're here in the first place."

Leon returned the frown, obviously displeased with Riku's tone. "Just be careful around him. Call us if you need help for anything."

_As if you'd hear me…_ Riku grumbled silently to himself.

Glancing once more at the strange couple, the boy gave a small wave and headed towards the long pool where a bathing Sephiroth greeted him.

What a weird day.

Actually, Riku wouldn't have minded a bath either, and was sure Cloud wanted one as well, but he knew Leon would freak if either of them even thought about climbing into a public bath with Sephiroth, naked… Sephiroth wasn't being modest at all, on the other hand. Long silver hair tied up into a messy bun, the man was sitting in the shallow pool, just soaking and watching the other three people in the large room with him.

His vibrant green eyes trailed Riku as the boy calmly approached him, a pleased smile crossing his face when he saw that the boy wasn't afraid of him.

"Hey," Riku greeted, seating himself at the pool's side to watch Sephiroth, who slowly moved in the water towards him.

"How long have those two…" the man began, but paused to glance at the brunette and blonde.

"Been together?" Riku finished unenthusiastically. "Only a few days. Little over a week, I think."

"Hm," was Sephiroth's response, a small, breathy chuckle that spoke of irony.

Riku's brow furrowed curiously at that, but he decided not to stray into that territory yet. Instead he settled on a safer question. "You were best friends with Leon, right? Back then."

Green eyes turned to regard the boy again, Sephiroth's amused smile slowly fading. "Yes, I was indeed one of the few Squall let close to him," he replied. "I must say he has strange taste. I'm concerned about his new name." The man lowered his eyes a little before returning them to stare at Leon, his expression unreadable. "I thought he died all those years ago. Fell to the heartless with everyone else. For years Cloud and I had mourned his death more than the others, never once considering that he could still be alive… Yet there he is." Sephiroth hesitated, lost in thought as he stared at his once-best friend who was actually still alive after nine years of torment. "Even I can't describe what I felt when I saw him alive again. He'd always been a resilient child, so it amuses me that I never pictured Squall surviving to this age… Handsome Squall… Or should I call him Leon now?" he asked, looking to Riku as he spoke.

The boy smiled at the question. "He gets mad at Aerith and Yuffie when they call him Squall. Cid follows his wishes though…"

Sephiroth nodded at that, taking in all the information that Riku had given him, that three more prominent people of his past were alive and well, and his best friend and Cloud were now lovers, and had been only for a short time. With a small push of his arm, Sephiroth moved away from the wall of the pool, but remained close enough to let Riku know he wasn't leaving.

Studying the contemplative expression on the older man's face, Riku decided to tread into deeper territory.

"I believe you," he said, staring at Sephiroth as the man gave him a confused look. Riku continued, explaining what he meant. "I can tell how you feel for Cloud…" he said, remembering the thoughts that had come to him from Sephiroth through Oblivion, the relief of finding Cloud, the worry of realizing Cloud had forgotten their nine years, the anger of fate turning against him. With an afterthought, Riku added quietly, "He doesn't understand though."

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes, suspicious. "Do you talk from experience, boy?"

"A little…" Riku admitted, listening to his better judgment and keeping his mouth shut about being called 'boy' again. "I think my story is a little complicated though." He hesitated, realizing something. "Hey," he said, "do you know someone named Yami?"

"No," Sephiroth replied, intently drifting his piercing gaze over the boy's body. "So a kid like you is the keyblade master," he commented casually, that low smirk crossing his lips again. "I believe it wasn't smart of your… friends to let you wander off like this."

"You mean to you?" Riku asked with a small smile. "They know I can take care of myself…"

"Hmph." Sephiroth lifted a hand to brush one of his long bangs out of the way, returning Riku's smile with an amused one of his own. "Riku, was it?" he asked. "I find it almost disturbing, how much of myself I see in you."

"You're not the only one…" Riku laughed. "When Leon and Cloud aren't all over each other, they're comparing me to you. Not out loud, but I can tell."

Lips pulling into a wider, secretive smile, Sephiroth said, "I was not referring to just your looks, boy. I sense something dark in you." And when Riku fell silent to frown at him, Sephiroth moved a little closer, eyes shining. "Do you recall the move I defeated you with?"

Suddenly feeling a little uneasy because of Sephiroth's look, Riku slowly replied, "Something Harvest, wasn't it…?"

"_Sin_ Harvest," the man corrected, gesturing lightly with one hand as he continued to speak. "I've used it many times in the past, and each time it has had different results on its victims. Sometimes it drains them completely or only a percentage, and sometimes not at all."

"Yeah…?" Riku said, not quite getting what Sephiroth was trying to explain.

"I always assumed the strength of the attack varied depending on the souls of its victims. _Sin Harvest_," he emphasized. "It feeds off your worst sins, your desires and darkest thoughts, and turns them against you. I could cast it on a person with the most pure of hearts, and it would not affect him." Pausing, Sephiroth studied Riku again with sharp eyes. "I admit I have never seen it work so _well_ on someone, as it did on you… At first I thought perhaps it was because you were so young – its youngest victim by far, but… As I said before, I see much of myself in you."

"What does that mean?" the boy asked, drawing his brows together in confusion.

"It is possible you're corrupt enough to earn such a reaction from the attack," Sephiroth explained, "however I believe this isn't the case with you. There is another side to you that not even you know exists, boy." He took a moment to watch the boy's face, a smirk pulling at his own lips as he continued in a deep, concise voice. "A Darkness. That is what fed Sin Harvest."

"I don't understand what you're suggesting," Riku said, narrowing his eyes at the older man. He didn't like the smirk aimed at him, or what he was suggesting about Riku. Riku was the keyblade master, wasn't he? The savior? What the hell was Sephiroth getting on about 'his darkness' now?

"Then I will tell you more plainly," Sephiroth said patiently, eyes shining with dark wisdom. "Keyblade master, are you sure you're on the right side?"

"Of course I am," Riku replied with a soft growl. "What side are _you_ on anyway?"

"My own," the man said, frowning a little at Riku's response. As though deciding the subject was done for, he moved on with the next, gaze flicking down to Riku's hands, which were resting on the boy's knees. "That weapon of yours…" he began slowly, lifting his eyes slowly from under his bangs to Riku's own hard stare. "I've heard that it has unimaginable power in the hands of its true master."

"Well, I don't know about that…" Riku admitted, reaching a hand out.

He hesitated a second before summoning Oblivion, studying Sephiroth's eyes as the man watched the keyblade appear. He wasn't sure what he was suspecting of the older man, but there had to be something… Well, there _was_ something about this man that intrigued him, and Riku wanted to know more… but he knew he had to be careful. Riku really didn't trust him, but at the same time he wasn't afraid of Sephiroth, nor was he hesitant about talking about this kind of stuff with him. Still, Riku felt the need to study him….

Sephiroth didn't really seem that impressed with the keyblade, but Riku saw a certain shadow of curiosity there on his face as the man studied the blade in Riku's hand.

"Maybe it does have those kind of powers," Riku suggested, recalling the conversation he'd had with Merlin yesterday, "but I don't trust it enough. Or maybe I'm not its true master or whatever you said."

Sephiroth suddenly rose to his feet, lifting himself out of the water and giving Riku an eyeful of nicely-toned muscle and other things. Riku quickly looked down at his keyblade and fought back a heavy blush as Sephiroth climbed out of the pool in front of him. The sound of countless tiny water droplets hitting the stone trailed after the man as he walked to a bench to retrieve a blanket-sized rag that hardly passed as a towel.

"I've heard many stories about the keyblade these past nine years from my master," Sephiroth commented casually from behind Riku.

"Your master?" the boy asked, risking a glance at the man behind him, who was tying the rag around his waist and flicking his wing dry.

Sephiroth hardly hesitated, his voice a soft bite. "A kid like you wouldn't understand."

"Try me," Riku quipped back, keeping his gaze focused on the man's face.

Sephiroth glanced down at him, a heavy frown settling across his lips. "So young and you already have such an attitude," he remarked as he lifted his arms to let his long hair down, gathering it all in one hand and bringing it over his shoulder so that it lay in front of him.

"I want to understand," Riku pointed out, "so tell me."

As the man ran his fingers through his perfect hair to untangle it, he slowly closed the distance between himself and Riku, his green eyes carefully scrutinizing the boy. He came to a stop in front of Riku and elegantly sank into a sitting position next to him, his fingers still working at his own hair as he settled next to the boy.

"Mere words couldn't explain it," Sephiroth said quietly as he stretched his beautiful wing out.

It was an even glossier obsidian now that it was damp, and Riku couldn't help being fascinated by its delicate movements and the way it had such appealing perversion, wickedness… Each and every dark feather twitched as the man straightened the appendage behind him to rest it on the floor. Trailing his gaze from its slick feathers upward, Riku studied how the black underskin melded into the flesh color of Sephiroth's shoulder blade. The skin there looked so soft and sensitive, and the bones in the wing seemed so, well, _fragile_.

"Maybe one day you'll have one of your own, boy."

Riku glanced up in a surprise, realizing he had been staring at the wing so long that Sephiroth had noticed him. The man now had a slightly sardonic smile on his face as he regarded Riku, curling his wing up a little to indicate he had been referring to it in his last statement.

With a frown, Riku muttered, "No thanks."

Sephiroth lowered it back to the floor, pushing his hair behind him as his smile spread. "Come here," he said, gesturing forward with his hand. "Let me try something…"

Green eyes narrowed at the man. Not really sure why he was listening, Riku scooted closer to the older man so that their knees were touching. Up close Sephiroth was even more beautifully sculpted, from the fine details of his face, down to the lines of his body; Riku could definitely tell, as much as he wanted to ignore the fact Sephiroth wasn't wearing anything except the thin ratty towel-rag the public bath provided.

"Hold the keyblade out," instructed Sephiroth's smooth, alluring voice.

For that one moment, the man reminded Riku of Yami, and it calmed him somehow, and convinced him to listen despite his better judgment. He had no idea what Sephiroth wanted from him, but it couldn't hurt to find out, right?

Cautiously Riku held Oblivion out, one hand wrapped securely around its hilt, and the other around its blade as he presented it to Sephiroth, who nodded a little in encouragement. The man's larger hands slid over Riku's, his cold fingers sending small tremors up the boy's arms as they locked gazes, their green eyes diligently analyzing each other.

"It is said that this weapon links directly to its master's heart," Sephiroth explained in a keen tone, "and that it has the power to read and detect things that otherwise would be unknown. The future, secrets, thoughts… memories."

Only briefly wondering where Sephiroth got his information from, Riku recalled the truth behind the statement and how the keyblade did have some freaky powers like that. More than once it had translated the heartless for Riku and their endless banter about their Master; it also constantly whispered secret things to him too fast for him to really make sense of them, and also warnings, and foreboding messages like "It's too late" and "He's here." Most recently the keyblade had translated Sephiroth's thoughts and emotions to him.

"It read your thoughts…" Riku found himself saying all of a sudden, his gaze lowering to study the intricate detail of Oblivion. "It told me what you were thinking, and what you felt… back when Cloud protected me… and you saw him for the first time…"

When Sephiroth didn't respond at first, Riku lifted his green eyes again to find Sephiroth's deep gaze carefully scrutinizing him. Only when Riku blinked did Sephiroth speak again.

"If that much is true," he said softly, "then perhaps you might be able to understand after all." Then in a much firmer voice he commanded, "Close your eyes."

"Why?" Riku asked, wanting to know what the man was planning before he let his guard down that much.

"So you can concentrate," Sephiroth sighed, suddenly impatient. "Be silent and do it."

Riku scowled, hating when people told him what to do like that, but he closed his eyes anyway and concentrated. Oblivion's mysterious power flowed through him, warming him inside as it usually did. Its whispers were different this time, almost curious at the foreign hands touching it like it wanted to reach into Sephiroth and dissect his power. Because it didn't speak of warnings or terrible things about to happen, Riku opened himself up more to the blade, lowering his guard and allowing its magic to flow freely around him, _into_ him, and this time into Sephiroth as well. The boy sensed the power of the keyblade branch in the older man's direction, and felt his longer fingers tighten around his own, their power connecting and entwining almost harmoniously.

It felt… perfect. Like Riku could do anything if he thought it.

"Let's see where this takes you…" Sephiroth whispered, and even though Riku had his eyes closed, he somehow could still see Sephiroth staring at him, his piercing green eyes and pleased expression a ghostly stranger amongst the keyblade's magic.

The statement broke Riku's concentration a little, his curiosity piqued at its meaning, but it was too late.

Sephiroth suddenly let all of his shields down and _everything_ poured into Riku.

Information, ideas, thoughts, emotions, power, knowledge, and, most of all…

_Memories._

Before he could close himself off, Riku was struck by the violent wave Oblivion delivered to him, and with a bleeding cry, Riku tried to pull away. Sephiroth's hands crushed his to the keyblade and the energy continued to consume his own, overtaking his own defenses even as he tried to raise them again.

Burning tears rolled down his cheeks as he screamed, not because it hurt, but because it _didn't_.

_You're not the only one._

Far away he heard familiar voices as everything began to fade, his muscles giving out as he collapsed forward into Sephiroth's embrace.

_How can you be so sure?_

_Because I love him!_

_Perhaps the love you share will not be enough._

Before the heavy veil of sleep covered Riku completely, he was certain one of the voices had misspoken.

---

"Who's Belle?"

"None of your business," the beast snapped hastily, growling softly at Sora through the bars as he began pacing back and forth.

Sora's smile fell a little at the creature's rude nature, but he brushed it aside and put on a brighter smile, trying again. "I'm sure it'll help to talk about it, Mister," he said, putting on the light tone he usually reserved for talking to stubborn people—cautiously teasing, but openly friendly.

When he heard his own voice fill the dark dungeon, for a moment he was home again; for a moment he wasn't talking to a manlike creature several times his size, there wasn't an indescribable darkness eating away at his soul, and nothing had changed about him. He was happy. Just… Happy Sora.

The beast hesitated at Sora's tone, its cold angry eyes carefully inspecting him through the bars. A minute or two of silence passed between them as they stared at each other, Sora smiling and the beast watching, neither of them moving except to blink. And whether it was Sora's friendly smile, his tone of voice, or just his natural innocence that won the beast over, it didn't matter. Sora had won this small battle.

As the beast settled himself against the wall, the boy moved even closer to the cell, smile even brighter.

"Is she pretty?"

The beast gazed at Sora before turning his eyes to stare at his clawed hands, mouth forming a serious frown.

"Beautiful," the beast replied, his deep voice heavy with emotion.

Sora knew that tone very well.

"You love her, don't you?" he asked as he calmly settled onto the floor in front of the barred door, blue eyes wide with curiosity.

"She was the first person, stranger, who was kind to me," the beast said, lost within whatever he was seeing in his mind's eye. "They see me, and I'm a monster. She sees me and… I'm me."

Sora couldn't help the fond smile that crossed his face. "I admit I was scared of you at first, but…it's because I don't understand. Maybe if we get to know each other?"

"I don't want to talk about myself," the beast snapped, suddenly defensive. Then, as though remembering his manners and realizing Sora was only trying to be friendly, he muttered, "I'm not interesting."

Belle, whoever she was to him, had obviously had a great impact on the beast. Somehow Sora could tell that the beast hadn't always been so cautious about how he said things. Probably before Belle came into his life the beast had been rude and stubborn, but now… he seemed almost tamed. Obviously he was upset, which was understandable because of his current situation; but even now Belle's influence on the beast was strong.

It was almost… cute.

And as much as the beast wanted to keep from talking, Sora knew he was lying. Any idiot could tell the guy had a captivating story behind him, since he was a beast and all.

So Sora snorted in response. "Right, sure. If you don't want to talk, that's fine," he said with a small laugh. "I'll just talk about me then. I'm good at that."

"Fine," was the beast's curt reply.

However, now that Sora was suddenly free to talk about whatever he wanted, after so long of keeping it to himself because there was no one he really trusted to talk to, not even Id, he didn't really know where to start. The beast probably wouldn't appreciate his rambling about Destiny Islands or anything, so Sora decided to discuss what was foremost in his mind at the moment, after the short talk about Belle.

"It hurts to love, doesn't it?" Sora sighed, slouching forward as he brought his knees up, resting his head in his arms. He didn't have to look up to know the beast was staring at him. "When the one you love is taken from you… or when you hurt them… It's the worst feeling in the world."

"Yes."

Sora glanced up at the beast's voice, managing a sympathetic smile. "Do you ever wish you could just go back and change your stupid mistakes?" he asked. "Like… You say what you want to fix, and it happens. I wish I could change so many things back to the way they used to be…."

"All the time," the beast growled softly. "I wouldn't look like this if I had that power. If I could go back and…"

"Change things?" Sora asked with a smile. "I wish the heartless never existed, and that I hadn't left home… I wish I'd never trusted Yami, or let Riku go… I wish I was at home in bed, just talking with Riku like old times…"

"But if I had never become a beast, I would have never met Belle," he said.

Sora frowned, thinking about that for a moment.

What would have changed in his life if the heartless had never come? If he and Riku never wanted to leave the island?

"Hey, um, Mister," Sora said cautiously, not really sure what to call the beast because he hadn't been told a name yet. "Where is she? This Belle…"

"I followed her here," the beast growled, but not at the boy. "She was taken from me, so I followed."

"How?" Sora asked, suddenly curious.

"My heart," was the beast's response, his ears drooping a little as he pressed a paw to his chest.

His heart? The beast had used his heart to travel through the paths between worlds to get here? Was that possible?

"Wow," Sora breathed, smiling innocently. "You must really love her. I'm sure she loves you too."

But the beast didn't think so obviously. Eyes narrowing, he pulled his lips back. "What would you know about it? She can't possibly…"

"Well, you made it here all the way from your world without external powers or a gummi ship, just by using your heart… so that has to tell you something right there," Sora pointed out with a friendly laugh. "Any idea where she is now?"

"I can feel her," the beast said, calming a little because of Sora's kindness. "She's close."

Brow furrowing, Sora leaned forward, interested. "You mean this girl named Belle is here? In the castle?"

But if that was true… Why hadn't Sora seen her already?

"She's here," the beast confirmed in a tone rough with frustration. "If only I wasn't stuck here, I'd—"

But the beast never finish his statement; a smooth, familiar voice cut him off.

"You would track down the one who took her and punish him, yes?" the newcomer said with an amused curl of his lips.

"Yami!" Sora hissed in surprise as the older boy strode right up to him.

Even though Yami had his trademark expression on, Sora could sense something off about him, like he was very displeased about Sora leaving his room and ending up here.

All of a sudden the beast howled, throwing himself at the cell door, reaching his claws through the bars to tear at Yami, who stood just outside his reach. Yami merely regarded the beast with an calm raising of one eyebrow.

"Do mind your manners," he said the beast before frowning down at Sora. Without a word he swooped down and snatched Sora's arm up, dragging the boy to his feet and away from the prison cell.

"Hey, let me go!" the boy cried as he tried to tug himself free. "Get your hands off me, Yami!"

Yami only muttered a, "Be silent," as he pulled Sora along behind him, his grip firmly tightened around the boy's wrist.

Behind them the beast screamed and rattled the cell door, his heavy feet shuffling against the dungeon floor as he paced frantically, trying, looking for a way out. Yami paid no heed to his violent cries, dragging away the second stranger that had ever befriended the misunderstood monster.

Sora screamed at Yami the entire way, struggling against the older boy's grasp and repeatedly growling at him to release him, to no avail. The fingers around his wrist stung and he hated it, Yami's touch, and the way his skin seemed to crawl away from it, and his nerves and muscles trembled like Yami's hold was fire or poison or something so incredibly dirty he couldn't _stand_ being near it.

That was the hand that had held _his_ Riku.

When Yami burst into Sora's dark bedroom, Sora was roughly thrown onto his own bed, his anti-Rikus scattering to make room for him and then sliding closer to his body to comfort him when they sensed his anger and frustration. Ignoring their soft _kyu_s of worry, Sora leapt back to his feet, blue eyes hard with rage as he roughly shoved Yami away from him.

"You asshole!! What the hell was all of that for?!" he demanded, grabbing onto the older boy's shirt when Yami made no sign of fighting back.

As yellow eyes merely regarded the fuming Sora, a slow smile curved onto those wicked lips. That _smile_… Ohh, how Sora hated that smile. How _dare_ that bastard show that smile now!

**_Slap!_**

Sora's hand flew clean across Yami's cheek, turning the boy's head with the force of the blow.

Not even bothering to assess Yami's reaction, Sora leaned close to him and darkly hissed, "Don't you _ever_ touch me again."

Slowly Yami turned his face back to Sora's, his cheek a fresh shade of red and eyes dangerously narrowed. "Then please refrain from wandering into dangerous places."

"And why?" Sora asked, his voice cracking with suppressed anger. "Because you don't want me befriending your enemies? Because you don't want me to find your secrets?"

The other boy's lips drew into an obstinate frown and he said nothing.

With derisive curiosity, Sora asked, "Hey Yami… Where's Belle? Why do you need her?"

Ruthless blue eyes challenged Yami to lie, to make up an excuse or at least reprimand him. But Yami's gaze was calm, shaded with mystery as always, and he did not resist Sora's fighting spirit. Just what did it take to make this kid to fight back?

Softly growling at Yami's reticence, Sora released the boy's shirt and stepped back, raking a hand through his spiky hair before turning away.

"Just get out. I don't want to see you."

"As you wish," Yami replied. "But before I go…"

"_What_?" Sora snapped impatiently, rubbing at his forehead as if to ease the insistent darkness around him.

"I have a present for you."

Sora slowly turned back to Yami, eyes cautiously studying the other boy.

With a simple stretch of his hand, Yami pulled a familiar-looking object out of the shadows around them. Its sleek form shimmered slightly as the boy twisted it to present it to Sora. Even though its red and black design was one Sora had never seen, it was obvious what it was. The hilt, the blade, the keyway…

It was a keyblade.

"It has the power to unlock hearts," Yami explained softly before easily tossing it onto Sora's bed.

The anti-Rikus crawled around it, curious, and Sora had the sudden urge to join them in their childlike study. Before Sora could ask about this strange gift and where it had come from, Yami was already spinning on his foot and out the door, his long white hair flowing behind him with a certain flair that reminded Sora of someone he knew very well.

As he settled amongst his loving heartless Rikus and he traced his fingers along his new keyblade's fine details, Sora forgot all about why he had been mad.

Deep in the dungeon below, the beast was still crying for his beauty.

---

When Riku woke he was surprised to find himself curled up in a plush chair in a warm room, wherever he was. The chair was comfortable beyond reasoning, and if Riku weren't so confused he'd have liked to rest there for a few hours, especially after the whole coliseum deal. Though, he did find it rather strange he was wearing different clothes—some fancy high-neck black shirt that looked like something a noble from one of the main islands would wear to a dinner party, finely-knitted frogs and all, along with a pair of ridiculously-tight black pants out of some leather he didn't even want to guess at. He had no idea why he wasn't wearing shoes either.

And for some reason whenever he tried to move his head to look around, his eyes stayed firmly in place at the book he held in his hands. His body refused to listen to him.

Hadn't he been at the coliseum, talking to Sephiroth…? Where the hell was he now? And… Why was he reading?

No, wait, why _couldn't_ he read?

His eyes were staring at the pages but not moving, slowly blinking on their own like they would when he was too lost in thought to even concentrate on reading. Then again, there were a lot of things wrong with this scenario. There was a rising sense of anxiety filling him, but Riku had no reason to be anxious, and his body felt like it couldn't sit still, even though it was, even though he actually _did_ want to move to make sure his muscles still worked.

It was like he wasn't _him_.

_Where is he?_ he wondered, but it wasn't his own thought. It flowed right into his mind like it were his own. _He should be here by now…_

"Sephiroth."

Riku's body slightly jumped at the deep voice suddenly cutting through his/not his thoughts, his heart quickening as though he were surprised. Despite his body's betrayal, Riku felt himself put on a calm façade, though he didn't want to.

"Is it time?" his mouth asked the newcomer, and that was when he realized what was happening.

The new man had spoken to Sephiroth, not Riku. Riku wasn't moving his body, Sephiroth was. In all actuality, it seemed Riku _was_ Sephiroth, in his body and mind, feeling his emotions as if they were his own. He was, basically, a hidden witness. This was Sephiroth's memory, and Riku could do nothing but watch.

Jeez, the keyblade had done this? Brought him completely inside of Sephiroth's memories? If he could have, Riku would have shuddered as he imagined just what else his magical weapon could do.

…and Sephiroth must have been really rich to be able to afford this kind of attire…

The silver-haired man lifted his head and Riku felt his eyes sharply focus on and narrow at the man who had spoken to him.

It was Riku's turn to be surprised at the newcomer's presence.

There stood a man who easily could have been Yami's older brother. Hell, if Riku hadn't known he was some-odd years in the past in Sephiroth's memories, he would have even thought the man _was_ Yami one or two decades older. The long white hair, regal stature, yellow eyes and fine face… Even the attire.

As Riku wondered who this person could be, he recalled the conversation Leon, Cloud, and Cid had had back at Traverse Town after Leon had caught Yami and Riku in the bedroom. Leon had mentioned that Yami looked like a young Ansem, and Ansem was the former leader of Hollow Bastion, the man who had written the reports about the heartless that Riku was searching for on his odyssey.

This Yami look-alike was Ansem, and this place must be Hollow Bastion before Maleficent had taken over. Indeed, now that Sephiroth had raised his head, Riku recognized the intricate architecture of the room; he didn't know this room specifically, but it had the same feel as the ones in that castle, this castle.

"Yes, it is time," Ansem said, his voice a deep, familiar caress to the ears.

Sephiroth seemed to love his voice as well, his pulse quickening even more as he set his book down and rose to his feet to approach Ansem. "You mean… _that_ experiment?" Sephiroth asked slowly, his voice young and excited, but also hesitant about something. "But Cloud won't be willing…"

Ansem slowly turned and gestured for Riku/Seph to follow and their body did so willingly. Whatever experiment it was they were talking about, Sephiroth was anxious to participate. The part about Cloud struck a chord of worry deep within Riku, however.

After all, Sephiroth had wanted him to see this precise memory. Something vital was going to happen.

"Yes, I know," Ansem said softly as they turned into a corridor, Sephiroth's eyes watching the way the man's long, royal robe swept behind him. Ansem was also dressed richly, but like Sephiroth he was wearing his clothes informally, with his robe unbuttoned and high-necked shirt undone a few frogs to reveal the lines of his clavicles.

These two were obviously familiar with each other—at least enough to be casual.

As they walked in stride down the long hallway and passed a large, perfectly polished mirror, Sephiroth's head turned to glance at it. For that instant as they walked past, Riku saw himself. Well, Sephiroth.

Leon and Cloud hadn't been kidding when they always stared at Riku, silently comparing him to Sephiroth. At this memory, the silver-haired man looked barely older than the current Riku, maybe sixteen instead of Riku's fifteen years. Their piercing green eyes, growing silver hair, and developing physique, their childhood face fading into fair cheekbones, full lips, and fine eyebrows. And with Sephiroth's feelings and thoughts flowing into his, Riku felt like it _was_ him.

If it weren't for Sephiroth controlling their body, and the boy's richly-tailored clothes, Riku could have easily mistaken this young man as himself.

Leon and Sephiroth were the same age, and in the present world they were about twenty-five… And here Sephiroth was about sixteen.

Riku was nine years in the past.

Suddenly he felt a sick dread, knowing exactly what was going to come, especially after the mention of Cloud not being 'willing' in the experiment that was about to take place.

"I came up with a solution," Ansem said, continuing from where he left off. Without hesitating the man flicked his wrist up as he spoke; between his fore and middle finger rested a small vial, a soft orange liquid sloshing within its glass prison. "Aphrodisiac," he said in a precise voice. "A potent kind. If he drinks this, even if his mind resists you, his body will not."

As everything began to sink into place in Riku's mind, he could only think of two words for his predicament.

_Oh **shit**._

---

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There's part two, hehe. I had planned for this chapter to be only two parts total, but as I was writing this, it started getting really long and I didn't want to cut anything because I felt it was all important. Sooo… All the other meaty stuff in the chapter has to wait until the **third part**!

Don't worry though, because it's all planned out and ready to write, so I'll try to finish it soon! Sorry and thank you for your patience. T-T Again. Really! The third part will come soon!!!

Review and let me know what you think about this part though! :D

**Note: **_Like what you just read? Please join Uzumaki's yahoo group where you get updates on chapter progress, contests, and more!_


	28. Ch 18: For His Beloved part three

_Author Notes:_

Happy belated birthday to me! Argh, I'm so _sorry_ this part took longer than I said it was going to. The reason why it's late will become obvious as you start to read it. This part is TWICE AS LONG as usual, so it's extremely long... About halfway through, at the length where I usually end my chapters, **_I've put an intermission_**... so you can treat this as two chapters and come back and read the second half later, or you can treat it as one hellishly long chapter. Up to you.

Finally, here's the last part to chapter 18! Oh, and, um... Best way to describe this chapter is **fragmented**. There were dozens of little scenes and points I had to cover, and so I had to write them creatively... in order to cover them all. So this chapter is, well, fragmented.

No thanks to this new quickedit thingy, for making me have to edit my work AFTER I upload it. ARGH. Quickedit my _**ass**. _They even censor the website name so I can't curse at them. If you want to see this chapter in its pretty format, check it out at my site.

**WARNING**: You've all come this far and haven't complained. If non-con squicks you, don't say I didn't warn you.

_A look ahead:_

He would walk to the end of time, overcome any obstacle, and sacrifice any life, including his own. He would defy destiny herself... All for his beloved.

* * *

**_Chapter Eighteen: For His Beloved _**_– part three****_

-o-o-o-o-o-

_Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit, oh **fuck** please don't let what I think is going to happen happen. Shit shit shit!!!_

Riku could only watch, trapped in Sephiroth's mind and body, as he followed the man named Ansem down the unfamiliar Hollow Bastion corridor. A terrible kind of anticipation swirled inside of Sephiroth, an anticipation so _real_ it made even Riku anxious through all of his dread. The thoughts running through the boy's head weren't helping calm Riku's nerves either; he couldn't block out the eager images Sephiroth had, images of a smiling blonde boy, of fantasies so honest and sinful they scared Riku.

How could anyone plan something as evil as this? Sephiroth had told Riku that he saw much of himself in the boy, but as Riku watched helplessly behind Sephiroth's eyes in this memory, he couldn't help thinking the two of them were nothing alike. Riku would _never_...

_Why_ did Sephiroth want him to see this memory?

"We are almost there."

Sephiroth glanced up at Ansem's back as the man spoke. "Yes."

"There is still time, if you do not want to do this."

A tinge of fear struck the boy, and Riku felt Sephiroth's excitement waver a fraction. "I want to do this," he insisted, mostly to himself.

"This experiment could result in death, or a fate far worse than it," Ansem said calmly as his footsteps slowed, still not turning to face the boy behind him.

"I know."

"And if it fails..." Ansem continued, "...or nothing happens, you are willing to live the rest of your life hated by the one you love?"

Sephiroth was quiet for a moment, his hands clenching together at his sides as he followed close behind the older man. The fear was growing within him, but so was his determination. "Yes... I'm willing. Just for this chance..."

"Because you love him," Ansem said, and Riku couldn't tell if that was mockery in his tone. "Others would not call this an act of love. Destroying his innocence, his life, just for our selfish curiosity."

"I've already thought about all that," Sephiroth snapped, his green eyes narrowing on the back of Ansem's head. The fear was still there, however. "Even if he hates me after this... Even if we're both hurt, I won't let him go. No matter what, I'll make it up to him. Everything will be fine."

"How can you be so sure?" Ansem asked smoothly.

Heart wrenching with frightening honesty, Sephiroth hissed, "Because I love him!"

None of this made any sense to Riku, who had heard all those stories about Sephiroth being cruel to Cloud, not being in _love_ with him. But despite what Riku had been told, the feelings that warred within Sephiroth were true. At those four bold words, Riku felt the same helplessness, the same topsy-turviness of the heart that _he_ felt when he thought about Sora.

When your heart is thrown off balance, you know it's true love.

As strange as it seemed, Sephiroth really _did_ love Cloud. Riku had no idea how that had come to be, or what about the blonde boy fascinated Sephiroth so much, but it was true.

Ansem slowly came to a stop, turning his face to regard Sephiroth with a twisted smile of amusement. "Perhaps the love you share will not be enough," he said steadily as the boy paused at his side, shooting him a glare. But then, with a tranquil sigh as he slipped an arm around the boy's shoulders, Ansem began walking again, his smile kind and assuring. "But for the sake of us all, let us hope you _are_ successful."

Riku studied their interaction, completely baffled. All of this was just so weird!

This man named Ansem was so much like Yami, yet... _not_.

Maybe... Maybe Leon and the others had been right, and Yami was Ansem's illegitimate child or something. Their unique physical traits, manner of speaking, wardrobe—they were so similar. Though, that kind of theory seemed so... anticlimactic.

Also, kid Sephiroth seemed nothing like the current Sephiroth that Riku had met at the coliseum. But then again, this was sixteen-year-old Sephiroth, the one untainted by darkness, the one not hiding behind mask after mask to hide what he was feeling. No, the only mask he seemed to be wearing was the one that portrayed him as a heartless bully, not a teenager with more than a crush. Despite what Leon and Cloud had told Riku about Sephiroth being such a bully to Cloud, all Riku saw was a poor kid in love. Riku had no doubt Leon and Cloud had been telling the truth, but now he realized they hadn't been seeing the whole picture.

But why had Sephiroth picked on Cloud if he _loved_ him? Granted, it wasn't uncommon for a boy to pick on someone they had a crush on, but... This was deeper than just some crush.

Cloud fancied Leon/Squall, and Sephiroth who fancied Cloud was best friends with Squall. Squall supposedly suffered through a tragic event when he was young and closed himself off to everyone except a select few, which Sephiroth had been a part of. Sephiroth obviously cared about Squall and would never do anything to hurt him... but he probably didn't like the fact that Squall was the center of Cloud's attention, considering _he_ liked Cloud.

Maybe all that bullying Sephiroth had put Cloud through was to keep the blonde away from Squall.

That...

That was almost like what Riku had done!

Sora had seemed to like Kairi, and Riku, who had been scared of losing Sora to Kairi, had teased the boy and pretended to like _Kairi_ to discourage Sora from getting to close to her. Yeah, there were key differences, but the similarities were there too. But Squall didn't like Cloud back, unlike Kairi who had liked Sora, so Sephiroth was in safer position there... However, because he was bullying Cloud so much, he risked Cloud hating him, unlike Riku who'd still had Sora's affections no matter what he did.

Maybe Sephiroth was going to do this terrible crime to Cloud because he had given up and this was the only way he'd ever get this close to him.

Well, maybe... but it seemed so cruel. So _final_...

There was also the possibility he had other reasons for wanting to do this to Cloud. He _was_ Cloud's Gemini, it seemed. Perhaps he, like Yami, wanted to see what happened when two Gemini became one, except, unlike Yami and Riku, Cloud and Sephiroth were an actual Gemini pairing.

It seemed that Riku was actually going to find out whatever Yami sought from this experiment.

But... Wait a sec.

This was nine years in the past. This experiment had already taken place! This must be whatever happened to Cloud and Sephiroth before Hollow Bastion was invaded with heartless!

Shit. Oh shit...

This wasn't just a cruel setup for Sephiroth to get into Cloud's pants. This was... This was **it**. The answers to all of Cloud's pain.

And Riku was going to witness it firsthand, from the one who _did_ it to Cloud. No... **He** was going to do it to Cloud. He could see, hear, _feel_ everything Sephiroth could.

He was going to rape Cloud.

"Good afternoon, Cloud," Ansem suddenly greeted with a calm smile.

His voice broke Riku out of his thoughts. He watched helplessly as Sephiroth focused on a small boy standing there at the end of the hallway. Innocent blue eyes met Sephiroth's and the boy gave them a smile that could rival even the most radiant smiles of Sora's. Cloud was young... _Very_ young. And so happy... From his large smiling eyes, soft spiky hair, and twiggy body evident under all those clothes, he looked so much like Sora or Tidus. Cloud couldn't have been older than thirteen here.

Only thirteen...

"Good afternoon, Lord Ansem," Cloud said in a small, polite voice, his blue eyes looking from Ansem to Sephiroth. The boy's smile wavered a little, but kept its friendliness. "Hi, Seph..."

A pleased smirk lazily spread across Sephiroth's lips, and Riku could do nothing.

-o-o-o-o-o-

_Help us_...

A slow, prickling shiver ran up Sora's sleeping arm. It lay sprawled out, his fingers wrapped firmly around his humming keyblade. Strange whispers floated to him from the darkness, almost like soothing lullabies to his tired shell as he lay unmoving in the center of his large bed. He hadn't even stirred since he had gotten his new weapon, though undoubtedly a few hours had passed since then. They were mere ghosts in his memory, swirling somewhere in his mind with the soft pleas the keyblade kept delivering. Only the shifting of his anti-Rikus against him and the steady flow of despondent murmurs from the mysterious weapon told him that time was even still passing.

He could feel its eager power irritating his own, as though it needed, _wanted_ to be used.

A keyblade that unlocked hearts...

As mesmerized as he was by its eerie beauty and untapped magic, Sora had no intention of using it.

Breathing deeply, he fell into intense concentration, the keyblade's power pulsing in time with the beat of his heart, much like the darkness constantly surrounding him in this room. How he wished it could comfort him as much as he knew Riku's weapon did for him, but... This keyblade was different. It didn't feel natural. The icy skin of it burned his fingers the longer he grasped it, its sleek form humming dangerously to him, its whispers so sad and lacking hope... Its captivating power curled around him, tempting him to give himself fully to it, begging him to unravel its secrets.

He didn't like it. It felt so _wrong_. His heart ached, guarding itself from its power, almost afraid of touching the foul weapon. It was a keyblade, yes, but he didn't want it. Something about it wrenched at his worry and prickled his sadness, almost like this blade had been forged from pain and tears...

Slowly his fingers loosened around it, letting it settle harmlessly on the mattress. He pulled his arm back to himself, feeling the warm tingling as blood rushed to awaken his sleeping limb. Almost immediately the forlorn whispers fell silent and the keyblade's power dissipated, leaving him feeling hollow but safe.

Then again, these days his heart was always hollow.

A few of his heartless sensed his movement and glanced up, their yellow eyes studying his laying figure with a gleam of interest. Cold arms slipped around him as he sluggishly rolled onto his side. The embrace from behind was familiar to him now and he settled comfortably against it, welcoming the anti-Riku's body as it pressed close to his back. Ahead of him was another heartless, laying in a similar position to his own; its cheek rested against the sheets and its hair draped prettily over its face, a small tuft caught in the corner of its mouth. Its yellow eyes were watching him with a lazy expression so human Sora was intrigued by it.

The heartless really was a perfect reflection of Riku, never mind the clothes and dull heartless colors. Despite its black skin and luminescent eyes, it looked so much like him... From the shape of his cheeks which spoke so clearly of youth shedding into maturity, to the smooth silk of his layered hair and long lashes. To his finely-shaped eyebrows and perfect chin, strong jaw and powerful shoulders. To his elegant hands, slender waist, and muscles toned from hours of play fighting under the island sun.

To the unique curve of his soft, soft lips.

Blue eyes slightly widened as they studied the familiar smile pulled across lips that looked like the ones Sora had been kissed by countless times.

The heartless... was smiling? How...? They never showed that kind of emotion around him.

But... No one else could capture Riku's smile so perfectly like this. So life-like, so _Riku_...

Sora's lashes fluttered as he suddenly squinted back the lonely tears now clouding his blue gaze. No matter how hard he tried to forget what had happened, or how much he wished he could hate Riku for what he had done to ruin their perfect love, he just couldn't.

Sora missed him _so much_...

So much it hurt to live sometimes, so much it tore at his hollow heart and rendered him breathless and confused. Oh, what he would give just to be held by those warm arms again, or curled under a blanket with him, their toes touching and playing... to have their hands wrapped together, and his head tucked under Riku's chin and feeling his steady heartbeat.

But Riku.... Riku wasn't coming back just yet. He was taking too long...

The smile widened on those lips Sora knew so well, and before long the boy was reaching a trembling hand out. Cautiously he touched his fingertips to the Riku's cheek, almost wincing at its icy skin. But then, as his tears slipped free and wet the sheet below, he slid his fingers into the velvety softness of the creature's hair, trailing through to the ends before repeating.

So soft, just like Riku's pretty hair...

The anti-Riku slipped its eyes closed and turned its cheek into Sora's hand, rubbing almost lovingly into the boy's warm palm. A soft sigh escaped its lips, forming a content _Kyuu_... Its smile spread and Sora's breath caught in his throat, suddenly taken by its almost human actions. The heartless looked almost... _alive_.

Tears slowing their descent down his cheeks, Sora closed his eyes and lost himself within the sensations around him. He could feel the Riku pressed so sinfully close behind him, and the Riku in front of him tenderly push its face into his hand as though seeking more affection from him. Despite their frigid bodies around him, with his eyes closed the anti-Rikus seemed to actually _be_ Riku. The same hard chest laying flush against his back, the same smooth skin and hair brushing against his fingertips.

For that one moment, they _were_ Riku.

Easing Riku's face closer to his, Sora released a calm breath and relaxed, reaching his other hand up to bury within the other boy's fine hair. His mouth pressed to Riku's icy smile, melting into the familiar softness of his delicious lips. It felt so right, so natural.

So Riku...

Briefly pulling away, Sora slid his hands to cup Riku's head, murmuring his love's name softly before returning his lips to his. Gently he pushed, willing Riku's mouth to open for him, and it did with an almost childish hesitation. Curling his fingers back into Riku's hair, Sora deepened the kiss with a soft moan of anticipation, welcoming that cold mouth with his tongue.

Gods, he was so _delicious_, like spicy vanilla ice cream with the darkest chocolate poured all over it, like the burning sugariness of a ripe pink apple or the honey-like tang of that one paopu fruit, like love and desire and sweet, sweet sin all rolled into one knee-weakening mouthful of heaven. This was what his Riku tasted like. This was perfection.

Sora delved deeper into his mouth, desperate for more, ravaging the wet silkiness of Riku's lips and tongue and – oh, _fuck_, it felt so good to kiss him again! Hands released Riku's hair to slide urgently under his shirt, palms skimming adoringly over the familiar ridges of Riku's firm muscles, their mouths still locked in a frenzied kiss, lips sucking and tongues teasing. Sora couldn't help the pleasured sighs that escaped him as Riku began to respond to him, icy fingers slipping over his own skin as he explored Riku's cold body.

Behind him he could feel another Riku shifting, curious at the duo's impassioned kiss, but Sora wanted this Riku to himself. Without breaking their kiss, Sora pulled away from the body behind him, rolling over on top of Riku, eyes still squeezed shut as he devoured the boy's mouth. He settled into a daring straddle, groaning aloud at the feeling of power. Riku shifted under him and Sora hissed as his body rubbed deliciously against him.

"R-Riku..."

The other Rikus were now moving closer around the pair, and Sora felt their cold fingers reaching towards him. He ignored their presence and focused on the Riku beneath him, moving in for another satisfying kiss, his hips pushing with crumbling patience against the willing body beneath him.

It felt so damn _good_ but...

It wasn't enough. He needed more, he needed... He needed Riku. **Now**.

Jerking the shirt over the boy's head and letting it dissolve into the darkness, Sora ran his hands over Riku's chest and reveled in its perfect sculpture, rocking his body more quickly against Riku, eager, needy...

Butterfly kisses and tentative touches were beginning to trail up his own body, the other Rikus mimicking their master's actions, curious and eager to please. Sora gasped as their hands skimmed under his clothes and their lips fastened on what bare skin they could find, kiss by kiss by kiss, caress by caress, wanting as much of his warmth as they could get.

He ground into Riku below him, fingers desperately digging into the other boy's shoulders, frustrated tears slipping under his strained eyelids, still closed over blue eyes. A familiar sharp heat spread throughout his body and he thrust downward again, loving the exciting friction, drowning in the sensation it and the other Rikus were giving him, their hands traveling deeper into his clothes to please him.

_Sora. What are you doing?_

Sora cried aloud as the voice entered his mind, breaking the spell and startling him enough to snap his eyes open. All the Rikus around him regarded him with curious yellow eyes.

_Those are heartless._

Heartless.

Blue eyes focused on the black form beneath him.

H-He... With heartless...?!

With a strangled cry Sora pushed himself off the anti-Riku and scooted off the mattress. The crash to the floor didn't stop him from dragging himself away from the bed and the heartless, settling himself in the brightest corner in the dark room, curling up as he hugged himself, shuddering and feeling so unutterably dirty. His arousal throbbed painfully between his legs but he couldn't bear to think about it or what he had almost just done.

_They're heartless, Sora. Not Riku,_ Id's voice said softly.

"U-Ugh...!!"

Sora heaved dryly into his hands, his stomach churning with ultimate disgust. Now that he was away from them, the aftertaste of dirt and bitter milk coated his tongue from kissing the heartless, and where their hands had been on him his skin burned with their icy imprints, like they were still touching him...

Brushing Id's presence from his mind, Sora weakly clambered to his feet and, without even bothering to answer his anti-Riku's worried cries, he raced from the room and away from the laughing darkness in his heart.

-o-o-o-o-o-

The room they passed into was unlike any of the others Riku had seen during his stay in Hollow Bastion.

Walls were decorated ceiling to floor with detailed sketches of almost everything, from dissected animals to intricate crystals labeled and studied, and stationed around the room were different tables, some with mysterious machine-like things and others with stacks upon stacks of tomes and manuscripts. Specimen jars, pearly skeletons, and small rock structures dotted the shelves around the good sized room. Off to the side, the dark-tiled floor dropped into a tiny carpeted alcove filled with large pillows and one or two blankets, and more than one shelf of books; the wall nearest the alcove looked like a preparation station or small kitchen almost.

Ansem led the boys towards this last area of the laboratory, but Sephiroth and Cloud seemed to be already familiar with the room because they immediately headed towards the alcove as Ansem moved behind the small counter of the kitchenette to prepare drinks.

The boys must have come here often—the place sure did look lived in, pillows worn and blankets wrinkled, with open books laying scattered on the floor. Riku remembered Leon telling him that Cloud had been some sort of apprentice to Ansem, or so Cloud had told him during Riku and Sora's absence in Traverse Town. That certainly seemed to be the case here.

Riku wanted to stay and look around the room more, or at least watch Ansem make drinks, but Sephiroth casually settled down in a pillowed corner of the alcove, sinking into the plush material as he trained his sharp eyes on young Cloud who seated himself not too far away, tugging his boots off with childish grace. When he was done and his feet were as bare as Sephiroth and Ansem's, Cloud caught the look Sephiroth was giving him, his blue eyes widening for an instant before a friendly smile replaced the embarrassment. A smirk found its way to Sephiroth's lips, and Riku felt the strong emotions swirling inside of him again. Anticipation and fear, guilt and happiness... Each feeling was Riku's own, so powerful and real he felt like he was actually Sephiroth and not just a witness.

The two boys didn't wait long in silence, Cloud avoiding Sephiroth's intent gaze and smiling almost nervously to himself. A delicious aroma wafted towards them in the cool air from the kitchenette and Cloud's large eyes lit with obvious delight at the certain smell.

Cinnamon.

"I really love cinnamon!" the boy stated pleasantly as he cast a quick glance around the alcove before finally meeting the other boy's eyes again.

They exchanged tense smiles again, Sephiroth's spreading with secret enthusiasm as Cloud looked away again. Riku watched as Sephiroth's eyes rose to acknowledge Ansem's entrance, two large mugs clasped in the older man's hands. He stopped by Cloud first, reaching the right mug out to him, the steam like a fleeing ghost as it drifted out and dissipated in the cool air.

As the young boy gave Ansem a bright smile and took the mug, Riku saw Ansem exchange pointed looks with Sephiroth.

_Did he do it...?_ Riku felt Sephiroth wonder.

Almost as if in answer, Ansem nodded with purpose as he handed Sephiroth his own mug. The feel of cold glass slipped into his hand with the warm mug and Sephiroth glanced down to see what the older man had given him. It was a small vial... with just a tiny drop of poisonous orange liquid left.

A heavy sense of finality settled over Sephiroth as he raised his eyes again. Cloud was chugging down his warm drink without thought.

"Is it good Cloud?" Sephiroth asked softly, voice deep with the knowledge of what was about to happen.

The blonde head nodded eagerly, lips spread into a content smile over the rim of his drink, and at the response, Sephiroth's fingers tightened around the vial with what could only be impatience as he continued to watch the blonde.

_Aphrodisiac_, Ansem had said earlier. _A potent kind_.

There was little guessing as to where Ansem had slipped his poison.

Riku watched with growing dread as Cloud drained his large mug of the hot drink that smelled so sharply of cinnamon. He pulled his lips away from the porcelain with a blissful sigh, beaming up at Ansem, who returned the look with a warm smile.

"It was really good today!" he said, a happy little smile on his face as he set his cup down. He didn't seem to notice how intently the other two men were watching him, or that Sephiroth hadn't even taken a sip of his own drink. Blonde hair shifting as Cloud raised his large blue eyes to Ansem again, he asked, "So what are we doing today?"

"A new experiment," Ansem replied darkly as he moved back to the entrance of the alcove, gracefully dropping to his knees before leaning back to rest against the pillows there. Riku took notice of Ansem's collected manner, how he calmly folded his hands in his lap as he turned his amber eyes toward Cloud and Sephiroth again.

"Oh, really? What over?" Cloud asked, totally oblivious to the warm drug coursing through his young body...

The older man was smiling at Cloud. "What happens when two Gemini become one," Ansem said.

Cloud's smile fell.

That was it.

As a final sense of inevitability settled over Sephiroth, Riku realized there was no turning back now. Cloud was finally beginning to catch on.

"Gemini...?" Cloud whispered, fear growing in his innocent eyes. "But I thought..." No doubt he was confused. No doubt he was beginning to feel a little weird because of the drug taking effect... Riku wasn't sure how long these kind of things took, but... He was sure Ansem knew his work.

"You thought correctly, Cloud," Ansem continued calmly, his smile spreading with fake kindness. "I have mentioned more than once that you are a part of a Gemini pairing," he said pointedly, slowly, intently watching the boy. "I just failed to add I had also found your Other."

Wide blue eyes cast around the small alcove, taking in Sephiroth's predatory stare and Ansem's suddenly serious face with rising fear. "W-Who...?" he gasped softly, a little breathless. Panicked eyes met Sephiroth's then, his voice so small as he repeated his question. "Who..."

But this time he seemed to realize just who.

"When Sephiroth found out, he immediately volunteered for this experiment," Ansem explained gently.

Cloud never took his eyes from Sephiroth. A delicate blush was beginning to paint his cheeks, his lips parted in an attempt to regulate his suddenly erratic breathing. "What did you do to me...?" he asked, fearfully drawing his arms around himself. "What..."

Sephiroth's heart tore, hearing such a scared voice...

"I needed a Gemini pairing, so I had to postpone this research until I had one..." Ansem continued, a sort of ironic smirk curving his lips. "But now I have you two." Yellow eyes narrowed on Sephiroth's, gleaming with dark promise. "All that is left is for you to become one."

...but it had to be done.

_He's just a kid..._ Riku whispered silently, but his host could not hear him.

As Sephiroth slowly placed his full mug down, the vial also clicking softly against the stone, Cloud flinched and moved backwards, brows drawn angrily though his eyes were filled with fear. Riku watched with helpless, horrified fascination as Sephiroth moved toward the trapped Cloud. The blonde boy, who was desperately trying to struggle to his feet and failing, seemed to know all too well what these men intended to do with him. Numbing limbs giving out on him, Cloud collapsed, body trembling and eyes hard with rage, betrayal... and so much fear.

"It's too late," came Sephiroth's hushed voice as he knelt before the small boy, slipping his hands into his soft hair, ever so gently caressing the boy's hot cheeks with his wrists.

The sharp smell of cinnamon still filled the air.

Tears clouded his blue eyes and Sephiroth looked away from them, something wrenching inside of him in response to Cloud's obvious fright. Riku felt him brush it aside and rebuild his resolve, leaning in without warning to capture Cloud's soft lips. Even under the pleasure-inducing drug's influence, Cloud resisted at first, choking back a gasp against Sephiroth's mouth as the older boy forced his tongue into him. Fingertips ghosted over Cloud's feverish skin, testing, loving, and the small body automatically arched up into the teasing touches.

A soft, powerless whimper was swallowed by their deepening kiss. Though Riku knew exactly what he was experiencing in Sephiroth's place, he couldn't help falling into the moment's rhythm, losing his mind in its succulent heat and the complete dominance he felt in that position. As his host graciously gave into the flood of emotions swirling inside of him, Riku followed, almost becoming Sephiroth, even as his hands were sliding eagerly up Cloud's loose shirt and the forming ridges of his boyish chest, a chest so much like Sora's it was like a dream to touch again.

He was silently reveling in the wrongness of this situation; Riku's excitement **was** Sephiroth's.

Cloud squirmed under the touches worshipping his body, but the friction of his resistance only triggered more pleasure from the drug coursing through his blood, small gasps escaping his red lips as Sephiroth ended their kiss to use his mouth in better places. Their eyes met briefly, accusing blue filling quickly with frustrated tears, hazed over with confused desire.

"Shh, it's okay," Sephiroth kissed into the boy's hair, a ruthlessly gentle gesture. "Stop crying."

Riku could almost feel Ansem's eyes on them as Sephiroth's fingers folded into Cloud's shirt and slowly drew it up the boy's body, taking care in lifting it over his head and sliding his arms out. As the boy shuddered against him, Sephiroth pressed his lips to the warm forehead, tasting the delicate beads of perspiration forming there.

The tears kept flowing, however, despite his tenderness. Even through the fog of pleasure in his blue eyes, hatred burned in their depths, striking a nerve sharply within Sephiroth. The silver-haired boy's lips drew into an unreadable frown, and, ignoring the soft cries coming from Cloud, he dropped the boy's shirt and moved his hands to undo the pants next, fingers sharply yanking at the lace.

"P-Please, Seph.... Don't...."

Green eyes met blue again momentarily and Sephiroth shook his head, long fingers sliding the lace free and pulling the pants open with careless strength. Cloud winced, squeezing his eyes shut, causing more tears to roll down his face. His flushed body shook with stifled sobs as Sephiroth's hands slid down his warm back, cupping over his round butt and squeezing firmly, pulling the boy's slender hips to his own as he rocked forward. He groaned at the sharp pleasure, feeling Cloud's erection hardening against his own through their cloth prisons.

Cloud's smaller body automatically curled into Sephiroth's, the startled gasp tearing from his lips segueing into a high groan of his own, his knees arching up to Sephiroth's arms and toes clenching at the older boy's hips.

More than encouraged by that, Sephiroth slid the pants downward over the sharp angle of Cloud's hips, raising himself briefly to tug the offending article of clothing nearly off; he didn't make it all the way and, impatient, left one pant leg caught on Cloud's ankle. In one quick swoop of his arm, the underwear followed. Sephiroth sat back to remove his own clothes, his fingers expertly slipping the knots free of the clasps on his high-neck shirt, watching Cloud's eyes on himself before lowering his gaze to take in the young boy's slim body.

So much like Sora... Riku couldn't help soaking in the sight, loving every detail of Cloud's small frame, from the way his blonde hair stuck to the sides of his face with sweat, to the feverish blush painted over the skin of his entire body, to his perked little nipples and small waist. Cloud may have been shaking with hatred, with fear and the utmost rage... but his body was betraying him, obviously enjoying the attention it was getting. Sephiroth's eyes raked over all of it, and as he removed his own shirt and began to work at his pants, he could feel Cloud's hooded eyes on him too.

Silver hair spilled over his shoulders as he leaned forward to rid himself of the last of his clothes. He growled softly as his skin brushed against Cloud's, and the boy sucked in a hissing gasp through his clenched teeth in return, both of them pushing forward for more of that delicious friction. Finally kicking his clothes free, Sephiroth scooped down to claim Cloud's lips again, freely moaning into the kiss as the boy curled around him. Palms skimming over firm thighs, Sephiroth pushed the boy's legs apart, guiding them up.

He wanted to say it so badly... But Cloud would take it the wrong way. He wanted to say it... But he couldn't.

"My hands," he half-groaned against the hot mouth, having trouble forming a simple sentence, "my lips... _everything_..." He paused, staring solemnly into Cloud's burning eyes. "They all exist so that I can feel you."

Cloud's eyebrows drew together in denial, his gasps coming too hard for him to reply. Sephiroth's lips curled into a smirk...

And he shoved a finger into Cloud's tight entrance.

There came an uncomfortable cry from the small boy, but he pushed against the finger anyway, blue eyes rolling far back as his eyelids fluttered, a bead of sweat rolling down the bridge of his nose. Sephiroth bit his lip as he pushed another finger in, working a choked scream out of the blonde boy this time.

Such a pretty scream.

"Does it hurt, Cloud?" he asked, eyes gleaming with almost feral desire.

A strained, grunted, "_Yes!_" was the reply, the young boy's eyes squeezed shut and his fingertips carving into Sephiroth's firm arms.

Sephiroth released a shuddery chuckle, forcing another finger in, pushing deep inside of Cloud and stretching him. The blonde openly sobbed, his voice deep with misery. Riku felt Sephiroth's heart clench again, and then melt under the pressure of his need, of their fate...

He slipped his fingers free, letting Cloud relax against him again, the boy's bright blue eyes peeking open to regard him with a medley of emotion so deep it stung to look at.

"Seph... _No_..."

Sephiroth forced his eyes shut, still seeing the hate in Cloud's eyes seared into his mind. His hands firmly gripped the boy's hips and pulled him up. Cloud's chest was rising and falling frantically, his blood burning in his veins, skin so very warm against Sephiroth's palms...

"Stop, Seph, _please_!!"

One push was all it would take.

Behind him he could feel Ansem still watching, yellow eyes eagerly waiting... for the two Gemini to become one. Riku felt Sephiroth tense, his heart thundering in his chest, pulse racing with anticipation... apprehension.

This was it. This could mean the breakthrough for Ansem's studies, for the entire world...

It could mean death for him, for Cloud... Or a fate worse than it. Their future was right there, and all it would take was...

Just one push.

"_Please_... stop..."

Gritting his teeth, Sephiroth dug his fingers into Cloud's soft skin and pushed into the boy. A scream tore from Cloud, echoing sharply off the elegant architecture of the room, hitting Sephiroth over and over again as he forced himself deeper, almost whimpering at the tightness of Cloud's body.

"It won't hurt for long, Cloud," he managed through his panting, pausing to hiss from the pleasure as Cloud's muscles clenched around him. "I promise."

The smaller boy was trembling, hatred and arousal warring inside of him, his frame tense from the pain. Sephiroth shifted only slightly, earning another strained whimper from Cloud, and then slowly pulled out.

_Fuck_...

Riku wasn't sure if that had been his assertion, or Sephiroth's, but they both felt the ache, the terrible need to just drive Cloud into the floor. The boy felt so _perfect_, so... so _Sora_...

A raw scream pierced his ears as Sephiroth forced into him without warning again, and then again, pushing the boy hard into the pillow behind him. He set a desperate pace with his thrusts as though this moment would be stolen from him any second, like this was his last chance to really live, or this was the last thing he ever wanted, and it was about to escape him... Cloud gasped, groaned, and cried with each invasion of his body, nonetheless pushing back against Sephiroth to continue the cycle each time, clearly hating every little pleasure sound he involuntarily uttered.

Riku lost himself in the pleasure building within Sephiroth, of the delicious sensations of skin against skin, skin _in_ skin, rubbing harshly together, of the wet sounds that filled the air with each thrust, of Cloud's body swallowing him so completely, of Cloud's voice sweetly filling the air... He loved it. He loved the feeling of total control over the other boy who hated him so much. He loved not knowing how this was going to end.

Cloud's cries were rising, turning into heated gasps of pleasure as Sephiroth continued to drive into him, managing his own grunts through clenched teeth. The two boys moved perfectly against each other, hips rolling with hips, bodies fitting together as though they really _were_ made for each other.

But as much as they were both indeed enjoying it, something very wrong was building inside of them.

Cloud's hatred was rising with his pleasure, tears leaking from beneath his shivering eyelids as he rocked against Sephiroth's body.

_I hate you..._

Something struck Sephiroth's heart, green eyes snapping open as the foreign thoughts invaded his own.

_I hate this!!_

A heavy surge of power flowed between them as Sephiroth let himself go, and Cloud took control of the situation. Small fingers wrapped around Sephiroth's neck, silver hair knotted in his grasp as he squeezed, arms trembling against Sephiroth's shoulders. Riku watched through Sephiroth's wide eyes as Cloud's pretty face twisted with dark thoughts, the boy's fingers digging into the skin of his neck with so much strength it frightened all of them.

_I **hate** you!_

The power suddenly concentrated, solid shadows lurching out of the ground around their bodies. Sephiroth forced his eyes shut again, his body shuddering from the terrible mélange of intense pleasure from being buried within Cloud, sharp pain of Cloud's fingers squeezing the life from him, the indescribable guilt of it all, and the suddenly icy fear of what was now happening to them. As the darkness surged around them, snaking over their limbs and numbing their senses, Sephiroth swatted Cloud's hands away with one powerful strike, and wrapped his arms around the small boy to protect him just in time.

As the ground opened up beneath them and they were pulled into the darkness, Cloud gave an ear-splitting scream of pain that Riku didn't understand...

Until Sephiroth's own back tore open, skin ripping with an almost acidic burn as something forced its way out of his right shoulder blade. The sound of flesh shredding, the wet sliding of breaking membrane, and the rustle of soft feathers filled the air as a black wing stretched out, shedding sticky film and a shower of blood. Against his hands he felt Cloud's small body shaking as he continued to shriek, somehow knowing his body was going through similar torture.

One wing each... what was the meaning?

But it was a fleeting thought, for as they were completely swallowed by the shadows, everything fell silent. Sephiroth slowly opened his eyes to find the boy in his arms still in mid-scream, though all sound had escaped them. It was a terrible silence... a silence that ached. No matter how hard Cloud screamed, Sephiroth could not hear it.

He simply held onto the trembling body against his, fighting back his own growing fear of the cold, cold darkness coiling around them, pulling them deeper into the void... away from their home. His thoughts drifted endlessly, only holding onto that one sure fact that Cloud was with him, wherever they were going. Time slipped away from him, his body spent and mind too lost to grasp onto any real hope.

For a moment he managed to wonder if this was because of Ansem's experiment... but then the name became unfamiliar to him, and he caught onto the next thought to see if it made any more sense. It was as though his thoughts were butterflies, and every time he snatched one to keep hold of it, he crushed it and it died...

All except one. Cloud. As long as he had Cloud, he would be fine... Cloud... whose arms were outstretched, his fingers reaching out as though searching for, or bidding a sad farewell to something. The light maybe, or their world... Perhaps his hope.

Sephiroth slowly pressed a soft kiss to the boy's forehead.

"Don't worry, Cloud. I'll protect you..."

And as if Cloud had actually heard him through the deafening silence, the boy's arms slipped back around him and squeezed, brushing against his one raw wing.

Time passed. For how long, Riku wasn't sure, but it was as though the memory was fast forwarding itself. The only way he knew time was still passing, was the drying blood on Sephiroth's wing.

"Awaken."

The darkness suddenly dissipated and Sephiroth was deposited onto solid ground, his weak knees hitting a soft rug as he fell forward onto them, planting one hand to the ground to keep himself from crushing Cloud, who was still wrapped around him, now unconscious. Their naked bodies were frozen from the passage through the shadows, so much it hurt to even tense a muscle... But Sephiroth carefully pulled the blonde into a cradling position and slowly rose back to his feet, straightening his back and fighting back the hissing pain coursing throughout his entire body.

Green eyes cautiously took in their new surroundings, not wasting any time in dwelling on his thoughts as they flooded back to him now that they were out of that darkness. He did take a moment to recall how they had gotten here and wonder what had gone wrong, but then he remembered the small boy in his arms and was forced to return to their present situation.

They seemed to be in a study of some sort... almost completely dark, save for a single candle burning on the desk nearby. The light stung, Sephiroth noticed with a wince, squinting his eyes to see past the flame. For some reason he could see perfectly in this heavy darkness, but the light hindered his sight.

There was a figure seated at the desk... But Sephiroth couldn't make it out.

"No doubt you're confused," came a soft, sultry voice, curling with delight at his new visitors. "I will get to explaining later, however. What are your names and ages?"

"Sephiroth, age sixteen..." he said warily, pulling the body in his arms more protectively against him. "He's Cloud... thirteen. Where are we?"

"The World of Darkness, for starters," the voice replied. "I see Ansem's experiment failed."

Sephiroth tensed, narrowing his green eyes on the shadow behind the candle. "What do you know? What happened to us? Who are you?"

"It seems I was right, then." There came a soft, almost sad sigh. "I assume you were told about the Gemini twins and all the various theories about them, and I also assume that you are thinking your appearance here is a result of the union of Gemini. You are partly right, but not in the way you think, young Sephiroth."

"Then tell me," he hissed, flexing his wing as an automatic reflex. But at the sudden stretching of the new appendage, an almost exhilarating feeling of bliss blossomed inside of him, sending his body into a small climax. He shuddered violently, gasping loudly at the new sensation.

The figure in the dark chuckled. "I see you've noticed your new burden. You may thank your Cloud for that, and for your arrival here."

"What do you mean?" Sephiroth asked, still shivering slightly from the aftershocks of his wing, and the trip through the darkness. "How is it Cloud's fault?"

"Gemini have many untapped powers. It seems your union awakened his, and he used them to fight. I've seen it before." The voice paused as though to contemplate. "Unfortunately, the darkness he summoned was too strong for him to handle in such a frail state, and it... mutated. Your wings are a sort of failed experiment, I should say. And since you two were joined at the time, you each have one of the pair... His thoughts must have been steeped in darkness at the time, and therefore his wing's shape reflects his sin. Yours reflects the opposite."

Riku concentrated on that, feeling Sephiroth frown at the words as well. It seemed to be true, now that he thought about it... Sephiroth had been so in love, so regretful during the... rape. Cloud had been full of hatred and confusion. One half of a Gemini pair is destined to walk the dark path, whilst the other walks the light. Whether he had been aware of it or not, Cloud had indeed been shrouded in the dark, and had used that power against Sephiroth.

It must have backfired or something, and they ended up here... In the World of Darkness.

"...I see..." Sephiroth uttered softly, lowering his green eyes to study Cloud's peaceful face. "So what do we do now?"

"It's not easy returning to the Present World," the figure replied. "Until you are ready, you are welcome to remain here in my castle... in exchange for your help, of course."

Sephiroth turned back to the shadowy figure, leveling his eyes on it. "What do I need to do?"

"Because of Ansem's meddling, rough times are coming. Agree to do my bidding, and in exchange I shall teach you how to explore your newfound powers to protect yourself."

A strained silence passed between them as countless thoughts raced through Sephiroth's mind, and Riku listened as the boy weighed his opportunity costs and rewards, quickly coming to the only decision he could risk making—the only decision that ensured that he could remain with Cloud and protect him.

"I agree," he said, bowing his head, his silver hair spilling forward. "But I would like to know for whom I am now servant to."

The figure chuckled again, and Sephiroth suddenly caught a gleam of yellow eyes in the darkness.

"Very good," the man said. "You may call me Id."

-o-o-o-o-o-

"Id."

_Yes?_

"What's wrong with me?"

_You know very well what's wrong with you, Sora._

_Where are you going?_

"I don't know."

-o-o-o-o-o-

Days passed in Sephiroth's memories, entire conversations flashing ahead, scenes circling, moving forward so fast he couldn't understand them until after they had gone. Hours played as split seconds as Riku silently watched through Sephiroth's eyes. He wasn't sure how much time had been skipped, but when the memories slowed again almost abruptly, Riku knew it indicated that Sephiroth wanted him to know something important about this upcoming scene.

The first thing Riku noticed was that Sephiroth's wing no longer ached, its newborn muscles, nerves, and skin now adapted to his body; the extra appendage was almost a comfortable weight behind him now. Riku then noticed his change of attire, with new boots and pants, and a stylized shirt—an outfit similar to what he'd worn at Hollow Bastion, but more modern, his high-neck shirt backless to accommodate his wing. It sure beat running around naked. Riku assumed Id had provided the boys with things, but after that impossibly fast spin through memories, Riku couldn't recall.

After a long trip down a dark hallway, Sephiroth calmly pushed open a pair of doors and entered Id's study where he had first come to this world. Id was already waiting behind his large desk, face shrouded in shadows, only his eyes reflecting the dim candlelight. In a chair in the corner was a curled up Cloud, knees drawn up and covering his ducked face, his wing draped bonelessly to the side.

Riku felt curiosity rise up in Sephiroth as he wondered about Cloud, and why they had been called here today.

"You summoned, Master...?" Sephiroth said slowly, leveling his eyes on the shadows in front of him.

"You're getting better at recognizing my summons," Id commented lazily, raising a hand to gesture the boy closer. Sephiroth obeyed, stepping up to the desk, Id's face smiling darkly up at him. "I'm glad. Most of my powers concern the darkness, so please become familiar with them."

A flash of memory entertained Sephiroth's mind, and Riku was updated on the situation. One of Id's summons was just a pulse of darkness in Sephiroth's mind. Riku wasn't sure how it worked, but... one thing was for sure. Id was a part of the darkness that surrounded this place, flowing in and out of everything and everyone. This stranger was powerful. His magic felt almost _ancient_...

"Yes," Sephiroth said patiently. "I was in the middle of studying advanced magic, as you had suggested.... I would like to get it done. What is it that you want?"

Id leaned forward on the desk, waving a hand in Cloud's direction. "I am tired of your friend's sulking," the man sighed. "He has recovered both his strength and mental stability, yet he refuses to acknowledge the deal I have offered him, the same I offered you. However, instead of throwing him to the scum of the city – I'm sure they would just _love_ a pretty boy of his age – I thought perhaps you could try getting through to him."

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed slightly at his master's words. "I shall do my best..."

Smile widening, Id gave a short nod. "Very well. I leave him entirely in your care," he said. "We will be receiving a new houseguest soon, so I will not have the time to care for him or you." He paused, watching Sephiroth's face fill with questions. "I will still be assisting you in training, but my time will be limited now. I unfortunately... miscalculated the new arrival. I thought I would have more time, but Ansem has done it again."

At the familiar name, Sephiroth frowned. "What does Ansem have to do with this?"

Id folded his hands together. "Everything, Sephiroth. His research, his knowledge, his power..." Another pause. His lips curled into a smirk. "When he arrives here, he will no longer be the Lord Ansem you knew..."

"Ansem is coming?" Sephiroth said, brow furrowing in confusion. "But why... and how?"

"You only knew one of his experiments, Sephiroth," Id explained calmly. "The Gemini Project was one of many. One of his more innocent ones... Because of his meddling, very soon creatures called the heartless—you will read about them in the books I lent you—they'll find the heart of your world and your world will collapse. Everyone will fall to the darkness, become heartless themselves..." He paused, yellow eyes shimmering in the darkness. "Ansem's meddling was originally to protect your world. Funny how in the end he will be the one to destroy it..."

"And he's coming here?" Sephiroth asked, voice tight and strained at this sudden revelation. He glanced back at Cloud, but the boy was still curled up.

Meanwhile, Id's smirk widened. "I've set it up that way."

"Why are you helping him?" the boy asked, filled with too many questions to ask any of the important ones.

"Ansem is not the villain you are making him into," Id said with obvious amusement. "Far from it. But to answer your question... I am helping him because I need his knowledge... and he needs my resources."

Riku felt the familiar helpless confusion filling Sephiroth, and then before he could process Id's next words, time was speeding up again, passing through scenes of Sephiroth and a crying Cloud, of Sephiroth training, reading, learning... A few more days must have passed. He saw Ansem's arrival—a surge of swirling darkness and long white hair as he was deposited onto the rug, much like Sephiroth had been. He saw Cloud leaving the room as Id and Ansem grew acquainted...

Time slowed again just as Sephiroth was following the boy.

"Go back to your master."

Cloud's voice was soft, withdrawn...

Sephiroth increased his pace and gently took hold of the boy's arm as they neared the end of the hallway, standing in front of the door to Cloud's room. Looking affronted, Cloud raised impatient eyes to regard his unofficial guardian as he snatched his arm back.

"_Don't_ touch me," the blonde said, shrinking away from the older boy. "I don't care what that man told you to do... I don't need you."

"Maybe not," Sephiroth replied calmly, "but you're stuck here, as much as I am... Id is lending us his hospitality in exchange for our services. I won't let you waste your time here until he becomes impatient and gets rid of you."

Cloud pressed himself against the door, lowering his eyes to the floor with a heavy frown. "Hospitality? I... just want to go home."

"In case you've forgotten, home doesn't exist anymore," Sephiroth said, voice dark. His heart clenched a little and Riku felt a soft sadness and worry rise up in him again. _Squall... Seifer... Are they all heartless now?_ But his face remained guarded, forcing his emotions down. "This is our home now, Cloud... You put us here."

"**_I_** did?" Cloud hissed, young face full of pain as he lifted it to meet the other boy again. His glare suddenly filled with disbelief, hatred... "You're the one who—who... If you hadn't done that..."

"We'd be gone, like the others," Sephiroth pointed out patiently. "At the time I didn't know what would happen, but I had to..."

"Ansem didn't make you do that!"

Sephiroth sighed and raised a hand to brush his bangs back a little. "...I didn't say he did, Cloud. I did it willingly."

"But then _why_?" the boy asked, brows set in an angry line.

"I had my reasons," Sephiroth replied quickly, leaving no room for more questions on that.

He paused to study the boy's confused frown, feeling his resolve melting away under those inquisitive blue eyes.

"Hate me if you wish..." he said slowly in a withdrawn tone as he turned his face away from Cloud. "But please accept that this is your life now. We have no options, Cloud. Our only hope is to get stronger so we can survive whatever comes our way, and to do that we must follow Id."

He turned slightly to glance at the boy, and Riku felt him wince at the sadness filling Cloud's face. The boy's eyes were lowered in thought, his lips turned downward and his brow wrinkled in concern. Sephiroth didn't like their situation either, but... What else could they do?

"I do not want to be your enemy," the silver-haired boy said, meeting Cloud's gaze as it raised to regard him again.

Something passed between them then—Riku felt a little weight lift off Sephiroth's heart. Green eyes stared pointedly into Cloud's.

"I sincerely apologize for what pain I have put you through in the past..." Sephiroth continued firmly, honesty lacing his words. "I will keep my distance from now on, if you wish. However, I told Ansem I would protect you, no matter what happened, and I intend to keep that promise." He paused one last time, new boots clicking softly against the granite floor as he turned away from the boy. When he spoke again, his voice was dark. "Hate me if you wish... but I am all you have left."

But as he started down the hallway back towards Id's study, both Riku and Sephiroth were surprised when Cloud quickly caught his arm to stop him.

"Seph... wait."

Cloud's tone was unreadable... and it gave Sephiroth unnecessary hope.

"If it's about how I wronged you..." the older boy said quietly, not turning around. "I'll never do it again."

Cloud's tone also dropped in pitch, boyish voice lined with uncertainty. "No.. um... You said I put us here," he said. "...did I really?"

Something dark swirled inside of Sephiroth, his green eyes narrowing in thought. Was Cloud really unaware of what he had done? The realization made Sephiroth feel almost empty, like... What was the point of their destiny together if Cloud had no idea what went on? Cloud needed to know.

"...you were asleep when Id explained, but... our union triggered our powers to awaken..." Sephiroth explained slowly, not sure if _he_ even understood all of it. "And because at the time you were filled with such dark thoughts, your hatred consumed both of us. We weren't strong enough, so the power mutated our bodies... We fell into darkness and ended up here. Ansem's Gemini Project had no result. Our union merely woke our powers... "

"It was my fault..." Cloud breathed in disbelief, fingers trembling slightly around Sephiroth's arm.

Sephiroth turned, leveling his eyes on the small boy, Riku drowning in the usual sea of emotions that filled his host whenever he saw Cloud's sad face. "Yes. But.... if you hadn't... We would have ended up like everyone else," he pointed out quietly. "We're still alive because of you."

Releasing his arm, Cloud squeezed his eyes shut, his hand now clutching the loose shirt over his heart. "Squall... Aerith..."

"As far as we know, they're gone," the older boy commented carefully, feeling his own insides tighten at the thought of Squall being lost forever. "But... since this _is_ the World of Darkness, maybe they're here somewhere."

"Do you really think so?" Cloud asked softly.

"Maybe. We can look."

Blue eyes lifted to regard Sephiroth, a glimmer of hope breaking through their sadness... And Cloud gave a tiny smile.

**Cloud—_behind _you!! They're all around us! Keep your guard up or you'll be the next one to lose a heart!**

_sephiroth i wish to speak with you _

_id? about what? _

_heartless _

_heartless? i haven't read the book you've lent me yet the one that speaks of them_

_i know you've been on a few missions for me now i see that the heartless stand no chance against you _

_they're already getting stronger though_

_they will always evolve sephiroth you know the heartless are the people who lose their hearts they are born from darkness_

_they're people who've lost their hearts?_

_yes_

_so the heartless i'm defeating could very well be my friends and family squall zell seifer_

_that's right but only the natural heartless_

_natural heartless?_

_the ones marked aren't natural they were created by ansem's machine_

As time shot forward in Sephiroth's memory again, that one conversation stood out the most. Riku felt an icy clenching inside of him, the sudden realization that all those heartless he had fought... They could have been Kairi, Tidus... Seiya.

He'd never thought about it.

That fact was terrifying.

Pushing his fear aside, he concentrated on the memories flashing by, catching hold of one particular moment – it must have been over a year since they'd met Id because Cloud looked more about Sora's age.

**Why do I always read? Because it stops me from thinking... What about you, Cloud?**

Riku wasn't sure where they were, but Sephiroth was huddled on a large stuffed armchair... and though it was dark, the page he was staring at was perfectly clear.

_reading again?_

Green eyes looked up just in time. A heavy blanket settled around his body, cocooning him in warmth. Cloud's eyes twinkled at him with silent laughter.

_i brought you some tea_

_tea?_

Riku felt Sephiroth frown as he took a warm porcelain cup from the younger boy.

_hey don't look so down seph_

_i don't get you_

_you looked really lonely_

A knowing glance.

_you always look lonely too_

Sad smile.

_i know i'm tired of it i'm tired of fighting it_

_what?_

_i want to be friends again_

_i thought you hated me cloud_

_once_

Blue stared into green, expectant, hopeful...

_sephiroth i forgive you you know about hollow bastion_

_you forgive me how is that possible?_

_because i know why you did it_

Sephiroth's heart skipped.

_you do?_

_yeah i do_

_but_

The blonde head ducked, breaking eye contact. He was almost embarrassed... or anxious about something.

_you were right back then seph we should be on the same side i don't want to be your enemy either_

_cloud _

_so is that okay? are we friends?_

_yes_

_hey are you smiling?_

The memory abruptly cut, spiraling him on ahead through time, passing almost another year as mere seconds. Time did not slow again until—__

**Behind you! No—CLOUD! _Get away from him!!_**

A soft hiss of pain was the first thing Riku noticed when Sephiroth's eyes finally focused and he found himself and Cloud alone in a small, comfortable bedroom. A shirtless Cloud was seated on the red coverlet, an equally shirtless Sephiroth seated behind him, carefully cleaning a deep gash along Cloud's wingless shoulder. Bloody rags and dirty armor littered the rug floor, and Sephiroth's legs were beginning to go numb from lack of movement. They must have been here for a while.

"I said I would protect you, Cloud..." Sephiroth muttered quietly, fingers gently moving a warm rag up the swollen wound. "The least you could do is guard your back. We go through this all the time."

"It's my weak spot... I know," Cloud replied with a wince, his wing twitching as Sephiroth pressed into the wound. "Things have gotten better now that I have a good weapon though." At that, the blonde head turned and he smiled back at the man behind him.

Man.

And Cloud was growing up as well, his boyishness fading quickly into a handsome face. He must have been close to seventeen now...

"That buster sword? Too excessive," Sephiroth sighed, dropping the rag onto the bed before pushing his growing hair out of his way.

"I know, you prefer that hellishly long Masamune of yours. And when are you going to start tying your hair up? It's tickling my back."

"....when you stop getting yourself injured," Sephiroth replied darkly, playfully shoving at Cloud's spiky head.

The blonde turned and gave a soft glare, folding his wing as he sighed. "....one of us needs to learn healing magic."

**They're getting more powerful... and they're growing in numbers. It's only a matter of time before they reach the other world.**

_your trust is completely in disarray_

_what do you mean?_

A hint of an amused smile under long silver bangs.

_you trust me with your life trust me as a friend as a companion and you forgive me so easily for back then for violating you_

_because i know you won't do it again_

_how can you be so sure?_

_i just am_

**These spells are too simple, Id. I need something more... dangerous.**

_squall? yes i still think about him all the time he was my best friend cloud_

_i miss him seph i miss all of them_

_i know_

_almost four years and we've found nothing here they're gone they're heartless seph heartless squall's a heartless just like the rest of them_

_i know cloud i know_

_there's nothing we can do though except fight but i'm just so tired this is my life now but will i ever be happy again?_

_happiness it's insignificant for warriors like us _

**Id and Ansem have a plan. They won't discuss it when I'm near, but... it's critical.**

Time slowed again, Riku's attention suddenly focusing through the darkness on a bed in disarray. Panicked sounds filled the heavy air, dry chords of a greater tune; by now it was a song familiar to Sephiroth, having listened to it for years since their arrival here. Nevertheless, fear always struck Sephiroth's heart each time he bent over the familiar bed and attempted to wake the patron of a nightmare.

Cloud's blonde head flew left and right as he cried in his sleep, grey sheets twisted in and around his thrashing limbs, wicked wing shivering and moving in time with his body's unconscious dance.

A cold hand slipped onto his forehead, green eyes focusing on his pale face and the few locks of blonde hair drenched with nervous sweat.

"Cloud. Wake up."

Almost immediately those familiar eyes shot open and there came a sharp intake of breath as the nightmares were chased away again. Cloud half sat up, expression wrought with confusion, blue eyes swirling with fear.

He never spoke of what he dreamt on nights like these... But Sephiroth didn't need to be told.

He had the same dreams. The same fears.

"It happened again..." came the small sigh, half in shame, half still in discomfort. Cloud settled back against his pillows, wing flapping lazily against the cool mattress. "It always happens after one of Id's missions..."

Sephiroth gracefully folded his own wing as he nodded, slowly reaching forward to fix Cloud's sheets for him. "I know, Cloud... I feel it too."

"I know..."

Their eyes met as Sephiroth straightened the sheets and pulled them back up to Cloud's chest. He did these kind actions without premeditation or thought of consequences. Maybe it was in some way consolation for what Sephiroth had put Cloud through in the past, or maybe it was because he no longer had to pretend...

"You know..." Cloud said softly, managing a weak grin. "Even though I would do anything to go back to that innocence, before everything happened.... I really don't miss you torturing me." A slight pause. "I know why you changed, though..."

Sephiroth studied the younger man carefully, expression unreadable. "Do you." It wasn't a question.

The response was a slight nod before Cloud looked away, eyes distant as his fingers curled into the sheets. "...I really miss them..." he breathed. "It's been four years... but I remember them plain as day—I mean, night..." He gave a soft, dry laugh. "I honestly don't remember what the light feels like, now that I think about it. Don't remember what it feels like to stand under the sun. It's so dark here..."

Green eyes narrowed slightly, but Sephiroth said nothing as he lowered himself onto the bed to get comfortable. Cloud regarded the slight movement with a flickering smile.

"I really do remember them... Aerith's sweet laugh... Seifer's cruel pranks... Heh, even Cid's bad habit of scratching wrong places in public," Cloud said, his grin almost real. What mirth he had, however, faded quickly. "And... Squall's silent pain... his reticence..."

Sephiroth turned his face away, the familiar name rekindling a burning ache inside of him. That name always did. He couldn't leave though, not now, even though he knew where this conversation was heading. This discussion was long overdue.

"I... I remember the times when he didn't push me away, even when I hung around too much," Cloud said in a soft voice, sadly reminiscent. "I remember the horrible date we had, that Aerith put us up to. I especially remember... how much happier he always was with you... and not me."

Riku felt Sephiroth tense.... but he still said nothing.

"I always thought you two liked each other," Cloud admitted. "And that you picked on me to protect him, to keep him to yourself..." There was slight hesitation, voice lowering to a drifting whisper, almost to himself. "I never thought it was because you liked _me_..."

Black feathers twitched, but otherwise Sephiroth remained still. Though Cloud had hinted for a long time that he knew Sephiroth's secret, he had never said it out loud. Cloud knew Sephiroth's feelings.

A distant sigh. "We've been searching so long in this world... They're not here though," Cloud murmured. "They're nameless heartless now... I honestly don't even know when exactly I stopped believing I'd find them, and began fighting for something else... but it must have been a long time."

Sephiroth slowly raised his head, shifting his eyes to study Cloud's solemn frown. Blue eyes met his, and Cloud read his unspoken question.

"I grew up, Seph," the younger man said, voice firm but quiet. "I learned that I was chasing a false hope. And because my only reason for fighting had disappointed me, I had to look someplace else."

A curious hope rose within Sephiroth, and Riku focused on it, wondering what it meant. He was confused, unsure of what was happening between Cloud and Sephiroth at this moment, lost in the conversation... He understood it, yes, but he didn't _recognize_...

Until Cloud spoke again.

"You were always there..." he said, his frown softening as he spoke. "I never feel safe, except where you are... because you said you'd protect me. And you always do." He paused, hands fidgeting a little. "Even when we're out there, and I'm weak from battle and from carrying my sword... I'm never scared. Except..." Blue eyes shifted nervously away. "Except when I remember what we're fighting, and that if I make a mistake, you might disappear too..."

Riku felt Sephiroth's eyes widen as Cloud fumbled onward.

"And when I try to imagine what that would be like, continuing on alone... It _hurts_."

Fingers clenched into the sheets, sad eyes raising to meet Sephiroth's sharp gaze.

"That's what I dream about."

**Each day I find his stare more intense...**

_i should have gone_

_it was a one man job cloud_

_you got hurt!_

_i've had worse_

_what if there had been more of them? what if_

_there wasn't i won't let them take my heart ever_

_i should have gone with you_

**And each day I see his resolve crumbling a fraction more.**

When Sephiroth's memories focused once again, Riku immediately knew what was happening.

Not much time had passed since the nightmare incident in Cloud's room, for Sephiroth and Cloud seemed to be the same ages they had been in that memory. The scene had changed, however—another bedroom, presumably Sephiroth's.

The older man was laying propped up against the bed's headboard, wing hanging loosely over the edge of the mattress. He had one knee drawn up, an arm draped over it as he stared straight forward at the other occupant of the bed, who was curled up in a heavy blanket there as though hiding from something. Nervous.

Riku knew exactly what the expression on Cloud's face meant.

"You didn't answer me, Seph..."

Irony, that's what it was.

"There is nothing to answer," was Sephiroth's dark response, his eyes never straying from Cloud's face.

The blonde's wing twitched, frustrated, but he managed to keep his expression steady. "It's not hormones," he said, half insistent, half accusing. "Or because you're the only one I trust... or ever see. It's not because of Hollow Bastion either...."

Sephiroth's frown deepened, green eyes narrowing a fraction. "What do you know?"

"I know this pain in my chest..." Cloud muttered.

Countless contradicting emotions swam through Sephiroth, Riku picking up on every single one, feeling just as hopelessly confused and... _amused_ as Sephiroth was. Destiny was indeed a bitch.

Irony, that's what this was.

"Didn't you once say... that your hands.. your lips... your everything existed so they could feel me?" Cloud whispered, hands tightening around the blanket as he stared sideways up at Sephiroth.

Cruel irony.

Sephiroth had never seen honesty so... _sure_. Cloud knew what he was getting into; he was scared, obviously, and rightly so... Scared that Sephiroth wouldn't take this confession seriously, especially because of their past.

But Cloud was _sure_.

"I don't want to wake up alone again.... Sephiroth."

Blue eyes flickered softly as the older man studied him, a long, intense silence spreading between them. They had already made up their minds.

Sephiroth raised his chin, back pressed to the headboard, and his wing folded slightly inward to get comfortable. Cloud watched every subtle movement he made, eyes never straying from his.

A strong hand gracefully stretched forward and lips curled into a tiny, tiny smirk as they parted to say the two words that would seal their fate....

"Come here."

And for the next four and a half years, Cloud did not wake up alone.

* * *

_Uzumaki here with an important announcement._

_This is an Intermission!!_

_Stop reading! Get up! Go get something to drink! Stretch your legs or something!_

_You still have another chapter's worth to read since this last part to Chapter 18 is twice as long as usual._

_That's right, you're about halfway done..._

_Back now? Went pee and everything?_

_Okay, good. Here we go again._

* * *

Back in the Present World, life was no less complicated with Sora at Hollow Bastion 

Id had fallen silent long ago and Sora now wandered the castle alone, wary of running into the that woman and her crow... and Yami. He didn't feel like conversing with anyone, let alone getting scolded for something he didn't mean to do. He just wanted to... disappear for a while.

He did _not_ want to go back to that dark room of his.

A tingling shudder ran through him at the thought of the Rikus waiting for him there. He could technically banish them whenever he wanted, but... They were _Riku_. He couldn't get rid of them, no matter how uncomfortable they sometimes made him feel.

Swallowing and cringing at the aftertaste of the heartless' mouth in his, Sora stumbled onward down the corridor, completely at a loss of where he was going.

Then again, the place did look a bit familiar.

As he followed the long corridor deeper into the castle, the soft rush and trickling of water echoed towards him and he realized just where he was heading. He'd only taken this route once before, weeks ago just after Riku had woken up after the gummi ship crash.

He was heading towards the open bath. Usually he took a different hallway to reach this place, but there were a lot of other paths leading here, some coming from the more guarded places of the castle—the places he wasn't supposed to snoop around. He'd never really considered prying, but...

It was time for him to start moving forward. He didn't really have a mission for himself—he wasn't like Riku, keyblade master, or anything. He was just Sora.

He did, however, have a lot of questions about this place, and that was enough incentive to break the rules and venture into the forbidden inner sanctums of the castle. Besides, he'd already been there once... to Yami's room, when he'd seen him and Riku together... There were other doors there, other hallways to search.

There had to be answers, clues, _something_ there. Even if he didn't have a mission, he could help someone at least, someone less capable of fulfilling theirs...

The Beast, although scary, didn't seem like a bad guy, and he was locked down there in the dungeon, helpless... He was looking for a girl named Belle and had tracked her here. Sora knew Yami did a lot of dirty work for the Mistress of the castle, so maybe this girl was here after all.

It was worth a shot. All he had to do was avoid trouble, namely Yami and that ugly big crow that liked to spy on him... Which was easier thought than done, for, unfortunately, just as Sora had finished his scheming and was approaching the archway that led into the open bath, a _very_ familiar voice stopped him.

"Impossible."

Yami!!

Dammit, why of all times—

Wait a sec...

Sora blinked, standing just outside the arch where he couldn't be seen. Did the boy actually know he was there, or had he been talking to someone else...? Granted, Sora couldn't hear anyone else talking, but... Yami couldn't even see him yet.

Cautiously he listened, waiting for Yami to speak to him again, testing...

"You of all people know he does not love you."

The familiar voice was withdrawn, not filled with the usual condescending amusement that Yami spoke to Sora with. And in any case, the statement made no sense, even if he was speaking to Sora.

Puckering his lips in thought, Sora steeled his nerves and slowly peeked his head around the arch to see what was going on.

Yami was standing alone in the middle of the large bathing pool, completely stripped of clothes with his back mostly towards the archway where Sora was, but Sora could still see part of his front. He looked disgruntled, as though he were conversing with someone he really didn't like. But... well, no one else was there. No one was with him.

"Honestly? ...No, I did not."

Actually, completely oblivious to Sora's appearance, the older boy continued speaking as he lathered a layer of soap with his hands and smoothed it over his abdomen, working his way up to his chest and arms.

Sora frowned at the sight in front of him, not just because he was confused, but because he did have to admit he could see why Riku had been attracted to Yami... The guy really did have a great body.

Argh...

The brunette tore his eyes away and blushed, ashamed of himself and hating Yami even more. Everything was _his_ fault. Even if he _was_ good looking, that didn't mean he could... with Riku...

"I already apologized for deceiving you, but it was necessary."

While Yami spoke to his invisible guest again, Sora snuck into the open bath and crept along the wall, as quiet as the shadows as he slipped around the pool without catching Yami's attention.

As Sora kept his eye on the older boy to make sure he wasn't noticed, he couldn't help, well, _glaring _at him...

Yami's body wasn't as muscled as Riku's—not that Riku's body was overly muscled or anything, because it wasn't—but the tan-skinned boy did have obvious assets that reminded Sora he wasn't just a mysterious spell caster, but a great fighter as well... There was no baby fat, there was no extra meat on him... Yami's body was almost perfect.

_Too_ perfect, perhaps...

Sora couldn't help feeling the bitter envy swelling inside of him.

"Can I not bathe in peace?" Yami sighed suddenly, running a foamy hand through his drenched white hair. At that moment, with that expression, he looked so much older than he really was... So much more weary, and... lonely.

Sora was alone too though.

Reaching his destination, the boy quickly ducked behind the archway, peeking his head back to steal one last glance at the person that had ruined his life. Sora's eyes narrowed.

From this angle, Yami had an almost effeminate look to him... the curve of his cheeks, lips, and jaw... and the slenderness of his back. It was almost strange how dangerously beautiful he could look one second, and then so weary and old the next...

And who the hell was he talking to anyway?

"....I should have never created you."

An invisible friend maybe?

Sora's frown deepened with curiosity as he finally turned away, trying to push _those_ questions down for later. He had other things to be concerned about right now. Now that he'd gotten past the hard part, he just had to keep from getting caught.

Forcing back the disturbing feeling Yami usually gave him, he put a smile on his face and silently continued on his journey.

He didn't sense the pair of yellow eyes watching him disappear down the hallway, or the smirk that followed.

-o-o-o-o-o-

Sephiroth was, for lack of a better word, _happy_.

The remaining years in his memory were full of many pleasurable nights with him and Cloud, and mornings waking up together and having another round in the sheets. And as the loving scenes moved quickly by, Riku had some time to piece together what he had experienced and learned.

Sephiroth may have made a terrible mistake taking advantage of Cloud all those years ago, but... Cloud had forgiven him. Cloud had grown to love him anyway. _Cloud_ had wanted to have a relationship with him. And now they were lovers.

No wonder Cloud had been so upset with Sephiroth at the coliseum—he had remembered the rape, but... nothing else. And... No wonder _Sephiroth_ had felt so upset when he realized Cloud had forgotten those nine years together...

Their fight really _had_ been meaningless. They loved each other, but something was stopping Cloud from remembering everything.

The memories were beginning to slow again and Riku snapped to attention, skimming over the many sex scenes to get to what Sephiroth wanted him to know. There was obviously still more, if Riku was still stuck here in the memories... Sephiroth had something else to show him.

When things focused again and Riku found Sephiroth standing before Id in an unfamiliar room, he was startled to see Sephiroth's reflection in the mirrors behind Id. It was dark as usual, but Riku could still see that he looked... like Sephiroth. Present day Sephiroth. Riku wasn't sure how much time had passed, but if it was so close to the present, that meant almost nine years had passed since the fall of Hollow Bastion.

"Ansem and I are ready," Id was saying, yellow eyes leveled on Sephiroth. "We've been ready for years now, of course, but now is the ideal time. My power, for instance, is great enough now to carry through with our plans." He paused, frowning a little through the shadows. "There's a problem, however, and that's why I have summoned you."

Sephiroth curtly nodded, his arms folded across his chest. "You've been planning this since Cloud and I arrived here. I admit I am eager to hear what you have planned..."

Id's lips curled into a smile. "Of course," he said with a soft drawl. "With my power, I will be sending Ansem back through the darkness to the Present World to fulfill our plans. I cannot bestow the information to you, Sephiroth, as curious as you are. It's too dangerous. However, I need someone to accompany Ansem as his protection."

Riku felt a heavy disappointment fill Sephiroth—obviously he had been excited about this, only to learn Id was still going to hold out on him. But with the sudden prospect of returning to the Present World...

Green eyes widened slightly in awe.

That might not have been much of a reaction to such startling news, but... like everything else dealing with Sephiroth, there was more than met the eye. Nine years had done their toll on Sephiroth, shaping him into the lethal warrior Riku had met at the coliseum, and building him into the cold, calculating mystery that puzzled everyone, mask after mask hiding his true emotions and intentions. To Riku he was something much more now, but the boy hadn't forgotten that he was the only one who had shared Sephiroth's emotions, all these personal memories... To other people, Sephiroth must seem dangerously imposing, quietly lethal....

Even now, people may only see Sephiroth's eyes widened just a fraction, but Riku felt and understood the turmoil of emotions that circled inside of Sephiroth as he made that simple gesture.

As Sephiroth stood there with a completely straight face, Riku knew just what questions he wanted to ask, what answers he wanted to demand, what requests he wanted to give... But after nine years of servitude, the man knew his place. Id was still his master.

Burying his frustration, Sephiroth merely asked, "Why does Ansem need protection?"

Obviously amused, for Id probably knew exactly how much he pissed off Sephiroth, Id's smile widened at the one question. "In order to arrive here from the Present World, all those years ago, Ansem underwent an experiment... and separated himself into different _pieces,_ you could say. Here in the World of Darkness he appears as the Ansem you knew, but... in the Present World, he will be only one of those _pieces_. He will need protection in his weak state."

Pieces?

**I want you to go, Cloud. You've been wanting to see the sun for years...**

Time jerked forward suddenly and Riku found Sephiroth approaching adult Cloud, who seemed to be getting ready.

_be careful cloud _

_i will you know i don't trust ansem i'll keep my eye on him and his plan_

_even if you don't like what he's doing do not act against him cloud_

_even if he plans on destroying other innocent lives? corrupting children like he did with us?_

_just don't fight him he may seem weak as he is now but don't underestimate him_

_seph i won't let anyone else suffer as we have!_

_i know you still hold a grudge against him from hollow bastion cloud but this isn't your fight_

_seph_

_let him do what he wants and then come back to me safely_

**Did they make it, master? Did they make it to the Present World?**

Time spun forward again, showing scene after scene of Sephiroth sitting alone, simply waiting... waiting.... waiting.....

"They're not back yet...."

"Patience, Sephiroth... Patience."

"I _was_ patient. It's been long enough. Find Cloud and bring him back."

Cloud never came back.

**Id? Wake up. **

**I don't know why you've been sleeping for a week, but come back already.**

**You took Cloud away from me... You can't leave me too.**

"Why were you asleep for so long, Id?"

"**He** has awakened. Ansem succeeded."

"What happened?"

"Never mind that. I've seen the Present World, and I have found your Cloud."

"Where is he?!"

"I will send you there to look for him."

_Light.... so much light. It's been nine years since I've seen the sun. _

_Cloud... Where are you?_

Riku suddenly saw flashes of memory of a familiar world—the coliseum!!—and people shrinking in fear as Sephiroth stood in the middle of the courtyard with his sword drawn and his wing stretched fully out.

**I'm looking for a man...**

Now he was standing before Hades.

_cloud? not here anymore_

_where did he go?_

_i kicked him out ahh—_

The ringing of cold metal filled the air as Sephiroth brought his weapon forward to emphasize his urgency.

**_where_** _did he go?_ __

_zeus if i know haha, put the sword down he'll be back_

_how can you be so sure?_

_they always come back why don't you take place in some matches until he gets his blonde ass back here?_

_maybe it has been a while since i've fought anyone worthy_

The Masamune lowered and Hades considerably relaxed.

_what do you want with that kid anyway?_

_he's my other half_

**My name is Sephiroth.**

Riku was swept through fight after fight, Sephiroth winning each time without breaking a sweat. His most challenging fight had been Hades, but mainly because he had tried so hard to avoid Hades's flames, so as to not singe his hair or the feathers on his wing.

A few days seemed to pass at the coliseum, Sephiroth coming and going, returning to the World of Darkness once or twice to sleep in peace before Id sent him back to search for Cloud again. Each day he hoped for the blonde's sudden appearance, and each day he grew more impatient with the people around him, his fighting becoming more merciless, and his opponents become weaker and weaker until—

_you're up again stranger_

_what fool has decided to fight me this time?_

_someone you'll find very interesting_

And all of a sudden Riku saw _himself_ standing there (wow, he actually did look good in his new outfit!), as though he were looking in a mirror. His green eyes were wide with awe as he watched Sephiroth rise to his feet, silver hair dancing in the breeze as he stretched his long wing out. Their eyes met and he heard himself speak—

"Sephiroth."

Riku felt his host's heart jerk in surprise, in recognition—

_How does this boy know my name?_

Time skipped forward through their quick fight, Sephiroth's body swimming with excitement at fighting a keyblade master, wondering about the child he was fighting (_feels so familiar—looks just like me—so young to be wielding such a gift—skill is extraordinary)_, wondering about the effects Sin Harvest were having on him, wondering about the painfully familiar voice screaming to them...

His attention focused when he felt the strong push against his blade—more powerful and steady and practiced than the boy's blocks. Green eyes focused in front of him, expecting to see the boy staring back at him, only to meet—

"Cloud."

Surprise and heavy relief swam through Sephiroth in that split second (_I've found him at last._) and he was so ready to pull away from the fight and go home happy, but...

Cloud's grip on his buster sword wavered just a little, and every bit of happiness Sephiroth had felt was overcome with sudden fear.

_A flinch?_ Yes, that had been a flinch. But what did that mean? _He is scared of me?_ It certainly seemed like it... But why would Cloud be scared of him? Unless... Unless—

_It can't be... _No. He didn't want to believe it just yet.

"I've been searching for you," he said in a calm voice that betrayed his pounding heart. He had to let Cloud know, he had to make him understand how worried he had been, he had to make sure Cloud was okay.

But those blue eyes reflected deep anger, grief...

What did that mean?

Uncertainty filled Sephiroth, his sharp gaze carefully studying the familiar face in front of his...

"As long as you exist, I can't wake from this nightmare."

And Sephiroth finally understood.

Cloud... had forgotten.

**If this is what fate had in store for me, then so be it.**

_stop fighting both of you! there's no point to this!_

_riku you shouldn't be up here! now move!!_

_what the hell are you fighting for cloud?! don't you want to know what happened to you during those nine years?_

**I did not expect such a rough welcome from you....**

It was strange reliving these scenes from a few hours ago from another person's eyes, but Riku was able to see how reckless he had been, and how Sephiroth had felt through all of it. He especially caught one certain detail he had missed out on the first time.

When they had set foot on land again, Riku had been too preoccupied with returning Pegasus that he completely overlooked an important reunion.

Sephiroth had just folded his wing and sheathed Masamune when he raised his head and caught sight of him. Riku felt the shock, the overwhelming mix of relief and sudden hope—

Squall was alive.

Squall wasn't a heartless.

It had been nine years and Squall had grown and changed and—was that a scar?—but Sephiroth still recognized his best friend of once upon a time, the small, reserved child of his past, one of his few precious people...

All that searching _hadn't_ been in vain. He... was _alive_...

Although Sephiroth wished to smile and embrace his old friend as any normal person would after nine years of pain and loneliness... he couldn't. Not only would it have broken the many masks he had built, but the look on Squall's face...

The way Cloud was suddenly standing so close to Squall...

And the subtle changes in Squall's face as he welcomed Cloud back...

It was all wrong.

In those few weeks.... Sephiroth had completely lost Cloud to his past. Funny, it was... Those few weeks had seemed like an eternity to Sephiroth as he had sat alone in the World of Darkness, waiting for Cloud to come back to him... when all along Cloud had forgotten him. A few weeks... nine years had been erased and Sephiroth's life had turned completely inside out.

Irony, that's what it was. Cruel irony.

**I find it almost disturbing, how much of myself I see in you.**

Riku watched as the memories jerked ahead once again, seeing himself approaching Sephiroth in the bath, talking... He felt a little embarrassed when he unceremoniously passed out in Sephiroth's arms as the keyblade drew him into Sephiroth's memories.

Most of all, he was surprised the memories were still _going_. What else did Sephiroth want him to see?!

He felt his host's gaze soften as he stared down at Riku's sleeping body. Slowly Sephiroth drew the smaller body into his lap and slid a hand through his soft hair. A tiny curl of a smirk touched his lips.

"So young..."

Although he felt a little disturbed watching his unconscious body getting pet by Sephiroth, Riku couldn't help wondering about it and also feeling a little... warm. The man was studying his face, his fingers brushing over his cheeks and lips with intent fascination.

Riku was fascinated too... seeing how _innocent_ he looked in that state. He seemed so open and peaceful, so... _vulnerable_.

"Sephiroth!"

At the accusing cry, the silver-haired man calmly raised his head to meet the two men now standing before him. Cloud's blue eyes were narrowed, hard with angered disbelief—but Leon looked slightly more calm, merely regarding Sephiroth with a solemn frown. No doubt Cloud and Leon were jumping to strange conclusions. Then again, after all of those suspicions against Sephiroth, the sight of an unconscious keyblade master laying in his lap _did_ look a bit incriminating. Sephiroth, however, was in no hurry to defend himself. Instead, he smirked, fingers still tangled in Riku's fine hair.

"He's merely asleep."

"What did you do to him?" Cloud asked in a dark, quiet voice as he swooped down to take Riku from him. Their arms brushed and the blonde flinched a little, cold blue eyes meeting Sephiroth's calm stare.

Sephiroth smiled secretively as he slowly rose to his feet, presumably to get dressed.

"He wanted to understand."

And now Riku did.

**I had forgotten about it for a long time, but... I once had the same look in my eyes.**

_he's at a delicate age one bad decision can change his entire life_

_we may be already too late for that_

_riku has to fix things for himself though_

_we try to support him but he just closes himself off_

_and what about you cloud?_

_what?_

_he closes off as well_

_leon!_

_i'm not taking sides cloud you know it's true_

_there is a difference between them however_

_sephiroth?_

_cloud closes off because he does not remember_

**Come here, Cloud. I won't hurt you. You... need to remember.**

It was warm, sweet, so softly wet and familiar. Sephiroth had missed these kisses. Cloud may not have been a willing participant this time, but that was due to change very soon. Riku didn't even fight the emotions, simply melting into them as Sephiroth did, barely noticing the fact Sephiroth was indeed now mostly dressed, back in his earlier attire, minus a few accessories. The towel from earlier was crumpled on the floor.

As an irate Leon watched, Sephiroth pushed deeper into Cloud's mouth, the blonde's body tense under his hands as they held the younger man in place, making sure he couldn't pull away. At first Cloud did fight the sudden attack of intimacy, but as sure as the darkness sleeping inside both of them, Cloud's body remembered Sephiroth's touch.

Slowly they relaxed into each other, Cloud hesitantly opening himself to Sephiroth who wasted no time in pursuing Cloud's affections. He could feel the blonde's racing pulse beneath his fingertips, and the familiar shudder of pleasure he usually gave when Sephiroth took complete control of their kisses... And he could feel the curious familiarity Cloud suddenly exuded in return. His fingers cautiously rose to Sephiroth's chest, fisting into the stiff material of his coat... and there was a soft pressure, nearly in awe—the tiny tugging of a smile on Cloud's lips.

Almost testing, their powers gently touched, Sephiroth pushing a little into Cloud's dark magic, hoping, searching—

And then all at once, it fell apart. Or rather, it all fell back into place.

Cloud suddenly pushed Sephiroth away, a strangled cry of breathless pain tearing from him as he collapsed onto the ground. Almost immediately Leon and Sephiroth were knelt beside him, arms embracing and hands restraining to keep him safe, still... His smaller body was violently shaking between the other men, his fingers fisting into his own hair as he half-whimpered, face bowed and hidden from them.

"Cloud—"

Leon spoke directly into his ear, voice thin and controlled but strained with obvious concern.

Cloud merely shook, his wing tightly coiled against his body, trembling knuckles white with pressure as he squeezed at his head.

"H-He...!" he choked, voice hoarse and deep with pain.

"Cloud—!" Leon tried again, his mask slipping a little and reflecting real worry. His arms tightened around the younger man, completely ignoring Sephiroth's own hold on him, and cupped the man's chin in his palm, easing his face up.

"F-Fuck..." Cloud rasped, letting Leon raise his head. "Seph... He...."

Streams of tears ran down his cheeks, blue eyes impossibly wide, a thin line of red blood trickling from his nose.

Sephiroth glanced away with a heavy frown, Riku feeling an aching kind of regret filling him. That was weird... Why would Sephiroth feel guilty about something like that?

"He remembers," he said in a voice of monotone, closing his eyes as he took a deep breath.

Even though Leon said nothing in return, Sephiroth felt the man's body tense at his words. It was just a tightening of muscles and straightening of his back, but... it was still a reaction.

Those little reactions were betraying Leon... and from them Sephiroth could see how much the man really did care for Cloud.

But... Even though Cloud was no doubt stuck in a dilemma between his two lovers, now wasn't the time to solve this love triangle problem. Important questions had to be answered first.

Sliding a bare hand over Cloud's cheek, Sephiroth moved in front of him, gently running a thumb over Cloud's brow to ease his nerves. "Cloud," he said sternly, watching the younger man's body shudder with less intensity than before. "Cloud... I need you to listen."

Misty blue eyes rose to meet his grave stare. "S-Seph..."

"I know, Cloud," he said quietly, just slightly shaking his head and managing a ghost of a smile of concern. "That will come later, I assure you. Right now, however, you need to get control of yourself and answer some questions. You have been through a lot, and I'm sure after that particular memory refresher, you feel even worse... but do this for me."

A soft understanding lit Cloud's eyes as they stared at each other, and after a moment of silence Cloud finally nodded. "Alright."

Leon suddenly stuck his arm between them and, almost nonchalantly, he turned Cloud to face him, muttering, "You're a mess..." as he wiped up the man's tears and nosebleed with Sephiroth's discarded rag of a towel.

Mild jealousy filled Sephiroth as Cloud gave Leon a small, genuine smile, still too shaken up for much else. It hurt to see Cloud respond like that to someone else, and even though Sephiroth understood what had probably happened between the two men to make them come together, it still piqued his possessive nature. He forced down the bitter feeling before it made him do anything childish. Instead, he slipped a hand into Cloud's tangled hair and forced on an expressionless face.

"Cloud..."

Blue eyes flickered up to meet his gaze again, and he couldn't help the warmth he felt inside at being the recipient of that stare again. He'd never say it publicly, but... those weeks without Cloud... had been the worst kind of torture. Sephiroth wanted to know why—_what_ had happened to keep Cloud here, to erase his memory...

"Cloud," he said in a grave voice, his gaze sharp but patient. "What happened with Ansem?"

Even Leon shifted uneasily at that name. "Ansem? What does—"

"I don't know, Seph," Cloud interrupted quietly, lowering his trembling hands as he studied Sephiroth's face. "Ansem and I were separated when Id sent us over... I ended up here alone and..."

"Couldn't remember anything," Sephiroth finished for him, frowning. "Anything from the past nine years, in any case. Sounds as though your memory loss was intentional..."

Leon glanced between the men, probably confused, and it was obvious he wanted to cut in with some questions... but he remained silent, waiting for them to acknowledge him instead.

"But what would they gain from my amnesia?" Cloud asked, finally loosening up a little and relaxing against the other men.

Sephiroth's frown deepened. "Time, maybe..."

_Or someone was playing with them,_ Riku added silently, a familiar unsettling feeling nagging at him. _Maybe someone was... experimenting._

What _could_ be gained from wiping Cloud's memories of the World of Darkness, Id, and Sephiroth? It had basically only resulted in Cloud hating Sephiroth again for what had happened nine years ago... Though, it also threw Sephiroth a little off balance and worried... He'd had to rely on Id's help to return to the Present World to find Cloud...

Well, whatever the motive had been, it just didn't make much sense. In fact, after all that, there were _a lot_ of holes now, like... _now_ where was this man named Anse—

Riku's thoughts abruptly trailed off.

_Yami._

There was no doubt in Riku's mind that Yami was the key to all the holes in the story. He needed to find Yami.

"—does this mean?"

Riku was suddenly returned to the conversation at hand, realizing he'd missed part of it with his wandering thoughts.

"Cloud will be coming back with me," Sephiroth replied to whatever Leon's question had been. His voice left no room for argument, but naturally there would be trouble later about it. "He belongs at my side."

Inside of him, Riku felt the rising of Sephiroth's possessiveness—it seemed he wasn't ready to share Cloud, even if Cloud and Leon were together now. Now _that_... was a hard choice.

And even though Leon said nothing, he was almost bristling, grey eyes dark with anger.

Cloud wisely cut in, his voice firm, but still retaining some shakiness from earlier. "I'm not in the darkness anymore, Seph... I will be making my own decisions now."

"But you belong there," Sephiroth replied in a quiet, sinister voice. As much as he did want Cloud to live free and outside of Id's care, Sephiroth himself was still trapped... and didn't want to be alone. He had no choice, except to do this... "You think anyone else will accept you, Cloud?" he asked a bit coldly. "You're no longer human."

"Sephiroth—" Leon began to growl, warning...

But the older man continued, green eyes narrowing at Cloud. "You understand that," he said, watching the blonde's face darken. "Come back with me... I worked so hard to find you..."

"What about what Cloud wants?" Leon callously demanded.

Riku felt a sharp anger surge within Sephiroth just then, but Cloud's voice made it disperse again.

"I know what I want," Cloud muttered, looking away, "but I don't know what to do..."

"You do what we planned to do," Leon said, right to the point. "We go with Riku, find the gummi piece, help him seal the worlds and find Sora again."

"But—"

An almost obscenely sensual gasp suddenly cut through their conversation, and three heads with raised eyebrows turned towards the sleeping Riku where he lay on a bench not too far away. Riku watched through Sephiroth's eyes as his other self shuddered a little in his sleep, his right shoulder twitching.

What the...? Why had he made such a noise?!

For a moment he felt embarrassed, seeing the curious looks on Leon and Cloud's faces, and Sephiroth's amused smirk—but then he thought about why he might have done that in his sleep in the first place.

Dreaming Riku was experiencing Sephiroth's wing unfolding for the first time. If he had been in his own body, he knew a series of shivers would have passed through him, just remembering how extraordinary the wing had first felt.

"What exactly did you do to him..?" Cloud wondered aloud, watching Riku's sleeping body in case he did something else.

Sephiroth's smirk curled a little more. "He wanted to understand."

Green eyes met blue and Cloud suddenly looked serious. "Leon needs to understand too."

**Those two... Riku, I wonder... Are they always like that?**

Time hopped forward again, Riku trying hard to keep up as the scene moved quickly past, though actually there wasn't much to keep up with. He saw Leon and Cloud leave to talk, and Sephiroth just sitting alone with Riku for some time... _petting_ him again. Weirdo. Riku's body in the real world twitched again a few times in response to reliving Sephiroth's memories, but nothing was as dramatic as the wing thing.

As usual, he wasn't sure how much time passed, but Cloud returned without Leon some time later, quietly coming upon Sephiroth studying Riku's unconscious body again.

_riku looks so much like you it's almost surreal with you two so close like that_

Sephiroth slowly looked up with a small smirk.

_he does bring back old memories so you talked to squall how did it go?_

_it's leon now and he understands he doesn't like it but he understands_

A short nod.

_and your decision?_

_i can't make that choice and you know it seph i never stopped loving squall all those years_

A soft, sad smile stretched across Sephiroth's lips.

_neither did i_

Cloud studied him quietly for a moment, frowning.

_you have an idea i can tell _

Another nod.

_i do i'm not sure i like it yet however we'll discuss it later_

_alright phil is closing the bath soon so we have to move outside _

_it's almost nightfall isn't it? after nine years only a few days under the sun and i'm already used to the day and night cycle_

Resting a hand on the other man's shoulder, Cloud gently shook his head to stop him from speaking further.

_seph not now everyone's setting up tents we got two for the four of us_

_alright i'll bring the boy _

But instead of time skipping forward suddenly like it usually did, his mind went blank and he fell into a soft, comfortable darkness.

**It's time. Go ahead and wake up now...**

...and he did.

Slowly his eyes fluttered open, green gaze immediately focusing on the handsome face hovering over him.

Sephiroth.

He seemed to be laying _yet again_ in his lap, though this time he felt a little too groggy to pull away or complain. A warm hand was running over and over again through his hair, gentle and soothing, and Riku couldn't help smiling and settling more fully into Sephiroth's comfort. The older man returned the expression with an intent stare.

It was just the two of them at the moment, and they were in what seemed to be a fairly plain tent. Beyond Sephiroth, Riku could see more tents outside, and beyond that—orange coliseum walls, and a dark, clear night sky.

"What did you see?" Sephiroth finally asked, fingers pressing a little more firmly against Riku's skull.

A little shiver of pleasure made Riku tense up for a second. "Everything," he replied lazily, tilting his head back, draping it over Sephiroth's leg as he stared out the tent upside down.

"I assume you feel fine, then," Sephiroth murmured, forming a tiny smirk.

"Mmm... Tired," Riku commented, eyes drooping as he smiled back. "A little drifty..."

A soft chuckle was the reply.

Riku reached up, arching an arm over him before bringing it down to rub at his forehead, yawning softly as he spoke again. "So... what's going to happen with you, Cloud, and Leon?"

Green eyes narrowed slightly at the question, shifting away. "Cloud and I have an idea. However... it is rather precarious, considering Squall's personality. Also, I am not too sure of it myself."

Giving a soft sigh, Riku nodded, lips forming a thoughtful frown. "I don't see how all three of you can come out of this happy," he admitted quietly. "At first I thought Leon and Cloud were meant to be together, but after witnessing all your memories..."

"Don't," Sephiroth warned, gaze once again sharp and staring at him. "Just because Squall hasn't suffered what I have doesn't mean he deserves less. Just like you did not understand my story, you probably do not understand his." He paused, and as an afterthought, he added softly, "None of us do."

Riku fell silent after that, lowering his eyes and just letting the older man continue his gentle ministrations. He ran over everything he had witnessed while trapped in Sephiroth's memories—from the Gemini Project, to Id's mysterious ways, to Sephiroth and Cloud's strange relationship.... It was just so much information to take in. If called upon to recite such a story, Riku wouldn't even know where to begin. So many things confused him, brought up more questions...

Most importantly, of course, were Ansem and Yami...

"Sephiroth..." Riku said quietly, to get his attention. "What was Ansem like?"

Unfortunately fate had other plans for Riku that night, and getting answers wasn't part of them.

Cloud suddenly ducked into the tent and, upon seeing Riku was finally back in the world of the living, he gave a relieved smile. "Riku... You're finally awake."

Disappointed with Cloud's appearance—he probably wouldn't be getting answers now—Riku cautiously exchanged a look with Sephiroth, unsure if he should share what he now knew with everyone... but then he glanced back at Cloud. It was so weird seeing him like this again... from his own point of view... The strange thing about it, however, was that _he_ was feeling guilty about the rape nine years ago. Riku had been there, in Sephiroth's memories, and... he remembered how it had felt...

Hoping no one saw his sudden shiver of delight, Riku gave a short nod in response to Cloud. "Yeah, sorry to worry you..."

He decided he did _not_ want to share what he'd seen. It would only complicate things further, and no one needed that extra burden.

"Is he awake?" Leon appeared behind Cloud, peering into the tent. "Riku..." he breathed—was that concern? But before any of them could bat an eyelid, Leon had already pushed past Cloud and knelt beside Riku to check the temperature of his forehead. "You're a little hot... Should get some sleep," he said, and then added with a stern frown before Riku could give a smart reply— "_Real_ sleep, Riku."

As the boy frowned in indignation, he felt Sephiroth nodding above him. "He's right," the man said as he carefully eased Riku off his lap and set him on what seemed to be a makeshift bed of white toga sheets and ratty towels from the public bath draped over the sand floor. It wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep, but... now that the prospect of sleep had been brought up, it was beginning to sound really good.

"Fine," Riku sighed, settling down into the sheets.

"And I shall leave you two to talk," Sephiroth said casually as he got to his feet and ducked through the opening of the tent, carefully folding his wing. "I need to speak with Cloud. Alone."

Cloud nodded, flashing Leon a quick smile before he disappeared with Sephiroth, leaving the brunette and Riku alone.

As much as Riku did want to talk to Leon about things, he wasn't sure how to approach the subjects he wanted to discuss. With Leon, one had to be careful about these kinds of things... otherwise the guy would brush the subject aside or just reply with "Whatever."

Maybe if he didn't try to beat around the bush...

"Are you and Cloud still going to be a couple, even with Sephiroth in the picture?" he asked.

Leon froze up at the question, not even bothering to meet Riku's gaze as he sat there quietly, almost lost in deep thought... But after a moment he finally muttered, "...Sorry, but I'm gonna pass on that subject."

He did that a lot, actually. It was one of the things Riku admired about the guy, even though it was a trait that could also easily piss him off. Riku liked that patience—Leon wasn't reckless like Riku, or even Sora. He thought about _everything_, but kept almost all of it to himself. For some reason it reminded him of Yami.

Sometimes Riku wanted to get into his brain and see just what he could find... kinda like what Sephiroth had let him do to _him_... But Leon wasn't a Gemini and didn't carry that kind of power, so it was impossible. The only way for Riku to know what went on in Leon's brain was for Leon to actually share it with him.

Hah.

Well, maybe if Riku loosened him up a little...

Realizing Leon had gone all quiet again, Riku smiled, stretching his leg to lightly kick at the man's arm in a playful gesture. "Hehe, you're off in your own little world again, Leon," he teased with a small grin, watching a flash of irritation cross the man's face. "I think it's cute when you do that."

Leon glanced away with a low, "Whatever." He hesitated for a moment, frowning as he shifted his eyes back over to Riku. "To answer your question... Whatever happens, happens. Reality isn't so kind. Everything doesn't work out the way you want it to."

"So you think Cloud is going to choose Sephiroth, and that's why..." Riku let it trail off, and Leon sighed, picking up where he left off.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I'm trying not to think about it..."

"But you're still thinking about it," Riku mused, feeling really awful for the guy...

After all of that coliseum mumbo jumbo, and then the time spent helping Cloud recover in Traverse Town... all of that angst, all of those awkward smiles and stuff... After all of that, and finally realizing his feelings for Cloud, Leon was prepared to give it all up already? To his former best friend?

Well... that was just stupid.

"You're giving up too easily," Riku sighed.

"Are you done yet...?" Leon asked quietly. "I don't want to talk about that."

"Then what do you want to talk about?"

"...I don't know."

"I think running away from it is only going to make it worse," Riku muttered, turning his face up to stare at the arch of the tent.

"Think what you want," Leon replied. "And in any case... You're running from something too. Most of us are."

An uncomfortable silence spread between them, thick with unasked questions and buried answers, neither of them really wanting to continue on with that subject anymore. It was too... raw. Riku was scared to think about it too.

That's how Leon must feel about it as well.

Frowning up at the tent stretched above him, Riku thought back to his time in Sephiroth's memories, contemplating what Sephiroth was running from. After that experience, Riku really wasn't so worried about him anymore. Before he had been a little cautious, but now that he understood... He really saw where Sephiroth was coming from.

Riku did understand that even though Cloud had been the one who pulled them into darkness, Sephiroth now seemed to be the dark one of the Gemini pairing. He held a lot of pure intentions behind his actions, but... Sephiroth wasn't pure himself. There was a lot of negativity inside of him, just waiting to break free...

That of course led Riku to ponder what Sephiroth had told him earlier in the day, about Sin Harvest...

_I find it almost disturbing, how much of myself I see in you..._

_There is another side to you that not even you know exists, boy._

_A Darkness._

_Keyblade master, are you sure you're on the right side?_

Riku swallowed thickly, feeling a kind of sick dread settling inside of him. There was a lot of truth behind those words... Sephiroth had been partially right. Riku had noticed some things about him that he wasn't particularly proud of.

Like the rape... he _liked_ that kind of control... And the wing. He _liked_ the wing. Sephiroth's beautiful power, too. He _liked_ having it...

"Leon..." he said slowly, almost nervously although he did his best to keep his voice straight.

"Hm?"

"Um... Is what we're doing.... _right_?" he asked... and then realizing how dumb that sounded, he added onto it. "I mean, who's to say that what Ansem was trying wasn't going to be good in the long run? The Gemini thing, and all his other experiments... I know we're doing the right thing by saving as many people as we can and suppressing the heartless, but... There has to be a reason behind the heartless in the first place, right?"

As his words died off and another silence stretched between them, Riku felt a little silly with himself. Here he was, Savior of the worlds, doubting his mission... Playing the line between light and darkness.

But it seemed.... maybe Leon understood after all.

"Right and wrong are not what separate us and our enemies," the man said carefully, gazing solemnly down at Riku. "It's our different standpoints, our perspectives that separate us." He paused for a second, frown thinning a little. "Before Cloud remembered everything, I had been sitting there, thinking to myself... 'I should be more angry about the situation. I should be angry about Sephiroth raping Cloud, about Sephiroth acting so superior,' and... well... The point is that I couldn't bring myself to be honestly angry. I admit I got jealous when he claimed Cloud as his... but I couldn't fight him."

Riku blinked up at him, curious.

Leon continued in a firmer tone. "A part of me knew I should hate Sephiroth for what he had done, but the other part was just relieved to see him alive and well. The two of us used to be so close, and when he and Cloud disappeared from my life shortly before Hollow Bastion fell... I didn't know how I was going to live."

The man stopped here for a moment, turning his gaze away again, and Riku watched the changes in his face as he tried to form the words for what he wanted to say.

"Someday you're bound to lose everything. Everybody around you will be gone," he explained a little coldly, eyes dark and distant. "Then what are you left with? Nothing. Nobody... It's so miserable. And it's inevitable."

"Leon..." Riku breathed, a little surprised at the man's words. Is that really what he thought...? That was so... _depressing_.

"It's so hard to recover from something like that," Leon muttered. "I never ever want to deal with that again. It's happened too many times in my past." He shook his head, narrowing his eyes as he returned his gaze to Riku. "So I can't be mad at Sephiroth. I once tried hating him, but I couldn't. The standpoint just didn't work. So he can do whatever he wants... I just don't want to be alone again. That's what I fight for." He paused again, giving a dry little smirk. "Nothing is right or wrong about that, Riku... And nothing is right or wrong about Sephiroth wanting Cloud back on his side. Those are our different standpoints. The same can be said about you and Sora, or even Yami... Your enemies aren't necessarily evil. They just think differently."

Too moved to really reply with a coherent thought, Riku gave a quiet, "Oh..." in response, letting that subject drop as well.

He'd never really thought about it that way...

But then, if Leon wasn't mad at Sephiroth... why didn't he tell them? It just didn't seem fair. Sure, Sephiroth and Cloud had been together for several years before Cloud and Leon had hit it off, but Leon really cared about Cloud, and they were all _friends_... They shouldn't have to fight over this. It was just so _wrong_.

"Hey Leon..." Riku said, filling the thick silence with another of his abrupt questions. "Why don't you just go find Cloud and Sephiroth and talk to them?"

After a moment of silence, Leon sighed. "They've been gone well over an hour... do you really think they're still talking?"

"Well, why wouldn't they... be....." Riku began, trailing off as the suggestive comment hit him. "Oh," he mouthed, looking down with a soft blush. "Well... _still_... I think you should go talk to them. I don't think Sephiroth understands your _standpoint_. Hint hint."

Leon managed an amused smile at that. "Maybe. I guess I can't cause any more damage."

"Yeah," Riku agreed, returning the smile. "I'll get some rest. You go clear some things up with them."

As Leon got to his feet and ducked out of the tent, he paused a second, giving the boy a meaningful glance. "I'll be back," he said... but somehow, Riku thought he really meant something else.

_Thanks_.

When Leon left, Riku looked away from the tent exit, curling up a little as he contemplated Leon's words.... but the more he thought about it, the more confused he became about his own standpoint. He had thought he'd had it—he was fighting to save the worlds, right? To stop the heartless? But... something felt wrong about it.

Back then, Leon had said Duty versus Happiness....

Riku had chosen Duty... so why did it feel so wrong?

But then... there was no right or wrong. Argh.

Covering his face with his hands, he shuddered, just deciding to get some sleep instead of waiting for the others to return. They were probably all sitting around discussing things in their other tent, wherever it was. With that image in mind, Riku closed his eyes and slowly let the murmur of warriors in surrounding tents lull him off to sleep.

Leon, Cloud, nor Sephiroth came back that night.

-o-o-o-o-o-

Sora had done it.

He was well within the inner parts of the castle, sneaking room to room to find whatever he was looking for. So far he hadn't been caught... but that was likely to change, each passing minute making him increasingly nervous.

So far he'd found a few strange rooms—an old laboratory with weird sketches dotting the walls, a few empty bedrooms... and Yami's bedroom, which turned up nothing. But he wasn't going to give up yet! He could feel it inside of him—he was getting close to something good.

He just had to find the right room...

**CAW!!**

Sora froze in the middle of the long corridor, the annoying call echoing in his ears. Ahh, shit... He couldn't get caught now! Especially by that woman's crow!

He glanced both ways down the hall, trying to determine which way the crow was, but then, feeling excessively paranoid, he just decided to duck into the nearest room. He quietly opened the door and slipped inside, quickly clicking the door closed just as the flapping of wings could be heard coming closer.

Holding his breath and hoping the crow hadn't seen or heard him, Sora waited a few painful seconds, listening to the bird flap down the hallway, completely passing the room he was in.

That had been a little too close...

_I should probably stay in here for a little while, just in case it comes back..._

Sora sighed, moving away from the door and turning around to see just where he was.

His first impression was books. Lots of them... and a large, fine desk. The place looked like a wild animal had been set loose in there—papers scattered everywhere, books thrown off shelves, a large chair overturned... a few paintings torn or knocked completely off the wall.

Huh.

Sora curiously picked up a few papers off the ground, skimming over them with a confused frown.

One of them was completely filled with sketchy graphs that he didn't understand, and the other few were filled with equations and technical terms he _really_ didn't even want to understand. He dropped them and moved on.

At first he considered looking in the large desk, but...

A large pile of parchment caught his eye. It was in the corner of the room by the largest bookshelf... many yellow pages stained with red and black ink. The rest of the room had papers littered everywhere, but... there was a _pile_ here. Someone had deliberately made this pile.

Unable to resist digging through them, Sora approached the bookshelf, his last pair of shoes (he was beginning to regret destroying all his other clothes) brushing against a few crumpled pages. He knelt down and began sorting through them, discarding what he didn't want to bother trying to decipher—which was basically most of it.

And then there it was.

As Sora's fingers slowly peeled back the yellowed, ink-stained sheets of parchment, he uncovered the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in this dreary place.

Amber eyes seemed to stare through him from their frozen place in the painting, and with a ticklish feeling in his gut, he recognized them immediately. He'd know those eyes anywhere.

Though the face in the portrait was slightly older and more regal, and the pearl-white hair was combed back, Sora knew. And though the painting must have been buried there for long years, covered in layers of old writings, its colors still shone like new, its gold frame still perfectly polished; years it had been buried, but it looked so much like an older version of that _demon_.

With awe-filled eyes and a soft gasp, Sora propped the frame against the bookshelf so he could crawl closer to it. Carefully he passed a hovering hand over the flawless work of art, not daring to touch it and spoil its perfection... He just wanted to _see_.

"Yami..."

He breathed the name out without realizing it, too fascinated by this wondrous discovery to pay much attention to anything else.

So many questions were running through his head now, too many that didn't make sense, yet they _did_ somehow.

The man in the painting... with his finely arched eyebrows and hands delicately folded in front of him... He was _royalty_. The deep reds and golden yellows of his intricately-designed jacket, the glinting rings on his slim fingers... Even his expression—haughty, but still respectful and kind—spoke of refinement and an austere, noble life.

Except...

Sora frowned, tracing his fingers up the frame as he inspected the details of the portrait.

Something was wrong about it. Something didn't fit quite right...

Ah.

That's it.

The portrait of the man had captured everything it could have perfectly—from that perfectly-combed long white hair and his smooth dark skin—so Sora was sure the artist had been of the highest talent. However, it was obvious he had painted it to reflect what was there, not what was _missing_, and that was what was wrong with the painting.

There was no happiness in the man's eyes, no quirk of a smile on his lips, no amusement written on that fine face.

No emotion. _Not_ Yami.

And somehow Sora knew this man wasn't wearing a mask.

This man had hated his wealth, his power... his life. That was why this portrait had been hidden away, not displayed in a magnificent hall for all to see, for its colors to fade and its frame to tarnish and its surface to coat with dust. If it had been displayed at all, it couldn't have been for long.

It looked so much like him, this portrait...

There _had_ to be a connection.

Slowly Sora knelt closer, fingers running over the finely-chiseled nameplate of gold.

"Once I refused to live my life following orders," Sora read, squinting to see the tiny cursive print. "But now I am guilty of giving them, and I cannot escape. Let my rule be remembered as a peaceful one at least, for I am aiming for something far greater, and when the time comes, I fear they all will have forgotten me." Running his finger over the name, Sora finished, "Lord Ansem, Honored Ruler of Hollow Bastion."

He was just leaning back when he heard the soft, sad chuckle behind him.

Sora spun around, almost falling over as he did so, his face clearly written with guilt and a level of fear of being caught snooping around.

"And they did," Yami said quietly as he stepped further into the room, his mouth fit with a frown as he regarded the portrait behind Sora.

"They did what?" Sora asked, cautiously edging away from the pristine memoir of a man who looked too much like Yami to be a coincidence. Those amber eyes met Sora's blue, and the boy felt himself shrink back, a painful shiver coursing through him.

"They forgot him," Yami replied simply.

-o-o-o-o-o-

"Riku.... Sora...."

_caw...._

_caw...!_

"You've forgotten about me."

For a moment Riku thought he could feel the brush of warm ocean air against his cheeks, but when he smiled and turned towards the breeze, it became something else entirely.

"Riku..."

He cracked his tired eyes open, finding a painfully familiar face returning his smile.

"Sora..."

The warm hand brushed his cheek again, thumb running a little roughly over his lips.

Such a shame it was only a dream.

Then again, considering how his dreams usually ended up... maybe it was best that this was a dream after all.

Riku tried squinting to see what was past Sora, but all he really saw were shadows... He couldn't determine where this new dream setting was—gone were the scaffolds of the rainy city, the rundown cathedral, the rocky cliffs, and the warm bed that had been present in his previous dreams.

He tried a different approach, curious as to which Sora had come to torture him today.

With an encouraging smile up at Sora, Riku slid his hands up the boy leaning over him, feeling the smooth skin of his naked back and—

No wings.

So this wasn't the dark-winged Sora...

...now that he thought about it... he hadn't really had one of these realistic dreams in a long time. Either something bad was going to happen in real life, or...

Maybe something was wrong with _Sora_.

"It's funny..."

Riku suddenly shivered as Sora's lips vibrated against his sensitive neck, easing him down into the soft darkness they were laying in. He felt it pulling gently at him, enveloping his body ever-so-slightly without trying to drag him under. It was like... a pool of shadows, firm yet liquid at the same time, so soft and yielding, yet strong enough to hold them afloat.

"What's funny...?" Riku asked quietly, threading his fingers in Sora's hair and pulling him closer, seeking some more of that warmth he missed...

Because after all, even if it was just a dream... it was still Sora.

"It's funny..." Sora repeated in a dark whisper, nose brushing against his jaw. He faintly exhaled, his breath a welcomed caress against Riku's skin. His warm hands trailed downward across Riku's bare skin, cupping his hips and pulling him a little closer.

Their bodies sank a little further, the darkness inching over Riku's nude body.

Blue eyes smiled secretively.

"It's funny how trusting you are."

Riku felt Sora's hands slip into the inky pool around them, his smaller body pressing downward as his arms came up from under Riku, curling around his waist.

Trapped.

As he slowly sank a little deeper, the darkness around them began to transform, shifting and hardening....

Long, gnarled fingers rose out of the sea of black ink, drawing upward, forming familiar skinny arms and torsos as they climbed out of the black. Tentacle-like wisps of shadow snaked around him, holding him helplessly in place as Sora-like heartless swarmed atop the dark pool, eagerly wading closer to him. Amongst all the black forms and yellow eyes, only the body atop Riku's remained constant, blue eyes unfazed by the danger surrounding them.

It was just a dream, but...

The painful constriction of the tendrils, the aching cold of the darkness all felt too real. Sora's warm body on his, that happy little smile...

Painful.

Riku couldn't help feeling the sharp dread of what was undoubtedly going to come.

_Just let me wake up..._

He didn't even fight the dark vines squirming, exploring his body, or the heartless Soras fingering their way between him and the cruel apparition of his real Sora.

_It's just a dream..._

Darkness sucked at his silver hair, tendrils pushed at his skin, making him gasp—but then the dark vines thrust into his mouth, choking, invading...

_Just... a dream..._

"Gck—!"

He gave a startled choke, green eyes wide with pain.

Sora smiled above him.

"Nngh...!"

_Hurts..._

This time... Riku did not wake up from his nightmare.

-o-o-o-o-o-

When morning came, the boy was still dreaming, squirming uneasily in his sleep and audibly crying. Later on, when they were gone from the coliseum, when Leon asked him what he had been dreaming, and Riku refused to answer, Riku learned it had taken the man several minutes to shake him awake.

Something... wanted to keep him there.

Riku was hardly coherent when he finally woke up, quivering and whimpering from aftershocks of the nightmare, eyes dark with fear as Leon held him, calmed him... Even though silent minutes passed since he had been forced awake, the feeling of the darkness on him, _in_ him... never went away.

"Riku, it's okay... It was just a dream."

Leon's deep voice warmed him inside, chasing away some of the shadows surrounding his heart.

"I-I know..." he rasped quietly, forcing himself back to reality. "A dream..."

He curled his fingers in Leon's shaggy hair, surprised when cold wetness coated his hands. Sniffling, Riku slowly drew away from Leon, feeling his discomfort sink away as he remembered just where he was and what had happened yesterday.

That dream... He wouldn't forget it... _ever_... or its effects... but in order to overcome it, Riku needed to focus on other things.

"Your hair..." he muttered, glancing at the older man with misty eyes. "It's wet..." He paused, his mind clearing just a little more as he stared at the brunette. "And you're shirtless..."

Leon nodded slightly, ruffling Riku's silver hair as he drew away. "Took a bath just before I came here to get you."

Riku frowned, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

Something was _different_... about Leon.

"What happened last night?" he asked curiously.

When Leon looked away and shifted a little, Riku's suspicions grew—and then Cloud and Sephiroth chose that moment to show up, crowding into the tent with strangely happy Good Mornings.

They were freshly bathed too, and had brought in the rest of Leon's clothes.

Glancing between the three men, Riku frowned, noticing there was a complete lack of adversity between them now. Odd.

"Riku, is something wrong?" Cloud asked, leaning toward him to check his forehead, much like Leon had the night before. "You're clammy... and feverish."

"He had a nightmare," Leon explained shortly. "I just managed to wake him up."

Sephiroth and Leon suddenly exchanged sharp, meaningful glances. When the brunette turned his head, Riku saw a peculiar look of satisfaction on his face. And...

Nooo....

That couldn't be a _blush_.

Could it?

"......" Riku glanced between them, and then back at Cloud, deciding to try his earlier question again. "What happened last night? Did you guys figure things out?"

A deeply amused smirk crossed Sephiroth's face as he slowly turned his eyes away from Leon to glance at Riku. "A little too well, perhaps," he commented.

Oh.

Riku blinked, suddenly flushing a little as well.

"_Oh­_..." he breathed, scratching at his head in embarrassment. "So what's going to happen?"

Three heads turned as Sephiroth rose back to his feet and folded his wing behind him. "I'm going back," he said, voice guarded but... accepting.

Riku's eyes widened in surprise, especially because it didn't seem like Leon or Cloud was going to stop him. They must have already talked this over last night. "But why...?" he asked, feeling a heavy sadness welling inside of him. He really didn't want Sephiroth to leave, especially after yesterday's events...

"I have to," Sephiroth replied easily. "My master's power is what's keeping me here. It's already been too long..." He paused, green eyes hardening with regret. "I need to go back. I belong in the world of darkness, unlike Cloud who has the freedom to choose now."

That's right... Cloud did have the freedom to choose now. And Sephiroth _was_ all alone... He was going back to the darkness, with just Id for company.

"Seph..." he murmured, giving him a deep look. "That's..."

But Sephiroth gave a dry chuckle, reaching a hand out to smooth Riku's hair. "I'd say goodbye, but I _will_ be coming back," he assured. "Remember that."

And with that, he turned away, giving _both_ Cloud and Leon soft kisses before he left the tent, shooting Riku one last knowing look before he disappeared. Confused, Riku glanced at Leon for explanation, but the man was already getting to his feet as well, his face set with a heavy frown.

"Come on, Cloud," he said. "He'll be back before you know it."

The blonde nodded, giving a wistful sigh. "I know."

Riku also sighed, more than a little frustrated from his nightmare and being left out of the trio's secrets. "What now?" he asked a little impatiently, forming an almost petulant look through his exhaustion.

"We continue on with the next world," Leon said as he picked up his shirt from where Cloud had set it down earlier when he and Sephiroth had come in.

"What about the tournament?" Riku asked, suddenly surprised. Wasn't that why they had come here in the first place?

Leon slipped the shirt over his head and pulled it down over his tight abs, Riku catching a glimpse of more than one tiny bruise—what the?! Were those...?

"We already went to Phil, but he said the tournament was still full," Leon grumbled. "Anyway, you're not in the best health after this morning, Riku... We'll have to stop by Traverse Town for a good night's sleep."

Cloud suddenly smirked and Riku gave him an odd look. "What's so funny?"

"Leon doesn't want to admit he needs the rest too," the blonde said, and Leon shot him a warning glare. "But he's right, either way. We should get going now."

As the three of them began preparing to leave—Leon getting dressed fully, Cloud gathering up the sheets and towels, and Riku helping him—Riku could sense an almost sad air around them. Leon was no doubt disappointed about the tournament, and Cloud was upset about Sephiroth leaving... not to mention Riku was still indescribably disturbed about his earlier dream...

It was probably a good thing they were returning to Traverse Town, even if it was just for a little while.

But then... Even if so much had happened to them in one day, it seemed a little pathetic that they were already returning home.

Home...

Riku shivered.

They took down the tent in silence, watching other warriors waking up and starting their day. There was an excited buzz of talk in the air, the people no doubt eager for the tournament to start. Leon looked even more sullen because of it.

Raking a hand through his wet hair, the man sighed, giving an almost inaudible curse as he glanced wistfully over at the lobby. "Where is that brat Yami when we need him..."

At first that comment confused Riku, but then he remembered their last tournament and how it had probably been _Yami_ who had made the heartless disappear, opening up a spot for him and Sora to fight. But now Yami wasn't here....

Riku felt a curious pang of regret inside, suddenly realizing, remembering that Yami really wasn't coming back. He really wasn't going to help them anymore...

...what was he doing now?

"Who knows," Cloud replied off-handedly to Leon's question, giving his wing a tired stretch.

Somehow that seemed so wrong.

They—Cloud and Leon and everyone else—they really didn't understand Yami, did they? Then again, neither did Riku, but...

He suddenly recalled what Sephiroth had said to him about Leon.

_Just like you did not understand my story, you probably do not understand his. None of us do._

So... If they had misunderstood Sephiroth and Leon so much, who's to say they weren't misunderstanding Yami as well?

That was the thought that stayed with him all the way back to Traverse Town.

-o-o-o-o-o-

* * *

Now **that** was hell to write. Fun, but hell... I hope it wasn't _too_ long for anyone. I just had to get it all done, and I refused to write a fourth part. Anywho... YAY! It's finished! Now I can get started on Chapter 19! I think I can get that one done in only two parts... -.-; Oh, and I disclaim the three _Kare Kano_-ish quotes that were in there. I draw a lot of romantic inspiration from that manga. 

Holy shit, 840 reviews!! Really, I'm just so _so_ **_so_** thankful for all of your feedback and support! It means so much to me!!! T-T Many thanks to the girls of "the machination" for their excellent inspiration and reassurances (which is our co-write account, if you haven't noticed it yet), and of course thanks to Lane for putting up with my late-night callings XD

**Note: **I will be working on some _awesome_ co-writes under the account "the machination" with some well-known KH writers. The link is in my profile.

**Another Note: **_Like what you just read? Please join my yahoo group where you get news on chapter progress, contests, and more!_


	29. Intermission Interlude Thingy 3: Waiting...

Two years. I can't believe I've been working on this fanfic for **_two years_**. Considering my history of unfinished progress (before I took on this penname), I find this phenomenal. Thank you for all of your support and I hope you continue to love this story as much as I do, no matter what happens.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Stygian Solace. Let's have another successful year, yeah?

* * *

_Author Notes:_

As you see, I didn't have enough time to work out an entire new chapter for SS's birthday. My life is hectic right now, and my time is very limited, especially with all these other projects I have going on right now. SS will _always_ be my main priority (despite the wishes of many others), but sometimes it has to suffer too.

So, here's an intermission I pieced together from _a lot _of character perspectives, to keep you occupied until Chapter 19. Enjoy. :D Or not... It was supposed to be light-hearted and a break from angst, but alas, it sort of turned into something... angstier. X.x; Just think of this as a lot of little drabbles stuck together, I guess.

* * *

**_Intermission Interlude Thingy #3: _**_Waiting in the Shadows_****

-o-o-

Beauty surrounded him.

The lush, emerald jungle echoed with a cacophony of countless exotic shrieks and wails. Colorful bird after bird swept by with a purr of feathers, just as a silent serpent with gleaming eyes slithered down the trunk of a tree infested with purple vines, and unnamed beasts of nightmares stalked the lower levels of vegetation, tails swishing, claws digging into soft branches. Though Riku had seen many things on his adventure already, this setting, this _beauty_ impressed him the most. _This_ was the kind of adventure he had wished for, back on Destiny Islands.

Unfortunately the heartless had begun to infest this world too... thanks to the trinity's arrival. Those damn creatures were following Riku's keyblade, never failing to hone in on him no matter where he was or who was with him. Leon and Cloud were doing their best to keep his spirits up, but...

Some things they couldn't help. For some civilians of this rich jungle, they had been too late in arriving here...

Not because of the heartless. No...

Because of a human.

A _human_ had hunted some of the animals, and successfully murdered a few. After a skirmish, Cloud and Leon had managed to take the crazed human and his heartless ride down, but...

Now the small, empty eyes of the apes regarded their fallen kind, the bodies carefully laid out by a woman and her apeman friend. The trinity was silent. Only the song of the jungle remained, thrumming above, below, around them, trapping them in this one, sad moment.

Riku had encountered death only a few times in his past and he remembered each moment as though it had just happened. He remembered many things like that, little episodes in his memory that haunted him, retelling better times than this. Better times, and worse.

And here he had another to add to the list.

Death had a certain effect on him. In the beginning the heartless had been easy to fight, as he assumed their bodies merely returned to the darkness whence they came, but now he knew better, and that every heartless he defeated could very well be one of his friends who had been consumed by the storm that had destroyed Destiny Islands.

Was he killing people he knew? Was this right? Death... What would happen if he, the keyblade master, perished in a fight? Fell to the darkness? Lost his heart?

Back home, he'd never had to think of this kind of stuff. Death had never worried him. Giving into the fight, giving into the darkness... That had never been an option. Losing Sora? He'd never even imagined it.

Back home, he had just wanted to be _free_.

Free from his parents, free from the pressure of expectations, free from...

-o-o-

...that cage, that thin-wired purgatory between the small bird and the vast blue sky. Even a nine-year-old such as yourself had understood what it felt like to be caged that way. Just a flip of a latch, just a pull on the gold wire doors, and your birthday present had been a blur in the sky after that. You'll always remember that subtle blue on blue and rustle of wings.

But your father is furious.

_That_ is evident by angry red cheeks and curling fists as he stalks back and forth across the expensive rugs of his study.

You sit in your chair, hands folded in your lap, your back straight and chin held aloft, the perfect little gentleman as your mother had taught you, even now as you imagine the gavel cracking three times sharply, and wait for your punishment to be announced. Will it be a caning? Will it be no dinner for a week? Will it be a four-month grounding again?

Just _what_ is the price for freedom?

The bird had been pretty, its soft feathers a bright blue like Sora's eyes, and its song like the peaceful tinkling of a wind chime on a breezy day. It had probably made a nice-sized hole in your mommy's purse. You _had_ been surprised on your birthday, but the bird had started reminding you of yourself.

Trapped in an elegant cage of false gold.

Out of place in a world you did not care for.

Misunderstood no matter what you sang.

You don't belong. The bird hadn't either.

Your father is ranting again, running through the list of things he hates about you, of what you are expected to do, of the future he has planned out for you, of why you should be thankful for his upbringing, and—

"Are you listening to me, Riku?!"

"Yes, Sir," is your automatic response to everything.

—and of how your friends are a bad influence on you and that you shouldn't be allowed to wander off to that 'damn island of savages.'

Those _savages_ are your friends. Sora, Kairi, Tidus, Wakka, Selphie... That _island_ is your sanctuary.

Oh God, how you hate your life. How you wish you had been raised like Sora, with a caring mother and the freedom to do whatever you wished, as long as you were home in time for dinner. Or even like Tidus, with a father that at least has his obsessions aimed in the right direction—Tidus, at least raised around something he loves, blitzball, and has the freedom to avoid his testy father whenever he wants. Or even...

Or even like Kairi, with no parents that she can remember, brought up by someone who still loves her, who still sees her as who she is, not who she _can_ be.

Nobody understands you.

You just... want to fly away.

Three days later, after stepping off the ferry to return home from school—no stops, no hellos, no nothing, as your father had instructed—you spy a circle of older boys huddled around a mess of blue feathers. Its wrangled body seems to spell out your own fate, as one of the boys nudges its tattered wing with a stick.

"Looks like a cat got to it," one of them comments.

You want to cry.

But you keep walking, your back straight and chin held aloft, the perfect little gentleman as your mother had taught you. You feel so lonely as you pass by, like you're being swept away. You just want to...

-o-o-

—disappear."

"I won't," he replied, nuzzling his face into my neck. I felt him smiling. "I'll take you with me, Sora. We'll both go." He sounded so much happier now. "We'll build a raft and leave this island—we'll go explore other worlds. How does that sound?"

People were usually wary of Riku's smile, suspicious of his intentions, but I knew better. They said my smile was infectious, but they obviously didn't know Riku very well. When he smiled... _really_ smiled...

It was as great as the first bite of chocolate ice cream after long, hot day of yardwork.

"It sounds awesome!" I laughed, and his arms tightened around me.

I shifted a little, my ancient mattress shaking under us at my movement, and I pulled away enough to look at him. His green eyes were glittering with so much happiness that I couldn't help grinning, feeling my cheeks warm.

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Sora..." he said, his brilliant smile turning a little sad.

Snuggling into his warmer body, I giggled. "Yeah, you'd have to find someone else's bed to sneak into!"

"Like you actually care," he retorted, pinching my pudgy belly.

I yelped, batting his hands away before clinging more tightly to him. "You're mean," I pouted. "And you didn't tell me why you're all anti-social now."

Suddenly his body went rigid. He obviously didn't want to talk about it... He'd probably thought I had already forgotten about what we had been discussing earlier. Was he trying to escape the topic? What was so scary about answering?

"Riku?"

He buried his face back into my neck and breathed. "Fine...."

I twisted my hands in his hair and waited.

"Once in a while... For some reason I get this strange feeling," he said quietly, lifting his head so I could hear him clearly. "I've never told this to anyone before, but... When I'm laughing with everyone, or when I'm reading, or when I'm on the ferry to school, sometimes, all of a sudden, everything goes quiet and..." His fingers curled into my nightshirt. "...and my mind goes somewhere really far away," he said. "When I come back to reality, it seems like a lot of time has passed, but it's really only been a few seconds."

I nodded in encouragement as he paused to collect his thoughts. I recognized the feeling. Didn't it happen to everyone?

"When that happens," he continued softly, "I feel like I'm lost and alone, even though I'm with all of my friends. It's like a voice from deep inside of me is telling me... _This isn't where you belong._" A gentle shudder ran through his body and he lowered his face once again. "I never understood it before, but... I think I do now."

Left confused and a little shaken, I could only hold onto him, unsure of how to reply to something like that. I think...

I think _that_ was when I realized I loved him.

I never wanted him to be alone. If I could always be there with him... That would be the best thing in the world.

Riku... He really wasn't as strong as everyone thought he was, was he? Especially on these nightly encounters, when he came to visit me because he can't stand it at home... He really was the most sensitive. He was so...

-o-o-

..._frail_.

"Look at you. Don't you have anything to say about this?"

You shook your head.

Always keep your gaze averted, never meet her eyes, never talk back...

But _by the light_, you cannot stand her voice, which, you decided long ago, sounded most like a clogged drain sucking down water.

"How can you miss a calculation as simple as this, _boy_?"

Always remain meek, never try to explain anything... Never defend yourself.

Ignore her spider eyebrows. _Ignore_ them.

"Well. Your father would be _furious_. Best thank me for not telling him of your serious lack of attention with your studies. Do _not_ even let me get into the mess you've made with your physics assignments. You're _thirteen_ already, young master. You best shape up if you want to be a suitable heir, as you _should_ be."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Good. Now hold out your hands."

Another punishment?

Obediently you stretched your fingers, tiny little things that looked even more delicate because of your gaudy robes. But your professor never looked at your thin wrists, dwarfed by the large cuffs of your sleeves. She never saw the sharp angles of your ribs like your nanny did whenever she undressed you for your evening baths. Your body is a land where even the angels would fear to tread, too bony, too fragile from all the stress you have had to put up with.

All these studies, all these lessons...

Did they not see your hollow smiles? Did they not notice the lack of enthusiasm in your yellow gaze?

Of course not. The more honest you tried to be, the more you were misunderstood.... and the fact that no one valued the truth as much as you did hurt you even more.

You never meant to be a bad person.

You just wanted acceptance.

Why does everyone feel like your enemy?

As her cane rapped against your frail hands, you did not even bat an eyelid. You were already gone, lost in a quelling of inner thoughts, words.... The burning whispers were back, assuring you everything would be fine in a few years.

When your so-called regal family died, you would be laughing alone... But at least you would be laughing.

Even when her whipping began to cut into your tanned skin, you...

-o-o-

...didn't cry.

Squall _never_ cried.

Maybe that was what drew me to him at that young age. I never asked questions... Maybe that was what kept _him_ near me all those years. After Rinoa's death he had closed himself up, never daring to smile much, talk much. Even meeting someone else's gaze seemed like a curse to him, like he was afraid of getting too close to anyone again, as though they too would be taken from him.

He was an orphan to begin with, a shy, curious little kid with large stormy blue eyes that a person couldn't help falling in love with. We orphans had all been friends, but he had stuck to Rinoa the most. Her brash, straight-forward ways had impressed him probably because he didn't think he had the courage to do the things she did himself. He did, of course.

Have the courage, I mean. _Lionheart_. He never realized it though.

I doubt he realizes it even now.

It's a curious thing to think about.

Those wings, the ones etched into the back of his jacket as I had seen at the coliseum...

What do they represent? A tribute to Rinoa for her laughter, her influence on the ice cube known as Squall? A sad reminder of a love that never had time to grow? Were the wings Rinoa's own, to guide her spirit safely? To always know where to look to find him?

Perhaps _Leon's_ wings do not even represent anything Rinoa at all. Perhaps they're the lingering sign that Squall had once existed. Perhaps they're his stigma. Perhaps they're for Hollow Bastion, for a life so suddenly left behind, for all those people swallowed by the darkness when he, of all people, had been saved.

Curious, indeed. And why that color? Why _wings_?

It is almost like a twisted extension of the joke Fate had dealt Cloud and myself, with our own one wings.

Leon is not a Gemini, but he is just as cursed as we are.

Now that I know he is alive, and Cloud is in safe hands, perhaps Squall will...

-o-o-

—open up a little?"

"....."

"C'mon, Squall!"

No.

Stop remembering.

_Stop_ thinking about it.

"Let's get Seifer and go get some ice cream!!"

She's gone.

They're all gone.

Stop thinking about it.

"Leon... You okay?"

Grey eyes raise to meet concerned blue.

"I'm fine, Cloud."

A relieved smile.

"You were there for me, you know," he said, voice suggestive. "If you ever just need to—

-o-o-

...break down and cry.

Oh God, how embarrassing.

Daddy will be _so_ mad. Worried, but mad. That's how it always worked.

I can't get up though... my ankle hurts too much. The rain's just pouring down, soaking my pretty new dress and ruining the hair that Selphie had battled with for so long, threatening strand after strand with tweezers if they didn't behave. They had.

But now it's all ruined!

I can't even feel my tears anymore, the cold rain washing my warmth away.

How long have I been here, in the street, waiting for someone to come help...?

Do I even look human anymore, with all this mud covering me...?

Will I die here from the cold, sprained ankle, looking for all the world like a drowned rat? What will they say when they find my body being pecked at by seagulls?

'Oh, poor Kairi... When she came here a few years ago, I had no idea she'd end up like this. And she'd had so much potential...'

No. That can't happen!

Riku and Sora would never forgive me for something like this, for acting so weak when they're so strong. Sometimes I wish I was a boy, just so I could be that much closer to them... Sometimes I feel so alone, when they're off doing their boy things... wrestling... sparring... Even Selphie can sometimes hold up against them.

But me?

Weak.

I hated being weak.

....Sora... Riku.....

Feeling a new wave of tears, I try struggling to my feet, only to find that my ankle gives out on me again. I crash to the muddy street with a fresh cry of pain, the sound of which is drowned in the downpour.

Oh God... what am I going to do?

Somebody, anybody help me!

"Kairi?!"

_Splish-splash Splish-splash Splish-splash Splish-splash_

The sound of Sora's large feet never sounded more comforting.

"Kairi.... what happened?!"

I can only...

-o-o-

...crack a dry smile at your own misfortune.

For once you are wasting time, chin resting in one palm, elbow propped on the worn desk you have grown accustomed to working on, your gaze focusing on only the dancing flame in front of yourself. Your free fingers are swirling around the hot wax of the wide-based candle, mesmerized by the texture.

You love the feel of drying wax blanketing your slender fingers, how it is so hot at first but cools down just as it becomes unbearable, how the hardening wax molds around your skin like it is your own.

You never liked the bitter smell of a candle just extinguished, however, because of the way its fleeting death filled your throat and choked you with its thickness.

For a moment you wonder why you are here, idling away your precious time while you have more urgent matters to deal with.

Oh yes.

You miss him, do you not?

It has only been a few days and yet... You feel restless.

Riku is no longer there to reach out to when you are bored with your duties. He is no longer there to ask you those same questions over and over again, to present new and interesting challenges for you to dance your way around, to stir your mind in ways it has no been stirred in a very long time. You already miss the feel of his soft, pale skin under your fingertips.

You once thought you needed only your books to remain content with your life, but if that is indeed true...

What is this empty slit in your heart?

Feelings do not have shape or weight. You cannot measure their size or how deep they run. No one knows that they truly are, but... they can be hurt.

The thing that you dread the most.... For most people it is death, but for you...

It is _living_.

You are afraid to _feel_.

And when you are with him....

-o-o-

...there's no reason to pretend.

You were happy. _Very_ happy.

Sephiroth may have been cruel to you a lot of times, Squall may have not particularly cared if you existed, but you were happy today at least. You had gone with them to the lake to fish and they had both been really nice to you. Seifer and some of the others had been there too, but the highlight of your day had been when they had made Squall _laugh_. A real laugh!

You'd caught a few fish and given them to Nanny to cook for dinner. Sephiroth had complimented you on your fishing. It was a silly thing to dwell on, you knew, but... Was this progress?

Were they finally warming up to you?

And now here you were, waiting in the castle foyer for Lord Ansem to meet with you. You'd been more than surprised to get the summon, but it wasn't like you were scared of him, so you had gladly come. Ansem was really nice, so you were curious as to what he wanted.

Needless to say, you were a little anxious when he finally did arrive. He swept out of the hall with a warm, welcoming smile, his white hair completely down, even his bangs... He looked so much younger that way. His clothes were fancy and expensive as always, so much more than anyone else in town, even some of the other nobles.

You didn't think he did it because he wanted to, however... But probably because it was expected of him. Maybe that was why he gave so much to the orphanage to keep it running.

"You came," he noted positively, reaching a large hand out to you.

Giving a polite bow, you shyly took his hand. His yellow eyes twinkled in amusement.

"Come, I have much to discuss with you, young Cloud."

You nodded, feeling many questions stirring within you, but you're not sure if you're allowed to ask...

"Tell me, Cloud," he said with a slight drawl, pulling you towards the hallway he had come from. "Do you know anything about Gemini?"

Gemini?

"The twins?" you asked, and then look away with a soft blush. "I mean, that's all I really know. Why do you ask?"

His handsome face gave another smile—pleased this time. "I want to invite you to become a... What would you say...? A helper, almost. Perhaps an apprentice. I have chosen two of you children, and I am hoping both of you accept. The extra help in my studies is greatly needed."

You almost leapt at the opportunity, never mind the weirdness of it.

_Everyone_ looked up to Lord Ansem. People would jump at an offer like this, and you weren't about to give it to anyone else. You would ask questions later, yes. A lot of questions. But there was especially one that couldn't help escaping your mouth early.

"Who's the other child you asked, if I may...."

His lips curved into a smirk.

"Sephi—

-o-o-

—roth...?"

"Shh..."

His long finger slowly presses to his lips, cold green eyes glittering through the dim light. He looks like some fallen angel resting there against the faded canvas of the tent, long silver hair spilling around him, his obsidian wing stretched to the side and curving a little forward over the boy sleeping in his lap. It was surreal, seeing both of them like this, just a stream of orange sunlight stretching into the tent and highlighting their pale hair with a fiery glow.

It will be dark soon, and Riku still has not waken up. Cloud would be worried, if he did not trust Sephiroth as much as he did.

Those long fingers curl over and over in the boy's soft, silver hair, a delicate-looking pet that never ceases.

"He looks just like me..."

"Yes..." Cloud agrees. "When will he be up?"

"Not much longer," Sephiroth says quietly, never looking up from studying the boy's colorless face.

"So young..." the blonde man comments, admiring the innocence that remains in Riku's face as he sleeps.

"You were younger," Sephiroth breathes.

And everything falls—

-o-o-

—silent, except for the steady _drip-drip_ of the old leaky faucet that sometimes haunts me at night whenever I try to sleep and concentrate on anything _but_ the dripping.

This will be the last time we take baths together, I can tell. We're too old now... It's gotten so awkward.

He keeps catching me looking at his peepee. I can't help it though! It's so much bigger than mine! Will I be like that in another year? It must be weird.

Riku's cheeks are red now. Is the water _that_ hot? I mean, it's a little warm, but—OH, is he _blushing_?! Why is he blushing? It must be because I'm staring.

This is so awkward.

Riku, say something!

He clears his throat, which is just as good I guess.

"It's gotten a lot more crowded in here," he comments.

Yeah, we've both grown a lot. I'm going to really miss the days we could hold water wars in the bathtub because we were so little.

"Maybe mom can put in a bigger bathtub? Ohh, like maybe a mini-pool! That would be sooo cool!"

Riku just looks at me, his cheeks still red.

"Sora..."

I give him a wide grin.

I'm going to miss this. What's going to be the next thing to go? Sandcastles, burying each other in the sand, slumber parties, pouring buckets of fishy ice over each other's heads....

-o-o-

....swimming together?

Oh, no, he was wrong. Kairi wasn't anywhere to be seen, unless she had drowned. That meant Sora was probably trying to fish with his bare hands again or something, though that was unlikely too because he was so deep out there.

The water reached up to his elbows with each surge of the waves, and when the ocean waned to rebuild itself, Riku could see the boy's bright blue swimming trunks. That was all he was wearing, except his crown necklace, and he looked really cute today, his shoulders slightly pink with a sunburn from yesterday (unlike Riku who peeled, Sora would be getting a nice tan from that).

But... what _was_ he doing...? Just standing there, looking at the water? That was something _Riku_ was known to do.

He was used to drifting off, daydreaming, but Sora?

Hmm...

He stood there in the water, just watching his best friend, waiting for the boy to do something, wondering, wondering.

Maybe they had more in common than he'd thought.

He was used to stopping and listening to the call. He had thought no one else ever heard it, yet... what else could Sora be doing?

Something was calling them.

Riku heard it all the time.

In a crowd, walking along the main island's cobblestone sidewalk, alongside the cracked seawall, in the ferry going home, with the setting sun shining in...

When he was sitting on his tree... Even in his dreams.

Something always stormed deep inside his heart, and he would get a feeling that something was going to change...

It made him restless. He didn't know what it meant, and he didn't understand it...

But...

Did Sora hear it too?

Or was he just trying to listen?

Without realizing what he was doing, Riku began wading deeper, fighting against the icy hands of the waves trying to push him back to the warm, golden shore. Sora must have heard him coming, but the boy didn't turn, didn't even acknowledge him until Riku was practically on top of him, arms draped over his shoulders and hard, wet, _cold_ shirt-covered chest pressed to his bare back.

The boy flinched a little, snapping out of his reverie with a slight whine.

"Rikuuu..."

"Soraaa..." Riku tossed back, clenching his hands together in front of Sora. It might have just been the sunburn, but he thought he saw the boy's cheeks flush a little. "What are you doing out here by yourself?"

"Just thinkin'..."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah."

Riku smirked, leaning his head against Sora's and gazing down at the ocean lapping around their bound bodies.

"Well, let me think with you."

The ocean was calling again, beckoning, even as its rocky current tried to pull the boys apart. If the ocean was like their future, when they finally set sail on that raft, even if he clung desperately to him, Riku wasn't sure that he could tell Sora he'd always be...

-o-o-

...with him.

I should have never come with him.

I should have never come with him.

_Never_.

"Oh come on, Squallie," he laughed. "What's the worst that can happen? And I thought you wanted to find out what happened to Lord Ansem and the others? Seph and Cloud? Or are you too scared you'll end up like your boyfriend?"

"Seifer..." I warned, eyes narrowing into cold slits. As always, he was the only one who could get a rise out of me.

"You're scared," he said, grinning a little maliciously as he spun around to face me. "Come on, I bet we'll find something up ahead."

But we never got to check up ahead. That had been my first encounter with the heartless. I remember standing there, wanting nothing more than to be back home, curled up with a good book to forget all about the disappearances that were happening around town. People had been claiming it was Ansem's doing, that one of his experiments had go awry and he'd succumbed to madness, and now his experiments had escaped.

Ansem had been a good man. A little weird and aloof, but... that was what I had liked about him. He'd reminded me of myself. He'd always been kind to me, to the other kids too...

But Seifer had believed the rumors, and that was why we had been wandering the bastion that fateful night.

Five minutes into our little adventure to discover the secrets behind the disappearances, the heartless had attacked.

Too many of them.

I had gotten away with just a scar—thanks to Seifer's bad aim...

But Seifer had stayed behind.

Had he perished there, or had he survived until the entire world had fallen...?

I still wonder.

I still worry.

I still feel that ache, though now it has lessened, knowing at least Cloud and Sephiroth are safe.

We're safe.

We'll win this fight.

We'll move on.

We'll go—

-o-o-

—together.

_Always_ together. He won't let you stray too far by yourself, probably worried for you...

But... Leon's so cold.

So cold.

You want to make him smile. You want to give him what he's given you.

He comforts you, provides his silent strength when yours gives out, when you feel _their_ stares and wish once again that you were normal, that you weren't cursed... That you didn't have this damn wing. That...

That you were a better friend.

He's suffered so much but he's still standing tall, his face is still dry, and he's as guarded as he was all those years ago.

Just what would it take to hear him laugh... A _real_ laugh?

He's helped you so much, but what can you do?

Leon... what do you _want_?

Why...

-o-o-

...do you _care_?"

"I... don't know...."

He whimpers, more out of fear than passion. What is this shudder I am feeling? What is this satisfied groan of mine supposed to mean? I do not know. I am not sure I want to know.

The known already frightens me enough.

"I... I just...!"

A soft moan issues from his flushed lips, his pretty sea-green eyes rolling back into his head as my fingers tighten their hold on him.

Such a complicated creature with simple needs.

He was trying to love me to escape his fears.

I was loving him back to find my own.

"You just...?"

"_Nngh!_"

A pleased grin pulls across my lips as I redouble my efforts, intent on driving him to the edge. He _will_ regret doing this, yes. But I can enjoy him while I still have him. This will be our final time together.

I am tired of his questions. I am tired of leaving him confused.

I do not lie, no. I deliver the truth as I see it is needed.

I do not withhold secrets, no. I fabricate them.

"Riku..."

"Ahh... _Shit_... Yami...!"

I freeze.

Of course...

That name...

Not my real name....

He squirms beneath me, confused as to why I have stopped. His eyes swirl with emotion, a despairing kind of regret. He knows what he is doing, but he wants it anyway. Shimmering tears make their way down his flushed cheeks, staining the white sheets of a foreign bed.

I wish I could steal him away again, back to my own domain, but...

Sora is there.

Id is there.

I don't want to risk it.

My fingers slip into his wet silver hair.

"Riku... Please do not call me that."

"What..?" He is disoriented for a moment. "Then what... What should I call you? Isn't it Yami?"

I shake my head, but...

His question?

I do not know....

-o-o-

...how to answer something like that, something so personal, so emotionally _scarring_.

"I know!!" Sora cried, burying his face in his pillow and trembling. "It's just... I _miss_ him." He sucked in a sharp breath, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to pour out, burning at his eyes, even though he had them closed so tightly, so tightly. "I want to see him. I want to be with him. I'm going crazy without him. Going through my day-to-day life is torture."

_Forget about him. He betrayed you._

Id.

Why was he so cruel to Riku?

"I-I can't... I love him..."

Sora breathed, letting down the dam just a little, a few hot tears leaking out to stain his dry skin. His voice sounded so desperately reassuring. Did he really mean all this? Or was he just saying this because it's what he should be saying?

Yes.

Yes, he meant this.

With all of his heart, even the dark side of it.

"I just want to know what I did wrong..." he said, voice thick, murky with emotion. "What led him to do that, with _Yami_... after such a perfect night together with me. What did I do? Was I not good enough...?"

_It wasn't your fault. Stop worrying about him and concentrate on revenge._

"Revenge...? No... I don't want to hurt him..."

Never. Riku didn't deserve that...

He was probably just as confused as _Sora_ was...

_And why not?! After he did that to you? And now he's forgotten you, running off with his new friends to fight you!_

"I don't care about that..."

_Why not?!_

"Because..."

Because why?

Why, Sora? Why don't you care about that?

"Because," Sora said quietly, certain. "He needs me. He'll never forget me."

_I don't understand._

It was all so clear.

Just like back at home...

"Riku's always pretended to be strong..." Sora explained, so suddenly sure of himself. "He'll do anything to keep that image. Whenever something bad happened to him, like his father got mad at him and hurt him, or when his bird died... he'd bottle his emotions up until later when we were alone... and then he'd cling to me, _never_ crying, just shaking and letting me comfort him."

_But what does he have to be upset about? You were the one hurt_.

Sora shook his head, reaching a hand up to wipe his eyes. Even if no one else understood, he had to. Riku wasn't as strong as everyone thought he was. Riku...

"He has plenty to be upset about," Sora said, defensive. "Right now he's pretending to be strong by continuing his mission or whatever... But actually, he wants nothing more than to curl up with me, _never_ crying, just shaking and letting me comfort him."

_Then why haven't you gone to him?_

Oh.

That... That was a good question...

"I-I dunno..." he admitted. "I'm scared, I guess."

What would happen...? What would he do? Say? If he saw him again...

_You're scared about why he slept with someone he said he hated._

"No, I'm not worried about that," he ensured, eyes shining with more tears, but this time of a different resolution. "I _know_ he loves me."

_Then **what**...?_

He looked up, staring into the shadows of his room, feeling his anti-Rikus stir a little against his warmer body.

"I guess I'm worried... he'll cry."

_He'll cry?_

A nod, and then...

A real smile.

"I never want to see him cry."

* * *

Because for some reason I have trouble coming up with my own meaningful character interior monologues, some of the deeper thoughts in here came from a variety of sources, from song lyrics to quotes in manga. I tweaked some of them to fit the setting, but I still disclaim the ones you may or may not recognize. :D;; Most of them were my own, so stop looking at me like that! T-T

Well, see you at Chapter 19!


	30. Ch 19: A Hero's Intrigue part one

_Author Notes:_

WHOA. Sorry for the delay. Many projects and school and babysitting do not mix well. This fanfic is my baby though, and I'm not going to let it die, even if it wants to sleep for a while. THANK YOU for sticking with me this long. THANK YOU THANK YOU! You have NO idea how much it means to me to still have readers after SO long, even after I've been an arrogant ass and a not-so-great host and writer. I just hope you can keep being patient, because I promise the fic is going to pick up.

As for the first part of this chapter... It was very, VERY fun to write. It's another giant chapter (not quite as long as chapter 18 part 3), so be warned.

**_Formatting note: _**The quick upload eats all of my question mark/exclamation mark pairs, so if someone yells a question and there's no question mark, that's why. -.-

* * *

**_Chapter Nineteen: A Hero's Intrigue _**_– part one_

-o-o-

_And they did._

_They did what?_

_They forgot him._

Sora sat frozen as Yami calmly passed him to stand in front of the portrait. A tanned hand stretched out, lightly brushing against the golden frame, and a look so sad and tired ghosted over Yami's face, so quick that Sora hardly noticed it. And despite Sora's fear of being caught in a forbidden area of the bastion, upon seeing that strange look on the man's face, he felt a trace of pity.

Even after all that Yami had done to him, Sora wasn't yet ready to give completely into his dislike for the man.

"Forgot?" he asked in a quiet, careful voice.

Amber eyes lowered to regard him, Yami's expression as empty as his voice.

"And I am forgetting as well."

Sora frowned, looking back and forth between Yami and the portrait, unable to hold back the question burning to be released. He started to stand, his feet shuffling a few pieces of old parchment on the floor.

"What _are_ you, Yami?"

Slowly, Yami turned to face him, lips curled into his usual smirk. With him standing there next to the portrait, it was almost surreal, with the empty eyes from the portrait and Yami's mocking gaze both watching him, opposite expressions from such similar faces.

"What am I?" Yami said in a dark tone, reaching up to brush a lock of white hair back. "An impossible existence, Sora... And now is not the time to be asking such questions."

"Though I am curious, indeed, of what you would have answered," came a soft, cool voice from the doorway.

Sora turned, surprised yet again at being caught, to find the mistress of the castle standing there, her large crow sitting proudly on her shoulder. Her black dress seemed to swallow the floor in shadows with the way the bottom fanned over the grey stone, its tattered edges spread like dark fingers. A pale hand curled around her scepter and she gave a mysterious little smile as she took a few steps into the room.

Yami's posture visibly tensed as she drew closer, her crow flaring its wings as it eyed the white-haired man with a condescending look.

"Madam," Yami said politely, giving a stiff bow of his head.

She came to a stop next to Sora, delicately resting a hand on his shoulder. The boy shifted his weight uncomfortably, but he didn't draw away from her seemingly friendly gesture.

"Children should be in bed at this hour," she drawled in her dark, silky tone.

Her hand slipped away and Sora relaxed, moving a bit closer to Yami. She followed him with her gaze before glancing at Yami, her eyes slowly traveling from him to the portrait behind him, pausing there to study it.

Her lips curled upward. "However, some of these inner rooms certainly need cleaning. Instead of frittering time away, which is a talent you both seem to possess, perhaps I should suggest some menial labor, such as the discarding of unwanted mementos."

With her eyes so clearly focused on the portrait of Ansem, there was no doubt as to what she was referring to in her statement.

Sora was rather confused, though. "You mean I'm allowed in all these rooms?" he asked.

Hardly moving her face, she shifted her gaze onto Sora. "Yes. Without that exasperating keyblade master around, I see no reason in limiting you to the outer bastion. Wander free. This place hides its secrets well."

With that, she waved Sora off. He hesitated at the gesture, glancing curiously at Yami to see if he was going to leave too. But it didn't seem like the woman was done with him yet, or she didn't want Sora around to witness some shady stuff. A bit reluctantly, Sora turned to go, catching Yami's gaze for a moment.

Something in those amber eyes felt familiar, and that was enough to make Sora retreat. If there was anything Sora _didn't _want, it was to befriend the guy who had ruined his life.

-o-o-

_...I'm still not sure why Sephiroth wanted to show me all of his memories like that. It's still kind of freaking me out, when I think about it really hard, about what I saw... about the things that I know are important but don't make any sense to me. Everything went so fast that I've forgotten most of the little details already, but I tried copying it all down... I wonder what Leon would do if he knew all what I know now... all the details... would he still accept Sephiroth like that? I wonder..._

"What do you think he's writing in that thing?"

"Steal it and die, Yuffie."

"Aww, but Squaaall!"

"Leave the kid alone. It's probably hero shit."

"Cid, not you too! C'mon, I wanna know what's in there! I'll give it _back_—"

_...really miss Sora. I still don't have a clue how I'm going to say I'm sorry. It's not like just an apology will help, after what I did... Wonder what he's doing right now, if he's thinking about me—if he's thinking something actually good about me. We'd always been rivals, pushing each other, challenging, growing stronger off each other... I wonder why I never tried helping Sora after the coliseum incident. He changed a lot after that—too much. I should have realized... I should have helped..._

"We're supposed to follow the key!"

"Uh-hyuck! That's right, the king sent us."

"Even still, Riku just doesn't trust your abilities."

"Cloud."

"What? It's true. Ask him yourself. Even if they _are_ the king's lackeys, Riku doesn't want their help. Squall, he trusts _us_."

"Let me handle it."

_...weird dreams. A lot of Kairi recently, which is weird... It makes me think back to the islands, and that night... Is she really alone and scared like she seems to be in my dreams? Maybe I never really understood her... Other dreams are getting more real, too. A lot of darkness... Sometimes the pain feels real. I wonder what they'd say about my dreams if I ever talked about them. Are keyblade masters supposed to have that kind of nightmarish stuff haunting their dreams? It's terrible..._

"—and let me tell you something about building gummi-castles, guys—it takes _talent _to make it stay in place. Talent like mine! Haha, not too many people 'round here can breath fire like I can, y'know. That's why—"

"Let me guess. You're bored here."

"—really helpful in—oh—bored? Naah, nothing like that, Cid and me have tons of fun down at the garage, talking up trash about ancestors and building crazy—"

"Mushu."

"—ever seen. I mean, we have so much fun, I can hardly... hardly..."

"Oh PLEASE take me with you! I promise I won't mess anything up like I always do! That hole in the garage? Totally not my fault! And the time I got Mulan in trouble for giving Ling a wedgie—it was all with good intentions, I _swear it_!"

"Fine."

"—and did I ever tell you I was blessed by a lucky cricket? I was! Why, if it weren't for the annoying little bug, I'd be—"

"I said fine."

"—be.. wait, what? Really? I can go? No joking?"

"...don't make me regret the decision."

"Haha, Squeon, I knew you cared! I'd give you a hug if you didn't look so scary."

_...long white hair and dark skin, and those eyes... too much of a coincidence. Yami's connected somehow... I thought about asking Leon about Ansem and what he was like, maybe to get a better idea... But everyone seems to have mixed opinions about that guy. Ansem. Leon admitted he couldn't remember much, other than what the others had told him. He'd lost a huge chunk of his memory around that time and no one knows why. Cid even seemed a bit confused about his own opinions when it came to Ansem... Seems like Ansem was a pretty nice guy, and started getting weird near the end, before their home fell to the darkness... Cloud didn't want to talk at all about him, but I can understand that, from what I remember from Seph's memories. But if Yami is connected to this guy from their past, just how...? Son...? Something... I'm missing something here..._

"Yeah, his potential is a little... worrisome..."

"Remember the way he fought..."

Riku paused in his writing at last, after countless pages of rambling, his pen tip hovering just over the next line of the page.

They were talking about him again, as if he couldn't even hear them. It seemed he'd been the topic of a lot of conversations today, just from the few times he'd actually listened in on their conversations. He'd spent most of the day engrossed in his journal, writing down all he could, hoping to organize some of his scattered thoughts and memories to maybe come up with some sort of epiphany.

He was currently huddled away in a small armchair someone had brought into a once-vacant, run-down house in third district. Familiar people had bustled around the main room all day, fixing the place up for their official 'headquarters' or whatever—a common meeting place, instead of down in the garage, or Leon's place, or the accessory shop that Cid no longer ran. Dozens of conversations must have taken place in front of Riku, with him only tuning into a few as he scribbled away in the notebook Merlin had given him. A lot of times, they talked about him. Like now.

"—only fifteen..."

"He's doing fine. He's handling it a lot better than I would have," Cloud said quietly.

Riku slowly began doodling in the corner of the page, pretending not to listen to Leon and Cloud's conversation. At the moment, it was only the three of them in the room. The girls had gone off to buy supplies to fix up the house's interior, and Cid and Mushu were busy making gummi ship plans for the dog and duck.

It kind of annoyed Riku that they all were pretending he wasn't there and talking so freely about him as if he couldn't hear. Maybe they didn't care if he overheard, but...

Nothing they were saying was helping him at all.

"—look what happened with his friend—"

"His name is Sora."

"Sora, right. I mean..." Cloud paused, leaning closer to Leon to whisper, but Riku was still able to hear it. "Don't you find the similarities kind of... eerie?"

"Yes. But Sora's a good kid," Leon said in a firm voice. "The problem isn't him. He's just confused..."

"You know him a lot better than I do, yeah, but it's just what I see. When it comes down to it... whose side would Riku take?"

"His duty, I'd assume."

"But is Riku that selfless?"

"No," Riku suddenly cut in. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw both men stiffen in surprise. "I'm not that selfless... but I'm not stupid either," he said, closing his journal and turning to look at them. "I wouldn't throw away everyone else's life just to be with Sora. It'd be suicide anyway..."

Cloud gave him an unreadable expression and said nothing, but Leon looked subtly pleased. Though nothing showed on his face, something about Leon's air just changed.

"Then what about Sora?" he asked Riku.

With a shake of his head, the boy sighed and started to get to his feet. "If anything, I plan on finding him, dragging him with me if necessary, and then saving everyone else too," he said. "I don't see why it has to be _just_ duty or happiness. I want to have both."

Leon exchanged a glance with Cloud. "It's settled then." He pushed away from his resting place against the wall and dragged a hand through his shaggy hair, grey eyes meeting Riku's. "I assume you have a plan."

"Well, we've already wasted this day away here," Riku sighed, tucking his journal under an arm. "I mean, I know you were tired, Leon, but it's time to get going again."

A soft snerk came from Cloud at that. The other two watched as the blonde moved to the center of the room, delicately folding his wing. "Let Leon worry about himself. If he can't handle what happened to him last night, he has a lot more to be concerned about."

It must have been a touchy subject already, for Leon seemed to bristle at the memory. Then again, it might have been the teasing... or the implication that he wasn't man enough for, well, whatever had happened between the two of them and Sephiroth last night. Riku had a pretty good idea about it though.

"Whatever," Leon said, heading for the door. "I'm fine."

"Riiiight," Riku commented wryly as he glanced at Cloud.

The two of them shared knowing looks as they followed Leon out the door. Unfortunately, Riku didn't see Leon's hand coming in time, and received a swift bop on the head. He rubbed the stinging spot and shot Leon an offended glare.

"_Ow_—I'll have you know, I'm the keyblade master!"

"So suck it up, _savior_." Leon roughly patted him on the shoulder and kept walking.

But Riku wasn't going to stand for that. He dropped his journal to the cobblestone and, with a playful war cry—"Arggh!"—he launched from the ground and onto Leon's back, wrapping his arms around the man's neck and holding on tight. Leon only stumbled a little to catch his balance.

"Ack—Riku—!"

They heard Cloud's muffled laughter behind them somewhere. Never mind that the people of the third district plaza were now staring, Riku snickered and ruffled Leon's shaggy hair to piss him off—something that the older man definitely did _not_ like.

"Riku. Off. _Now_."

Cloud cleared his throat and hurried past them, throwing his mantle over his wing—but there was a definite trace of laughter on his face. "If you two children are done..."

"Wet Willy!" Riku declared, wetting his finger and then wiggling it in Leon's ear. "Bwahaha!"

"Ugh! Cloud, some help here!"

"Hahaha..."

-o-o-

Cid had programmed the gummi ship according to Traverse Town standard time, so when the trinity finally landed at a new world, the ship's clock read nearly midnight back home, but the sun was just beginning to sink wherever they had just arrived.

"This world hasn't been recorded on Donald and Goofy's map," Leon noted, his eyes studying a virtual map on viewscreen. "They took a different course than we've been following."

That's right, Riku realized. He'd heard from Leon that the dog and duck had done some exploring when he'd been at Hollow Bastion and Leon had been babysitting amnesiac Cloud. It was kinda cool that they and Cid had bothered marking the worlds, naming them, and making a map of their travels...

But Riku wasn't going to thank them for their efforts just yet. He was still a bit iffy about them working with him, even if they'd been sent by this king everyone respected. Riku was doing just fine with his current trinity—and dragon.

Mushu, perched on Riku's shoulder, was fidgeting with anticipation, making Riku wonder just how bored the lizard had gotten at Traverse Town, since he'd been stuck there the whole time. The gummi ship trip had gotten rather noisy with Mushu's company, which Riku had been grateful for...for about ten minutes. Thanks to the dragon's incessant chattering, there was a headache throbbing at his left temple now.

Still, with Leon and Cloud pairing off or remaining silent for the recent gummi trips, Riku was glad he at least had company, even if Mushu was a bit hectic sometimes. That, and the dragon was useful when he wanted to be.

"Y'know, I have a good feeling about this place!" he announced as he climbed off Riku and went to go study Leon's viewscreen, which was detailing the findings of the world as they navigated through it to their destination point.

Riku stared out the window at the foreign landscape beyond as the gummi ship descended through the clouds. It was a lush green with tall forests, round hills and yellow wheat fields, and mountains stretching higher and higher. A river snaked through a valley just below, the water a shade so blue it was almost painful to look at because of the memories it threatened to surface... of the ocean of home, and Sora's eyes.

"Yeah... it kind of feels little familiar," Riku said quietly as he scanned an ancient-looking city in the distance. "It doesn't _look_ familiar, but I think I've been here before."

"We should have gone to the battlefield," Cloud commented in a sullen voice.

"No, Riku was right. We wouldn't have found much there," Leon replied as he brought the gummi ship close to the mountain, searching for an inconspicuous place to land. "And I don't think we would have been very welcome at a palace, so this city is our best bet for information." He brought the ship to a surprisingly gentle stop in a small valley nestled between the city's rise and a patch of strange-looking trees—bamboo?

Cloud silently gazed up the hill at the walled city. Somehow Riku knew he was worrying about what kind of reception they'd find there, and that out of the three of them, Cloud did seem a lot more threatening. And if his wing was uncovered... There'd be more problems.

"How are we going to do this," Riku sighed mostly to himself as he unbuckled and got up from his seat.

"Everything's clear. Lowering the ramp," Leon said as he triggered something on the control panel. "Cid's not in the garage right now, so he doesn't know we've arrived, but I'd rather not wait for him to show back up." He rose from his seat, glancing from Cloud to Riku. "Ready?"

"Yeah," Cloud replied, folding his wing and covering it with his mantle.

"I can already smell the adventure!" was Mushu's assertion as he scampered back to Riku, climbing up his body to perch on his shoulder again as Riku moved to the exit.

But then something strange happened. The dragon's small body froze as he looked out at the city walls, and Riku felt his claws sink into his shoulder. For a long moment he was silent, face forward, just staring out at the new world ahead of him.

"Mushu?"

And then all at once, Mushu snapped out of his trance. He leapt off Riku's shoulder with a loud, cheerful cry of, "I'm _hooome!_" and proceeded to run straight up the hill without them.

"Wait, Mushu—_what!_" Riku called after him, stumbling down the ramp and following. "Wait! But this doesn't look like your world!"

"I'd recognize those walls anywhere!" Mushu called right back.

"Well, don't run off!" Riku yelled as he raced after the dragon. "We'll need you! Stop!"

"I'm comin', Mulan!"

Behind them, even Leon joined the chase. "Mushu, get back here!"

A blur of red and black—Cloud—flew past Riku, catching up to Mushu in an instant. The dragon let out a cry of protest when Cloud suddenly landed in front of him, his one wing stretched out and his red mantle curling in the air behind him. Before Mushu had a chance to dart between his legs, Cloud stomped a heavy boot on his tail, effectively pinning him in place until Leon and Riku had a chance to catch up.

"_OW_—! My taaaail!"

"Quiet."

"I'll have you know that's a _guardian's_ tail you're grinding into the dirt—prime specimen, one of a kind—!" Mushu began stuttering quickly, as if the sound of his own voice would take away some of the pain. "Y-You know, my _ancestors _would have rained dishonor on anyone who dared touching their tails! Dishonor on you, dishonor on your entire family, dishonor on your family's family and friend's family and—ow, _ow—_l-like this one time, this guy insulted my great granddaddy Wang, who married into the Zhi family which was full of clumsy-ass kids who was _always _prayin' to the ancestors for protection—my tail's goin' numb, y'know—and a-anyway, so granddaddy Wang like fried the whole family. Speaking of which, d-did you know that Chinese dragons don't traditionally breathe fire—it's unique in my family because of my ancestor Fei, who was born with this defect and—_Owwwwww_, my taaaail!"

That last part of Mushu's whine was when Riku caught up to them and Cloud lifted his boot off the dragon's tail.

Mushu held the poor tail between his claws and sniffled at it, watching its red-tufted end flop lifelessly to the side. He gave a small, tragic whimper, and lifted his eyes to glare at Cloud. The blonde merely lifted an eyebrow in challenge, and Mushu clutched his tail possessively, scowling and grumbling under his breath, and that was that.

Leon gave the dragon a warning look as he came walking up. "Pull another stunt like that and we're leaving you in the ship."

"You're breaking my heart, Squeon! I'm home!"

"If that's true, you'll know what problems to anticipate here," Leon said in an expectant tone. "So talk."

Mushu released his tail and started to look a bit cheery again. "Oh, you'll love it here. Lots of nice people, full of welcome, and always helping each other out and all. People can just walk right through the gate and the master of the house will be like, 'Oh, you want some tea?' And it's all good like that."

"Seriously?" Riku asked, sounding doubtful.

"Sounds a bit far-fetched," Cloud mused.

"Suspicious," Leon added.

"No way! Happens all the time," Mushu insisted. The three men leveled suspicious, disbelieving stares on the dragon, who started fidgeting a little nervously. "Seriously," he insisted again after a long moment of silence.

And that's how they all went against their better judgment and listened to him, and walked right up to the city gates.

"Um... those drums don't sound too good," Riku said as he lifted his eyes to a watch tower where a man was now beating at a drum as though the enemy were suddenly approaching.

As it goes to show, never go against that better judgment. Or at least never listen to a travel-sized dragon with an attitude problem.

Why not?

Well, within five minutes, the trinity was _not_ in fact being welcomed into anyone's home and being given tea. Soldiers came pouring out of the city's main gate and started surrounding them, and nosey people within the city were crowding the street and peaking from their decorated gates to watch the commotion.

Hiding in Riku's hoodie and under his silver hair, Mushu gave a nervous laugh. "Man, I guess I should have mentioned that they don't really trust foreigners."

"Yes, Mushu, you should have," Riku muttered. "Now we're in deep shit."

Some armor-clad, cautious-looking soldiers edged forward, weapons at ready. All around them, Riku was hearing suspicious whispers of "_Huns?_" "_Barbarians..._" "_Strange foreigners—_" "_Warriors from the West, must be..._" "_Another war?_"—and Riku realized that maybe they should have had a plan before just walking in there, or had come up with an explanation of some kind.

At least in Traverse Town they didn't stand out too much in their accessories and weaponry and different looks. But here, on a totally different world, where many of the people were dressed and literally _looked_ the same with black hair and dark eyes, the trinity really, _really_ stood out.

"Remove all arms and state your identity and purpose!" one of the soldiers was commanding, but Riku wasn't listening to what was going on anymore.

"Got a plan, Mushu?" he hissed.

"Oh, yeah—these people are hella superstitious, so just say you're gods or something who've come to wine, dine, and be merry. Oh! Or princes who have traveled from afar to.. uhh.. I dunno..."

Riku promptly reached up and pushed Mushu back into his hood to shut him up. At his sudden movement, some of the soldiers stepped back a little, their dark eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"_White hair—_" "_Like the general said..._"

Huh, that was strange. Riku would have thought that soldiers wouldn't be so scared of three men, no matter how strange they looked. Unless... Unless Mushu was right, and they _were_ superstitious. After a glancing at Leon and Cloud, who both looked scarily calm as usual, Riku realized they must have noticed the same thing.

Riku calmly stepped forward, testing grounds, and raised his hands in surrender. As predicted, the soldiers backed away with wide eyes, murmuring amongst themselves.

Despite the uncertainty, Riku steeled himself and spoke. "My name is Riku, friend of General Li Shang and Ping."

"It's Fa Mulan," Mushu whispered.

"General Li Shang and Fa Mulan," Riku corrected.

At his statement, the hum of the crowd grew louder, some of the voices sounding surprised and excited.

"_Gods from the mountains_—" "_The Great Riku!_" "_...Fa Mulan who saved China—_"

The main soldier glanced at a man to his side, waved two fingers, and the man left the line of soldiers in a hurry, ducking back into the city to follow whatever silent orders had been given. When that was done, the main soldier returned his attention back to Riku, studying him carefully.

"How do you know the heroes of China?" he asked suspiciously.

"I met them in the mountains on their way to meet the Hun army and we fought together to defeat the heartless," Riku replied.

Something about the man changed, as if Riku's words convinced him of something, and he relaxed, nodding. "I am Han Xu, the newly appointed captain of this city's team of guards. When the honorable Fa Mulan returned from the Imperial City with the Emperor's blessings, and the honorable Li Shang at her side, they spoke of many tales," he said in a firm voice. "One was the discovery of two child gods they found in the Tung-Shao pass, gods who defeated the black demons and a mighty dragon, and then disappeared into shadows."

Riku blinked a few times at the man's words, the phrase _child gods_ particularly standing out and impressing him. Child god, eh? Riku would have milked the situation if it weren't so serious.

And the soldier wasn't done yet. He took off his helmet and continued to speak. "You not only fit the description of one child god, with your hair and skin as white as a crane's wings, but also the name, Great Riku." Here he paused, bowing respectfully, and as he did so, the rest of the soldiers began taking similar stances as well. "On behalf of the city, I apologize for the rough welcome. With only a month since the stench of war has passed, the people are still wary of foreigners. Please allow me to accept any divine punishment you see necessary."

Mushu was snickering by the time Han Xu finished. "Oh man, you didn't even _need_ my help! He already thinks you're a god... ahahaha..."

Ignoring the dragon's commentary, Riku scanned the bowing crowd, and then glanced over his shoulder at Leon and Cloud. Cloud looked a bit wary of the impressive welcome, but Leon seemed rather nonchalant, his hand on the hilt of his gunblade. His grey eyes met Riku's and he gave a short nod of approval, and then a small smirk pulled at his lips. He was probably amused that Riku was being worshipped all of a sudden.

With Leon's approval, Riku turned his attention back to the soldiers, wondering what to say. "Uh, well..." Oh yeah, the guy had apologized. "All is forgiven. Don't worry about it. My companions and I just want to speak with Li Shang and Pi—I mean, Fa Mulan."

Han Xu raised his head, looking a little confused, but before he could speak, the messenger soldier came rushing back through the crowd.

"Make way for the general and the honorable Fa Mulan!"

Two familiar figures came through the parting line of soldiers, and Riku felt himself relax as he saw them. Mulan's face lit with joy when she spotted him standing there, as if she'd been hoping for a long time to see him again. She looked really different in girl's clothes and with her hair down, and Riku was kind of surprised at the believable transformation from Ping to Mulan (though he still wondered why he hadn't saw it when he'd first met her). She hurried forward and pulled him into a hug right in front of the crowd—which gave a collective gasp of surprise at her audacity. Even Li Shang was looking a little awkward about it—whether because he was unused to the display or jealous about it, Riku didn't know.

"Riku!" she exclaimed, pulling back and smiling into his face. "You came back!"

And Riku blinked at her, managing a smile back. "Yeah."

That was when she glanced over his shoulder at Leon and Cloud, her happy expression settling into a look of confusion. "Where's Sora?" she wondered. "He's not with you?"

Riku's spirits immediately fell. He lowered his face and shook his head, not knowing how to tell her the truth just yet.

Li Shang took the opportunity to step forward and rest a hand on Riku's shoulder. His voice was stern, but the boy caught a trace of sympathy amongst the formality.

"Come inside. We have much to talk about."

-o-o-

The trinity received countless stares as it was escorted down the dirt road to the Fa home. A surprised-looking family of three met them, but politely accepted them through the decorated front gate where two lion statues sat guard.

Riku immediately saw Mulan's father, Fa Zhou, as a respectable man, despite his obvious limp—he had that unyielding, regal air about him as he led his new guests into his rich estate. The two women—Mulan's mother and grandmother—were practically gawking at the three attractive foreigners, but Fa Zhou hardly batted an eyelid at their appearance, aside from his initial surprised reaction.

Beyond the entrance of their home was a spacious central courtyard surrounded by three long wings embellished with complicated red designs on the windows and doors, and curved, slanting rooftops with varying points. An animal pen was directly to the left, separating the main areas of the house with a small wooden fence, and Riku spotted Kahn there, Mulan's horse from the mountains.

"So the cow's still alive, eh?" Mushu commented from Riku's hoodie. With Li Shang and Mulan's family ahead of them, Mushu must have deemed it safe to come out, because he sprung off Riku and went to greet the horse.

Riku paused to watch, Leon and Cloud and Mulan moving past him. The horse didn't seem too thrilled to see Mushu was back, for it snorted at the dragon and suddenly trampled him into the dirt. It was obvious that some parts of Mushu's home hadn't missed him as much as he had missed it.

The interior of the central wing of the house was very spacious and had a simple design, which was something Riku found a bit intimidating after being welcomed into the run-down stores of Traverse Town and messy houses all his life back at home. Large curtains and screen partitions separated the parts of the room, and scrolls filled with calligraphy dotted a few walls, creating an unpretentious, but proper atmosphere.

The trinity was offered tea and then ushered to sit at a floor table near a hexagonally shaped screen window. Riku took the pillow nearest that window, happy to have tea, but Leon and Cloud turned down the offering and sat at Riku's sides, while Li Shang, Fa Zhou, and Mulan took the other sides of the small table, and the rest of Mulan's family disappeared to another room (but Riku had a feeling they were eavesdropping nearby).

Everything was so formal and careful, _respectful_, as if he _was_ a god or something. It was probably aimed to make him feel comfortable there, but he found himself more alert than ever about his behavior and speech. In fact, he was like a statue the whole time, only moving to sip his tea.

After Leon introduced himself and Cloud, he did most of the talking on Riku's part, letting Riku just relax and listen. Mulan and Li Shang wasted no time in filling Riku in on what had happened after he and Sora had left their world, most of which Riku had deduced already. When Mulan once again asked about Sora, Leon again did the explaining, and Riku stared down into his tea the whole time, dwelling on his situation and how the hell he was going to fix things. Leon didn't get too specific with what happened, but touched on the basics. The girl seemed really disturbed that Sora was the enemy now, and Riku remembered that she had taken a liking to Sora and that Li Shang had preferred Riku more.

Riku didn't listen to the conversation after that, his attention focusing on the fine details of Mulan's home, from the woven rug beneath the table, to the interesting round lantern overheard that Mulan's mother lit as the sun went down. That was about the time they were served a modest meal for dinner, and the exchange of information gradually died into an unsettling silence.

As quickly as he could without seeming impolite, Riku ate his rice, which was stickier, clumpier, and easier to eat than he was used to. Excusing himself from the table was less difficult than he'd anticipated, and soon Mulan was escorting him outside.

"I'm sorry to hear about Sora," she commented as they headed into the gardens.

He was silent as they passed through the circular archway in the white wall around her family's home, and Riku paused there on the worn pathway to take in the beautiful sight of the garden bathed in moonlight.

A blossom tree was to his right, many pink petals littering the soft grass around the stone bench that sat in front of its trunk. Just ahead of the tree was a gentle slope, a creek cutting the gardens in half, spilling into a larger pond-like area surrounded by stone before running under a white, circular bridge. Beyond, Riku could see the round shape and long, drooping branches of a large weeping willow. Past the bridge, the area sloped up again, and a slate stone path led up to what seemed to be a small temple, probably for praying to those ancestors that Mushu liked to gossip about.

Mulan hesitated at his side as he took in the beauty of the garden. "I always come out here to think," she said in a soft voice. "We used to have a statue of a great dragon and I would sit between its front claws and think for hours, dream of better places where I could be free of tradition and family obligations. Like marriage." She gave a small laugh at that, clutching a small white pendant around her neck. When Riku didn't reply, she continued a bit solemnly. "But now I realize those things are necessary. Honor, family, tradition... I wouldn't be anywhere without them," she admitted. This time she waited a few seconds, gazing up at Riku. "I know we discussed it before dinner, but I'm engaged to Li Shang now. Despite all I've gone through, my life cycled right back to tradition... but it's okay now."

Engaged? Wow, Riku must have missed a lot of the conversation earlier.

He turned his head slightly to regard her, meeting her smile with one of his own. "Congratulations."

"Thanks," she said. Her thin hands came up, curling around his arm and pulling him onto the stone path. As they walked, she spoke quietly, but in a sure tone. "I saw how distant you were during dinner. It's because of Sora, isn't it," she said, but continued without waiting for him to comment. "Little over a month ago, I was nobody. Just a woman who wasn't even good enough for a matchmaker to give her a husband. When Chi Fu came and gave the announcement of war, and that my father was to meet at the camp... I got so scared," she admitted. "I knew my father wasn't strong enough to fight again. To save his life, I risked my own. I stole his armor and joined the military. I never thought I'd go on to save China and become a hero."

"I guess heroes come in unlikely places," Riku commented as he turned away from her. He paused on the bridge, leaning against the railing to watch the creek below.

She slowly let go of his arm as she followed, standing at his side. "Maybe it's because I was the one experiencing it all, but I don't _feel_ like a hero. I still feel like that same woman from a month ago. Just... more important, somehow." She glanced up at him expectantly. "I think it's the same with you, Riku."

He said nothing, just gazing distantly out at the water.

"It is," she said, resting her cheek against his arm. "I can't imagine how you must be feeling right now, knowing Sora's like that..."

Closing his eyes, he shook his head. "It was my fault. I drove him away because I was stupid."

"Still," she said, her fingers clutching the edge of his hoodie. Her voice was firm and resolute, and Riku mused silently that she must have learned a thing or two from Shang. "I think you're in the same situation I was in. You've changed a lot since we last met—I can tell, and I want to help you," she insisted. "You love Sora, right? But he's the enemy now... So you must be torn between your duty and your heart, right?"

Riku's head lifted, her words striking a chord deep within him. Facing her, he gave her a tired look. "Duty versus happiness, yeah. Leon gave me this speech a long time ago... I'm tired of thinking about it."

Either she was ignoring him, or she didn't want to comment on that. "A month ago, I was ready to face arranged marriages and all that—I knew my duty was the same as everyone woman's. But... my heart told me I was meant for more, that I could _do _more." She fell silent a moment, lifting her face and draping her arms over the bridge's railing. When she spoke again, it was in a light, happy voice. "In the end, I realized my duty... was to my heart."

A quiet moment passed between them as they both gazed out over the water, Riku contemplating her words with serious conviction.

"So... you're telling me I should concentrate on saving _Sora_ instead of doing my duty, even if lives are risked, just like.. you concentrated on saving your father instead of your duty, even though you were risking your own life."

"No..." she said. "I'm telling you to do what you feel is _right_, no matter what. Even if the fight seems hopeless, your heart will guide you." Her lips spread into a knowing smile. "Though my ancestors believed everything is yin and yang, I don't think things are so black and white or straightforward."

He sighed at that and nodded, pulling away from the railing. "Maybe you're right."

"I am," she asserted, grinning a little. "By the way..."

Catching the slightly mischievous tone in her voice, Riku gave her a suspicious look. "Yeah?"

"Those clothes..." she began, studying him with an amused gleam in her eye. "And those men you are with now. Very curious. Grandma-ma will be fawning over you three for days, even after you're gone."

Riku's expression turned confused. "Why?"

She gave him a disbelieving look. "You really don't see it, do you?"

"See _what_?"

"Mulaaaaan!"

"Oh great," Riku muttered.

Mushu's voice was the only warning they had before something small and scaly came racing down the stone path and leapt at the young girl.

"Mulan, Mulan!" he cried, darting around her shoulders and mussing her hair. "The great Mushu is back! Did you miss me!"

She laughed, calmly plucking him off her head and giving him an amused look. "I knew you'd gone with them. You could have at least told me. And yes, it was a lot quieter without you."

"What? That's it?" he asked, sounding a little offended. "I went through all this trouble to get here and I don't even get a welcome back party! Your _cow_ nearly breaks my neck, and then the ancestors tell me I'm out of a job because you're getting _married_ and that the husband's guardians are taking over protection duty, and—why are you laughing at me! This is serious business here!"

Mulan pulled the small dragon into a hug. "Oh, Mushu..."

"Gck.. yer squashin' me..."

After watching them for a moment, Riku smiled and took Mushu's appearance as the perfect opportunity to wander off. But instead of heading up the hill where the dragon had come from, Riku went back to the house to find Leon and Cloud.

Li Shang was waiting in the breezeway for him. The general had that 'all business' stance about him as he watched Riku approach, and Riku knew immediately that he couldn't avoid this encounter. He lifted his chin and tried to put on that confident, important attitude that he had once worn so easily.

"Li Shang," Riku politely acknowledged as he stopped in front of the man.

"Riku," he nodded. His dark eyes never strayed from Riku's own, as if silently testing the boy for something. "Your new companions are quite the warriors, I've noticed."

"Yeah," Riku agreed, tempted to lower his gaze from Shang's, but not wanting to seem rude. "You have no idea. Is there something you wanted to ask?"

Shang's formality wilted a little and he gave a small smile. "No. Actually, I wanted to give you something."

His attention definitely perked, Riku watched eagerly as the man reached into his armor and pulled out a rather worn, crumpled piece of parchment. He unfolded it and handed it to Riku, who began studying it, curious as to what it was.

"After you defeated the dragon and disappeared, this leaf of paper was found in the remains. It's some kind of... report," Shang explained. "I do not know what else to call it. Its language is beyond anything I have ever seen. I've spoken with many councilors about its writing, but they have come up with nothing about its origins as well."

Riku nodded, skimming over it quickly. Indeed, the handwriting seemed very formal, but he, unlike Shang, could read it. Showing nothing that he understood its contents, he decided to look at it more carefully the next time he was alone. "Weird..." he muttered.

"I thought you'd find more use for it," Shang said. "It felt right to give it to you."

"Thanks," Riku said as he folded the paper up and tucked it into a hip pouch with his elixirs. "I'll study it when I get a chance."

After that, the general was silent for a moment, and most formality seemed to fade from his attitude. When he spoke again, Riku was surprised to find it sincere. "I also wanted to thank you," Shang said, his voice kind of quiet as though he didn't want to be overheard. "For your help with the demons, and the dragon. And also Mulan, though... neither of us knew her true identity back then."

Riku gave a soft laugh at his sudden shyness. "You're welcome, Shang. I'm glad it all turned out for the better. Love is love."

"And I wish you well with yours, too," he replied. "I am sorry to hear about your last companion, Sora."

Riku's smile turned sad, but he didn't look away. "Things will turn out okay. Thanks for your concern." And though Li Shang didn't look convinced, Riku didn't want to talk about it anymore, least of all with a general like him. "Anyway... I'd better check on Leon and Cloud..."

"Oh, of course," Shang said apologetically, and then slipped back into his formal stature. "I will go fetch Mulan..."

They exchanged meaningful glances—something unspoken and deep, something that felt familiar, like a pact between fellow warriors—and they went their separate ways. When Riku got back inside, the grandmother was indeed fawning over Leon and Cloud, and though Fa Zhou had an aloof air about him, like he didn't want to have anything to do with his mother's strange actions, he still had a hint of amusement in his expression as he sipped his tea.

Riku hovered just inside the room, wondering if maybe he should disappear for a while until they were ready to leave the world. He didn't really feel like being pampered and picked at by the old woman. Thankfully, he caught Leon's eye, and the man spoke up.

"They convinced us to stay the night," he said a bit sullenly.

Oh great.

Riku nodded, even though he didn't exactly like the news. "I'll be outside then."

"My wife is preparing your room," Fa Zhou said, not looking up from his tea. "We are honored by your presence. We heard much about you from our daughter." Here he lifted his face, settling Riku with a calm stare that the boy found a little unsettling—everyone was so _formal_.

"And we're honored by the invitation," Riku replied calmly.

Fa Zhou went back to his tea. "My home is your home for the night. Feel free to use it."

So Riku did. He went back outside, passing Shang and Mulan on the way back to the gardens. Mushu caught up with him just as he passed through the archway.

"Yo Riku!" he called. He wasted no time in hopping onto the stone bench in front of the blossom tree where Riku had been heading. "Since I'm out of a guardian job for now, I'm sticking with you. Mulan seems pretty happy with her future hubby and all, and I don't feel very welcome."

Riku had to admit to himself that he felt a bit of sympathy for the dragon. Settling on the bench next to Mushu, Riku gave him a small smile. "Glad you decided to stay with us, then."

"Great! I'll just go tell the ancestors then," Mushu said as he leapt back into the grass. He paused though, rolling his eyes and giving an exaggerated sigh. "Yeah, I bet _they'll_ be happy I'm out of their hair," he grumbled moodily as he headed down the stone path toward the bridge, muttering to himself.

When he was alone at last, Riku leaned back against the trunk of the tree, lifting his face to stare up at the few remaining blossoms on the branches overhead. How long he sat there just watching, he didn't know. He just intently studied the soft curves of the flowers, watching a few catch in the breeze and drift to the grass below.

It was soothing out there in the garden, listening to the rustle of the wind in the bamboo nearby, the only other sounds coming from the trickling of the creek and the murmur of voices inside the home. Only when he heard the crunch of grass announcing another's presence, Riku lowered his face from the blossoms. He blinked a few times to return himself to reality, and then turned to look at the newcomer.

"Hey," Cloud greeted quietly. His red mantle looked dark as it curled in the breeze, his figure almost silhouetted against the lantern light coming from the home nearby. He moved closer to Riku, unfolding his wing and stretching it out as he sat on the bench beside him.

"Hey," Riku greeted back. He was actually surprised that Cloud of all people had come to find him.

Then again... maybe he hadn't. Maybe he'd come out here to be alone too.

When Cloud didn't say anything again, Riku sighed and broke the silence. "So the grandma got a hold of you, huh?"

"She liked my wing," was Cloud's response. "Surprised them at first... but it made them even more sure that I was some kind of god."

Riku glanced at Cloud, unable to stop a smirk when he saw the man's amused expression. They exchanged a short laugh, and Riku immediately felt better.

-o-o-

When Riku got to their guest room much later, Leon was already curled up on his thin mattress, presumably sleeping. This concerned Riku until he recalled that Leon hadn't really gotten much rest at Traverse Town like they had originally intended after leaving the coliseum. He left the man in peace and settled on the mattress closest to the one candle illuminating the room.

After removing all his accessories and setting them down, Riku stretched out on the bedding and reached into the pocket where he'd put the paper Shang had given him. He held it up to the candlelight, squinting through the flickering shadows to read it.

At first its contents seemed more like babbling, but the more Riku read, the more he began to understand what it was. This wasn't a page from a diary entry or anything—or just some random scrap of paper. This was _important_.

When he'd first started off his duty as a keyblade master, Leon had told him about Ansem's reports. In fact, that was one of the only things Leon _could_ remember about Ansem. The guy had always written stuff down.

The paper Riku was reading now, even though it had nothing to do with heartless, was undoubtedly a report. Its information was a bit out of the blue and confusing, but it made important connections.

It spoke about an entity named, coincidentally, _Id_, and that name definitely rang a bell— the mysterious man in Sephiroth's memories that always sat in the shadows, face never visible, just those yellow eyes... Id. Id, the guy who'd owned Sephiroth and Cloud for nine years, who still had custody of Sephiroth even now. The report also mentioned a place called the World of Darkness, which Riku also recognized from Sephiroth's memories. It even talked about darker halves of souls—

Which directly related to Sora's case. Sora's soul had split in half to create Dark Sora, right?

Holy shit...

Id. World of Darkness. Souls...

Riku stared at the report in shock, trying to soak everything in, trying to make all the connections and failing to.

What was he missing? What did he not know?

He needed to find more of these reports!

Ansem had known about Id before Ansem had even ended up in the World of Darkness. Ansem had known about the dark halves of souls!

Riku spent a long time just skimming over the flowing words of the report, not really registering what it was saying, his thoughts too muddled to really help him. Fuck, he was tired. Literally tired, and tired of being left alone in the dark, tired of not knowing shit about what was going on. He needed to find out...

It took some effort to put the report aside, letting it sit on top of his stuff where its pale face and elegant handwriting could be seen as he rested on the mattress, facing it.

A few minutes passed before Riku realized someone was watching him.

Leon's grey eyes were focused in his direction, the man's face empty of expression, but something in his gaze stirred Riku into a questioning mode.

"Can't sleep?" he asked.

The man moved at the question, rolling onto his back with a long, tired sigh. "You were quiet today."

"Yeah. Mulan knew Sora."

"Obviously," was Leon's dry response. "She didn't take the news lightly. You didn't notice because you were zoned out most of the time."

"I don't like remembering," Riku said a bit defensively, narrowing his eyes into a slight glare. But Leon wasn't looking. "And anyway... things turned out okay."

A silence spread between them, and the only sign that told Riku that Leon was still awake was the man's occasional blink at the ceiling.

"Cloud's a bit late," Riku noted at last, staring at his Ansem report.

"He'll come when he's done thinking," Leon replied. He slowly turned his head to glance at the boy, gaze serious. "You keep looking at that piece of paper. What is it?"

"Ansem report," Riku stated simply.

"...how long have you had it?" Leon asked, and Riku could tell he was a bit disappointed that Riku hadn't brought it directly to him.

Actually, Riku didn't really know why he hadn't mentioned it yet. Maybe he'd wanted to keep it his little secret for just a bit longer.

"Just after dinner," he replied. "I just read it right now though, so I haven't gotten a chance to really tell anyone about it. Shang gave it to me."

The curious expression that crossed Leon's face told Riku that the man was more awake than he'd originally thought. "And what does it say?"

"Stuff about Id and the World of Darkness, and souls..." Riku answered quietly. "Things that might relate to Sora."

"Id, huh?" Leon said. "And that place... Cloud told me about there, and his time with Seph. He told me as much as he could remember. Well, that report confirms his story, then."

"Yeah. Seph's memories do too," Riku added. "It's weird how Ansem knew about all that before he actually ended up there though..."

"Ansem was a secretive guy, from what I hear," Leon sighed.

Riku frowned at that, propping his head up a little to look at the other man more directly. "So what _do_ you remember about Ansem?"

As if seriously contemplating it and going deep into his memories, Leon remained quiet for a long, uncomfortable moment. Riku fidgeted impatiently.

Out of the people who had a connection to Ansem, only Leon and Aerith seemed to have an unbiased opinion about him. Cloud hated Ansem for the Gemini experiment and ruining his life; Cid had mixed feelings ranging from "He was a fucking hermit," to "Nice guy," and "Donated lots of cash to keep the orphanage running," which helped a little, but not enough; and Yuffie was too young to really remember much. Aerith had mostly mentioned how Ansem had kept most of his private life very, well, _private_, and how she had been forced to attend a formal ball or two with her parents. She remembered that Ansem had been quite popular, always drawing a crowd during the balls, and that he'd had a good sense of humor when it had been needed.

But that was it.

Riku knew nothing about the man's connection to the heartless or anything. Just the stuff from Sephiroth's memories, and what the others had told him. It was about time he got Leon's part of the story as well. Granted, he hadn't tried really hard to gather information, but... He had a feeling Leon knew a lot more than he was letting on.

"Well..." Leon said at long last, his lips drawn into a thin line. "I only really know what the others have told me about him, Riku. My memory is shit. You know that."

"But is there anything you _do_ remember?" Riku asked, getting slightly insistent. "I mean... just an image, or... or something he said, or anything?"

Leon closed his eyes, thought for a few moments, and then shook his head. "Everything I'm recalling is just stuff I've heard over the last nine years. I _can_ remember crap about Aerith trying to hook me up with Cloud, and the things I did in the orphanage, but..." His eyes slipped open, his expression distant. "I don't remember if I ever met Ansem."

Riku gave him a pleading look. "Just try."

Rolling his eyes, Leon sighed again. "I hate thinking about him. It just confuses me," he muttered. He paused though, tone reflective. "The one thing that might be one of my own thoughts is that Yami looks a lot like him. Like... a much younger version. If that helps."

Giving a frustrated groan, Riku flopped back onto the mattress, mussing his hair and trying to clear his head. "I already know all that. Dammit, why doesn't anyone have anything useful!"

"You'd have a better chance picking Cid's brain apart," Leon commented impassively. "He was old enough to remember Ansem's time as ruler."

"I tried," Riku grumbled. "Cid doesn't like talking about it. _No one_ likes talking about it."

"Then... maybe next time Sephiroth shows up, you can ask him," Leon said. "Since he and Cloud were Ansem's assistants or whatever..."

Riku froze, Leon's suggestion sparking the perfect solution. "Leon!"

"Hmm?"

"You're a genius!"

"...why?"

Riku quickly sat up and crawled over to the other man's mattress, suddenly excited. The brunette gave him a suspicious look and started to sit up as well, raking a hand through his hair. His grey eyes leveled on Riku's as the men sat facing each other, and he looked rather irritated at the whole situation, like he didn't _want_ to remember.

"I used my keyblade to get into Sephiroth's memories," Riku explained. "I don't know if it's the keyblade itself, or if it was that specific key chain or whatever, or even if it was because Sephiroth is a Gemini, but..."

Leon gave him a calm, blasé look. "You want to try tapping my memory with the keyblade. To see if I'm storing more than I remember."

"Yeah!"

"C'mon, Leon!" Riku sighed, giving him a look that he'd seen on Sora's face a lot, something along the lines of _I'm frustrated, I know you're hiding something from me, and I'm not going to stop nagging you 'til I hear it. _

Leon took one glance at Riku's expression and caved in, looking annoyed. "I don't like the idea, but whatever. If it helps find the reports or something..."

Immediately cheering up, Riku let out a small laugh and nodded. "Yeah, I think it'll help. Okay, let me try to remember how Sephiroth did it..."

"...you don't even know how to do it? _Riku_..."

"Shh, I'm thinking."

"Argh, hurry up. I'm tired."

Riku waved a hand to get Leon to hush, and then summoned Oblivion, bringing it between their bodies. The dark keyblade hummed in the quiet atmosphere, but it didn't have any cryptic messages for Riku tonight. Not yet, at least.

"Alright... Grab onto the blade," Riku instructed, feeling its power thrum beneath his palms.

Leon looked a bit skeptical, but he listened. When he wrapped his fingers around the weapon, his hands were bare, his accessories having been removed before Riku had even arrived. "Now what?" he asked.

"I think... we close our eyes... and concentrate. Concentrate on focusing your powers through the blade and connecting them with mine," Riku said, sounding uncertain. "I think it might help if you also think back to that time in your life... and about Ansem. Something to guide the memories." He paused, wetting his dry lips, and then admitted, "I'm not sure what's going to happen, since you can't remember anything about him anyway."

"Right, right," Leon sighed. He closed his eyes, his body going still as he gripped the keyblade tightly. "Concentrating. Focusing. Ansem..."

Riku started to do the same, taking a deep breath as he lowered his face, squeezing his eyes shut and trying to clear his mind. He was careful not to think about Sephiroth and how _he_ had done this, and just let the keyblade's power guide him. It was a strange feeling trying to reach out to someone with something that was so intangible, like magic, but Riku mentally stretched out, Oblivion flowing into and around him, and branching off into Leon as well.

When he felt something foreign brush against his own powers—Leon—he instinctively drew back and had to remind himself this wasn't anything intimate, or long lasting. He was just sharing his powers so he could slip into Leon's memories. Steeling himself, he pushed out with his powers again, feeling them softly twine with the keyblade and Leon's, curling together like ribbons. It felt really different from the time with Sephiroth, this connection more gentle but sure, and this built Riku's confidence and urged him onward. Slowly, carefully, he let his guard down, and he felt Leon follow his lead.

_Ansem. The bastion. Remember._

He felt Leon's grip tremble a little.

Weird.

He slipped a hand over Leon's, holding onto him and the keyblade, silently reassuring, encouraging. Though his eyes were closed, he could still see their hands together, some hazy image visible through Oblivion's magic.

_Just open yourself up, Leon..._

_I did._

A subtle frown pulled at Riku's lips as he tried pushing into Leon's mind, seeking information, thoughts, memories, _anything_, like he had gotten with Sephiroth. To his relief, it was working a little because he could sense Leon's thoughts running through his own, but... Nothing he wanted.

_Your memories. I can't access them._

_Shut up. I'm trying._

_Just let your guard down and let me in. I'll find them for you. Just think about Ansem._

He felt Leon hesitate a little, a flash of fear running subtly under that cold, nonchalant barrier of his. That was when Riku realized what was holding him back. It wasn't that Leon didn't want to help—rather, some part of Leon was _scared_ to remember. It was like Leon wasn't even aware of this fear. To Riku, as he reached toward it, it felt like a cage in Leon's mind, something hidden in his subconsciousness, a place with locked access. Even though Leon had let Riku into his mind, he couldn't give access to something he couldn't access himself.

It was up to Riku now.

_I got it. Just relax._

_...what?_

Riku's fingers curled tightly around Leon's, his other hand gripping Oblivion's keyway like a lifeline. Holding his breath, he tried focusing his power, feeling it swirl around him, ready to be used. Carefully, but firmly, he pressed against that hidden part of Leon's mind, gritting his teeth and steeling himself—

And then he shoved through the defenses.

"FUCK!"

Riku sucked in a startled breath, feeling the memories beginning to invade his own—

Of a warm room, beautiful stained glass windows over a large, dark-wood desk. It was something pleasant, exciting, so _comfortable_, and it awed Squall, his eyes lifting to study those gorgeous windows, two crimson wings spread across the glass—

And the memory abruptly cut off.

A burst of energy flared out from Oblivion and shoved the men away from each other.

With a sharp cry, Riku hit the far wall of the room, pain lacing up his back as he landed in a crumpled heap.

"Owww... Sh-Shit!"

"Rrrgh..." was Leon assertion, wherever he was.

Vertigo spun through Riku as he remained there, feeling sick all over. It took a moment before he could clear his head enough to try sitting up, and even then he had to catch onto the edge of a partition to help orient himself. Slowly he lifted his face, squinting through the dim light at Leon. Unlike Riku, Leon hadn't flown across the room from the keyblade's whiplash.

The man was cradling his head, glaring at Riku through his bangs. "What the fuck did you do?" he growled. He looked so angry it was almost frightening.

"You okay?" Riku asked, swallowing thickly. His voice sounded meek even to him.

Leon relaxed a little at the tone, lowering his eyes and shaking his head. "Massive headache," he muttered. "Shit..."

Fighting back nausea, Riku started crawling back to his own mattress. After he collapsed there, feeling boneless and exhausted, he said nothing for a long moment, letting Leon collect himself before he started asking questions.

Surprisingly, Leon was the one to break the silence.

"It wasn't Rinoa..."

Riku rolled over to face him, lifting his eyes to the other man, face lazily pressed to the thin mattress. "Huh?"

Leon was now staring at his hands. "You were right. About my memory... There must be a reason why it's shit and I can't remember certain things," he said in a dark voice. "That memory... the wings. And the wings on my jacket. They aren't Rinoa's." He paused, clenching his hands into fists and slowly lifting his face to Riku's. "Cid, Aerith, the others... They all assumed about those wings on my jacket. They thought I had them because of Rinoa. I couldn't remember, so I guess I eventually started thinking that too."

"But they're not Rinoa's," Riku said. He couldn't really remember anything about someone named Rinoa... But he didn't want to ask just yet. Leon seemed to be having a hard time just keeping his thoughts straight.

"That place was a room in the bastion," Leon explained. "I don't remember much from that one memory, but... That was definitely the bastion. I got the wings from the stained glass. I'd loved those windows..."

Which made Riku really wonder why Leon had forgotten about them in the first place. Just what would trigger a mind to forget something so fond?

Leon ran a hand through his shaggy hair and gave a tired sigh. "I didn't start visiting the bastion until after Rinoa's death, when I was nine."

Nothing else was said between them that night. Leon stretched out and went to sleep without a word, leaving Riku alone with his questions. Deciding Leon had had enough for the night, Riku left him alone.

Getting his mind to shut up was the problem. After blowing the candle out and laying down to sleep, he remained awake a very long time, sifting through everything he'd learned that day and trying to piece it together with what he'd already known.

He wasn't sure how long he had lain curled up on his side with his eyes closed, but it seemed like hours before he heard the soft footsteps of someone entering the room.

Riku opened his eyes, ready to greet Cloud or at least say goodnight to the guy (he hadn't planned on asking about Cloud's long absence from the room).

But it wasn't Cloud there.

It was _Yami_.

Riku's eyes widened a fraction before he quickly closed them again, pretending to be asleep. Surprise and suspicion made his body alert, his mind spinning with a hundred questions, mainly confused ones.

Hadn't Yami said he wasn't coming back? That he didn't want to see Riku anymore? What the hell was he doing here, _here_ of all places!

He heard Yami's boots move past his mattress, pausing just in front of Leon's.

Whoa. What?

Risking his cover, Riku peeked his eyes open just a little, enough to see what Yami was doing. From his angle, he couldn't really tell, but Yami was definitely hovering near Leon's bed, facing that direction.

For a moment, Riku actually feared that Yami was doing a surprise attack or something, and was going to get Leon in his sleep—

But Yami did nothing to the man. No, he gave a quiet sigh and turned, coming back towards Riku. The boy felt his body tense, ready to spring to action if Yami tried to do anything. They were technically enemies, weren't they? Riku hadn't pinned the other boy as the kind that would take advantage of people while they slept, though.

The strange thing was that, well, Yami _didn't_ do anything. He seemed to watch Riku a moment, but then he started to move away again—

Until something caught his eye.

Riku heard a soft gasp, and then saw Yami's boots move quickly to Riku's accessories where the Ansem report lay right on top.

"This is...!" was the hurried whisper.

But right before Yami's hand could snatch it up, or before Riku could lash out and stop him, heavy footsteps sounded down the hall, coming towards the room.

Cloud.

Yami retreated immediately. He must have been gone by the time Cloud entered the room, for the blonde gave no sign of surprise or anything. He too began pulling off his accessories, dumping them by the empty mattress.

Riku lay awake for a long time after that, Yami's mysterious visit making him even more intrigued than before.

Yami had obviously recognized the report. And... judging from how Yami had stood over Leon longer than _Riku_, those two had a connection that no one had informed Riku about.

Strange _indeed_.

-o-o-

Sora had honestly been looking for Yami when he came across what he did.

He was just entering the castle chapel when a portal of darkness suddenly flared into existence in front of him, and Yami came stumbling out of it, clutching his chest. Sora froze in place, eyes wide, and watched as Yami staggered a few paces and then crashed to his knees, curling his fingers into his shirt and bowing his head, gasping as if he was in pain.

Whoa, um...

Sora blinked at the sight, realizing he'd never seen the other boy so vulnerable before. Without knowing what he was doing, Sora stepped forward to let his presence be known.

"Yami?"

His head snapped up to look at Sora, white hair flying from the momentum. Those yellow eyes went wide with surprise—

And then immediately narrowed, Yami's expression turning grave.

"_Hide_," he rasped, and then bowed his head again, gritting his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut. His entire body gave a violent shudder and he released an anguished groan.

Sora didn't have to be told twice to listen to him. Confused as he was about Yami being like this, he recognized the honest intention behind Yami's pained warning. Sora wasted no time and ducked behind one of the animal statues sitting next to the tall altar. The wait wasn't long before Sora understood why Yami had told him to hide.

Within a few seconds, the sound of a scepter tapping against the stone floor could be heard drawing closer to the chapel. Sora peeked over the back of the statue and saw the mistress of the castle as she glided into the circular room, her dark robes trailing after her. As her eyes landed on Yami's weakened state, she drew close to him, her child held aloft and a wide, amused expression on her pallid face.

"Were you not the one who gave precautions of using the darkness unwisely?" she said in a long, condescending drawl. "That it can easily take root in a heart and consume it from within? That the darkness is very well capable of manipulating its wielder?"

Yami gave a soft, bitter choke of a laugh, and didn't raise his head or reply. The woman moved closer, bending so she could speak into his ear, her tone wicked and delighted.

"How pitiful."

A hand lashed out at this, Yami's patience obviously crumbling, but the woman was already backing away.

"You would be wise to take heed of your own words," she droned. "We cannot have you surrendering your heart just yet." She seemed to pause, her lips curling even more. "Which reminds me, you have not shown much progress on your side of the bargain. Perhaps I should terminate our deal and deny your payment, hmm?"

Yami lifted his head at this, his voice laced with anger and slight desperation. "You said you would hand them over if I–"

"And you did not," she interrupted calmly. "Seven princesses for seven pages, child, that was the deal." With a soft sniff, she slowly turned to go, her tone final. "Deliver the last princess and we shall discuss your payment once again."

Behind her, still crouched on the ground, Yami seethed. "Madam, I find those reports _necessary_," he grit out, still clutching at his chest.

The woman hesitated, lifting an eyebrow in his direction, obviously curious though mockery laced her words. "And why, child, would you find the musings of a mad man necessary to complete your task?"

Sora was genuinely surprised when Yami let out dangerous growl and threw his hands out at the woman. At his call, tendrils of darkness suddenly sprung from the ground at her, slicing through the air to attack.

She calmly waved her scepter as if she had been expecting the move, and before Yami could react, he was being pinned to the chapel wall right next to Sora's hiding place, and the darkness had already dissipated from Yami's control.

From his spot, Sora could see the anger, the despair in Yami's expression. Something about that look on his face... It told Sora there was _a lot_ more behind Yami's intentions than what the woman knew. Yami looked almost...

_Vengeful_.

"Tsk. Wielding the darkness again so soon?" she mused, painted lips spreading into a pleased smile. "What a fool."

She lowered her scepter and Yami fell to the floor gasping, tears of anger shining in his eyes. Without waiting, she turned to leave again, raising a hand. Sora flinched when something suddenly took flight from the altar right above him. The woman's crow soared across the room and landed on an outstretched finger, swiveling its head around as if to smirk at Sora.

It had known he'd been there the whole time. Damn bird.

"I aim to know everything that takes place in this castle," she said calmly to Sora without facing him. "If you are so bored as to eavesdrop at every occasion, dear boy, then you will be put to better use. The next time I call for you, be well rested and ready. I will have an errand for you." She paused, glancing slightly over her shoulder in Sora's direction, and then quietly left.

Silence reigned after that.

Sora rose to his feet and moved around the statue, cautiously approaching Yami, who was curled on his side, body trembling. The expression on Yami's face was the angriest Sora had ever seen.

"Um... Yami..." he began warily, not even sure why he was sticking around to talk to the guy. Or why he was about to ask what he was. "Are you okay?"

Amber eyes lifted to regard Sora, narrowing into a cold, guarded glare. "Why?" was his simple response, his voice thick with an emotion that Sora couldn't identify.

"Because... I don't know," Sora admitted, feeling himself frown at Yami's mistrust. "Because I've never seen you like this and I guess I'm worried."

Yami gave a short, dry laugh and unsteadily climbed to his feet. When he spoke again, he already had his voice under control. "I have done nothing except bring you pain, yet you still grant me sympathy."

_Tell me about it_, Sora thought to himself, feeling like an idiot.

Id's presence filled his mind, whispering a reply. _Pitying your enemies will get you nowhere._

_Neither will ignoring them,_ Sora silently pointed out, pushing Id out of his thoughts. He didn't want Id's opinion on any of this right now. Thinking back to the teasing words the woman had directed at Yami, Sora frowned at something he realized could affect him too. "Can the darkness really do all that?" he asked. "Like.. take control, hurt you like that... Is that why you're like this right now?"

Yami's amber eyes narrowed sharply on Sora's. "I am like this right now because the darkness once had complete control of me. Now that it does not, it is desperate to regain its mastery," he said in a cutting voice, looking away with a slightly miffed look. "...and it takes pleasure in torturing me to hasten my surrender."

Something cold wrenched at Sora's heart. Fear for his own fate, maybe... Or perhaps it was some sort of guilty compassion for Yami's situation. Sora hadn't really been expecting that sort of answer... Granted, he didn't really know the entirety of Yami's words, but he did understand there was a lot behind Yami that Sora didn't know and didn't _want_ to know, for the fear of what he would find.

"Oh..." Sora fidgeted. "So... if you don't like it... why are you on that side?"

The other boy visibly tensed at the question, his expression darkening. "I do not have a choice," he replied as he began to move out of the room.

But Sora stepped in front of him. "It's because you use your powers so much, right?" He gestured back to where Yami had appeared from his portal. "Can't you just _not_ use the darkness when you want?" he asked. "Like I do?"

Yami shook his head, giving Sora an impatient look. "It is far more complicated than that." Pausing, he studied the boy, lips drawing into a thin line. To Sora, it almost felt like Yami was looking for a part of himself in the other boy. "Tell me, Sora. From your short time with the darkness, has it ever completely twisted your sense of reality to make you believe you are experiencing something that you are not?"

Sora hesitated at that, seriously brooding on Yami's question and thinking back to what he'd seen lately. "Um.. well..." he began, not really sure what to say or how to say it. One particular incident clearly stood out in his mind, but he wasn't about to admit he'd almost seduced a heartless because he'd mistaken it for Riku.

"Well?" Yami said expectantly.

Feeling his cheeks warm with shame, Sora bowed his head, peeking up through his bangs at the other boy. "There was this one time..." His voice was shaking. "I guess."

Yami's eyes softened at the confession. "Painful, is it not?" he calmly asked.

"Yeah... and scary," Sora admitted. He turned his face away from Yami's studious gaze, a part of him fearing that the guy could read minds and _knew_ what Sora was thinking about. Those anti-Rikus, pressed in around him, giving soft, loving _kyuus_... Embarrassment fluttering around in his gut, Sora cleared his throat and changed the subject. "So... what does the darkness make you see, when it's torturing you?"

Obviously uncomfortable with Sora's chosen topic, Yami gave a displeased sigh. Sora hadn't really been expecting a real answer, but it was a few seconds before Yami actually answered, his tone quiet and guarded. "I see the people I care for."

This really surprised Sora. For one—Yami actually cared about someone other than himself? And for another thing, it made him wonder what had happened to them if they were being used against Yami like that. He had to ask. "Are they being hurt?"

Yami shook his head, yellow eyes distant. "No... they are loving me."

"So how is that a bad thing?" Sora asked, confused about why something like that would be torture.

"When the illusion fades, I am alone," was Yami's simple response. His voice trailed off into a sad undertone. "...the darkness knows what the absence of love means to me." Long fingers reached up to tuck his white bangs back, his gaze lifting to Sora's again, sharp with warning. "Terrors are the least of your problems, boy."

It was an honest admonition, but Sora found himself reacting indignantly at it. Yami may have had a lot more experience or whatever, and maybe he'd also lost a lot more, and knew what Sora was getting into, but _still_... Having someone like Yami telling him something like that... It irked him.

"The least of my problems?" he snapped. "I lost my home, my family, my friends, _Riku_—and my sanity is going too—what have I got left to lose?"

He didn't want someone like Yami dictating his fate. It was _wrong_. But... this side of Yami was new. It almost scared Sora. Here he was being serious, almost honest, no trace of smirks or condescending words to piss him off. It was an actual conversation, open and honest, almost like... Yami was talking to himself.

So when Yami actually replied to Sora's little tirade, it sent a cold shudder down the boy's spine.

_—what have I got left to lose?_

"Yourself."

It was true, of course, but... the way the guy said it, it was almost... deterministic.

"Is that what happened to you?" Sora wondered.

Those yellow eyes flickered with something dangerous. "Mostly."

Which probably translated to _yes_.

"But you know better now, right?" Sora said, a bit too hopeful. He didn't like this growing fear inside of him, of what could happen to him too. He wanted there to be another path, another destiny for himself. If Yami was being honest, and had once been in Sora's shoes, Sora didn't want to end up making whatever mistakes Yami had. "Why don't you fight the darkness now?" he asked. "Why keep with it?"

Another shake of Yami's head. "I said it before—I do not have a choice," he replied in an impatient voice.

"Of course you do!" Sora said, taking a step forward, noticing how the other boy tensed at his approach. "Everyone has a choice to do the right thing!"

Yami's frown deepened. "And what if I told you that I consider my actions the _right thing_?"

This caught Sora off-guard. He gave the other boy a confused look, reaching up to scratch his head. "But... What? That doesn't make any sense."

As if he were exasperated with Sora's naivety, Yami began to move past him again. "You understand_ nothing_," he muttered darkly, expression growing aggravated.

Tired of the other guy always dancing around the truth, Sora pushed in front of him again, feeling a flash of fury inside of him. "At least I'm trying to make a difference, _Yami_!" he bit, meeting Yami's glare with a stubborn one of his own. "Like your secrets are helping any!" he pointed out, watching Yami's face cloud with anger. But he continued, ignoring the mounting danger. "I mean, I hate your guts but I'm still trying to be friendly! Helpful!"

Somehow, he'd been expecting what happened. Yami's hand flew out, long fingers catching in Sora's hair, and he threw the boy against the nearest wall, pinning him there. Sora hit the cold stone with a sharp cry, tensing as Yami leaned in close. He felt his heart thundering, fearing just what Yami could do to him—he didn't have his sword Einlanzer, or even that keyblade, he only had his powers to protect himself—

Blue eyes wide in alarm, Sora gaped up at Yami, watching as strange emotions flitted across his tanned face—anger and sorrow, then panic and uncertainty, and finally resolution, those amber eyes lowering as a white eyebrow twitched in annoyance. That was... _weird_...

"Fine," Yami whispered, almost to himself as he regained control. He raised his eyes back to Sora's, seething. "Keep that hate," he advised, his hand tightening painfully in Sora's hair, his grip firm and absolute.

Confused and scared about Yami's sanity, Sora winced, gritting his teeth and glaring right back—

But then Yami started to lean in, and Sora froze.

He wasn't expecting what happened next.

Voice soft but full of dark purpose, Yami brushed his lips against Sora's ear as he spoke.

"Id, I wish to speak to you."

_Id!_ Sora silently panicked, wondering how the _hell_ Yami knew his name and what was going on.

But Id's existence flared inside of him, even as Sora fought to keep him at bay. His sultry voice filled Sora's mind with a single word—

_Finally._

And Sora fell to slumber.

-o-o-

The trinity slept until right before dawn and decided to return to Traverse Town to see what Merlin would have to say about Riku's Ansem report. Mushu with them, they bid farewell to Mulan and her family, and returned to their ship, which had been successfully hidden from view and had remained untouched throughout the night.

The return 'home' was fairly uneventful as usual, Leon's piloting skills far better each time they made the passage between worlds, ducking heartless ships and asteroids. Mushu, even though no one was listening, prattled on about the farewell party Mulan's ancestors had thrown for him the night before. Seeing as how it had been a celebration, it seemed Mushu wasn't going to be very missed at home, but Riku kinda understood why, remembering the stories Mushu had told him before about all the trouble he'd caused for the family in the past.

Riku spent the entire trip wondering about the report and Yami's mysterious visit last night—and what Leon's mind could possibly be repressing. Leon hadn't said anything about it that morning, but Riku could see the slight tension in the man's actions, and had a pretty good idea it was because he was worried too. Cloud seemed pretty oblivious, but he was probably lost in his own thoughts too. Riku doubted that Leon was going to tell Cloud about his memories any time soon.

All in all, it was starting off to be a rather blah day.

"Cid's not responding," Leon announced as they neared the world. "That's weird..."

Riku frowned, peeking around Cloud's seat to glance at the viewscreen. Yeah, it _was_ weird—Cid was almost always in the garage, and according to the Traverse Town clock in the gummi ship, it wasn't even evening there. Well... maybe it wasn't anything to worry about.

"Probably went out for a drink," Riku mused as he folded his Ansem report up and tucked it into one of his hip pouches.

How wrong he was.

When they landed, it was evident that something was seriously wrong in town. As the ship's ramp lowered, they were met with screams of horror from outside the ship hangar.

"What the hell...?"

Riku wasted no time in darting down the ramp and out of the garage, hearing Leon and Cloud's boots following close behind him. Mushu climbed up on Riku's shoulder as the trinity burst through the doors of first district and right into trouble. Civilians—men, woman, and children alike were aimlessly running and screaming for their lives as if the world were ending. Again.

"The heartless—" Leon growled.

"What the hell are they doing back!" Riku demanded. An unsettling feeling stirred within him, some unnamed emotion that wasn't quite fear or panic, but also... a bit of excitement. Hope. Curiosity.

"Oh _hell_ no!" Mushu cried, leaping off Riku's shoulder. "I ain't sticking around for this! I'll be in the ship!"

A young woman tripped rather close to them, letting out a shriek as she went flying into the cobblestone, a heartless right at her heels.

Riku immediately pulled Oblivion into existence, cleaving right through the shadow that had been chasing the woman. As it disappeared into a shower of smoke and magic, he grabbed hold of the girl's arm and pulled her to her feet, recognizing her as one of the restaurant waitresses in second district. He motioned her towards the garage, meeting her eyes.

"Take cover in there and _don't_ _come out_ until it's safe!"

She gave a quick nod, her brown eyes watery and wide with fear. "R-Riku—" she began, but her voice was so shaky she couldn't continue.

Letting Leon and Cloud run ahead to take care of the heartless, Riku paused to glance back at the woman, Oblivion held firmly in one hand. "I'll send all survivors there," he assured.

But she shook her head, twisting her hands anxiously in her skirt. "It's S-Sora," she managed to get out, mascara tears slipping down her cheeks. She squeezed her eyes shut, choking out, "W-Why is Sora doing this!"

Riku's world shrank down to that very moment, with those words echoing inside of him.

"Sora...?" he asked, not believing his ears.

Oh shit...

He should have been expecting it, but... it was completely unreal.

Not wasting another moment, Riku spun away from the girl and sprinted past the fountain towards the stairs where Cloud was facing off against a small team of unmarked, tall heartless that Riku had never seen before. They were like regular shadows, only much taller—taller than even Cloud, their antennae reaching practically to their feet, their limbs thick with muscle.

Yuffie was nearby, slicing desperately at a pair of the monsters with her four-point shuriken, but they kept sinking into the ground, swimming around her feet before unexpectedly lunging back into the air and attacking with powerful kicks. "Ick, ick, back OFF, you ugly bastards!" She jerked her weapon into them to keep them at bay, gradually backing up to where Cloud was fighting.

Letting Oblivion's thrumming power assure him, Riku dove between the terrifying heartless, ducking and swiping at their legs, just as Yuffie's shuriken sliced into their torsos.

_—keyblademaster!he'sherehe'sherestronghearttofeed!masterwillbehappymasterwillbepleased—_

_Be careful, be careful!_

Riku spun around the heartless, their long talons cutting through the air at him. Blocking out their hissing voices and the keyblade's warnings was difficult, but he did his best to concentrate on the fight, trying not to worry about where Dark Sora was, or why _he_ was attacking here in the first place.

"Riku, I got these here—" Yuffie insisted, slicing her weapon again and again into them, darting between their shadowy bodies each time they moved to attack. "It's Sora! He's here and he brought them—I don't know where he went, but you need to get _him_! He's gone crazy!"

"I'll back her up," Cloud assured from nearby, his blue eyes never straying from his own fight. "Go on! Leon's already gone ahead!"

Not feeling too comfortable about leaving his friends with this new breed of heartless, Riku hesitated a moment. Cloud sent him a reprimanding look as his giant buster sword went cleaving through Yuffie's two heartless.

"_GO!_"

Riku tore his gaze away from Cloud's and nodded, steeling himself. Fingers wrapped firmly around his keyblade's grip, he darted up the stairs past more monsters climbing out of the ground. People were pouring in from second district, screaming and tripping over each other, anti-Riku heartless moving through the panicked crowd and dragging those they could into the shadows.

It was a literal nightmare, a dozen people disappearing right before Riku's eyes, and by creatures that looked just like him.

When he saw what they were, he stood frozen for a moment, feeling the burn of dread inside of him. He remembered exactly how their cold hands had felt all over him, how they had tortured, violated him, loved his warm body and nearly consumed it. He hated them. He actually feared them. And though he didn't want to deal with them again, he knew, as the keyblade master, what his duty was.

He needed to destroy the source.

Gritting his teeth, Riku held Oblivion out and waded into the chaos—humans and heartless writhing together, a desperate battle for hearts and lives, the humans practically defenseless against Riku's shadowy brothers. He cut a heartless or two down when necessary, but he passed through the massacre unharmed, his strong heart successfully catching their attention. He knew that he couldn't fight all of them, so drawing the demons to himself was the key to saving the people, and that's what he did.

_Be careful, they are drawn to the key—_

_To the master's strong heart!_

"I know," he whispered to Oblivion, and then raised his voice to call back to the survivors, their awe-filled eyes already fastened on him. "Head to the gummi garage and help those you can along the way!"

Something nagged at him as he turned away from the civilians and entered second district with several anti-Rikus eagerly following him. Their hungry whispers chased his back, suggestions of the things he'd tried so hard to forget, to ignore.

_—takehisheart—keyblademaster'sheart—ohsogoodsodelicious—feelhimsquirmhearhimcry—heartyum—formaster—_

He despised how vulnerable he felt around the darkness.

When he broke off into a run, the anti-Rikus followed, springing from the cobblestone and high into the air above him. He heard them scampering over window awnings and along the sides of buildings and roofs, easily keeping up with him as he sprinted through the emptying plaza, ducking shadow heartless as they sprung from the ground at him.

Up ahead, Leon was climbing onto a balcony, gunblade dangling from his belt as he hung from the edge, easily pulling himself onto and over the railing. As the man straightened and began to turn, Riku saw the red wings on his jacket—the wings from his memory, just as Leon had said.

"Riku!"

Startled out of his thoughts by Aerith's voice, Riku faltered slightly in his run to look for her, spotting her and Cid in front of the gizmo shop. She was standing at his side with a staff, actually looking ready for a fight, and a muttering Cid had his head bowed as he fiddled with some metal contraption in his hands. Aerith's wide eyes were scanning the growing horde of heartless behind Riku.

"Riku, get to high ground!" she cried.

Cid's head lifted momentarily to see where Riku was. "And pick up the pace, kid, they're right at—_shit_—" This was where Cid pounded a fist into the side of the machine he was trying to fix. "—why is this fucking piece of shit not working!"

High ground?

"Up here!" Leon called, leaning over the railing with his hand stretched toward him.

Riku immediately took a sharp turn towards the balcony, stumbling a little as he nearly tripped on a heartless coming out of the ground. He ducked to the side, hearing Oblivion's growing warnings, just as two of the anti-Rikus came dropping from above. Making a clean arc through the air, Riku brought his keyblade into their necks, feeling its blade connect with their dark bodies. Careful to avoid their eager hands, he ducked around them and up to Leon, dispelling Oblivion so he can grab onto the man's offered hand with both of his.

Leon's strong arm pulled him up a good ways, and Riku clung to the hold, planting his boots against the side of the balcony. As he remained suspended in the air for a moment, he glanced down at the gathering swarm of heartless below, some of their fingers reaching up to try to grab the straps dangling from his new pants. Their expressionless faces and yellow eyes were all turned up at him.

"Come on before they start climbing," Leon advised.

Riku nodded, looking up at Leon gratefully, just before the man's other hand reached around him, grabbed the back of his belts, and easily heaved him over the railing. He let out a short yelp of surprise as he practically fell on the older man, but Leon casually pushed him off and steadied him with one hand.

Those grey eyes met his, slightly amused despite the situation. "Cid seems to have a surprise for your little friends down there."

Just as Leon said that, Cid gave a triumphant, "Ah-HAH!" and turned his contraption towards the group of heartless.

As if sensing Cid as a threat, the anti-Rikus suddenly turned to face him, a dozen pairs of yellow eyes narrowing dangerously. The rest of the heartless were still aiming to reach Riku and Leon, oblivious to outside influences, but those dark clones of Riku recognized the danger immediately. Almost acting as one force, they sank into the ground and disappeared from sight, retreating right before Cid pulled the trigger on his machine.

A stream of fire roared over the heartless-infested plaza, Cid's flamethrower reaching just up to the balcony, little curls of flame licking the platform at Riku's feet. He backed up in surprise, watching the creatures writhe and scatter like burning ants. For once, he was glad he didn't have the keyblade in his hand—and if he had, he wondered if he would have heard squeals of confused pain from the helpless heartless. Not that it mattered.

The onslaught of flame lasted over a minute, Riku and Leon watching the conflagration with solemn faces.

"They're different from usual," Leon said, his voice just barely audible above the fire.

"Yeah," Riku agreed. "Evolved again. And they don't have the mark of a heartless, not like the fancy ones. They're more... plain."

"Natural."

When Cid was done with his first round, everything fell silent. All of the weaker heartless had perished in that one attack.

"Mm, roasted heartless."

"Gross, Cid."

The remaining heartless—the new, stronger breed—immediately locked onto Cid and Aerith as their new enemies, and sprung from the ground to meet them. Within five seconds, the heartless were there and Aerith was knocking at them with her staff as Cid recharged his flamethrower for a second go.

"I don't know much about Aerith's fighting ability," Riku began, not liking how the situation was looking for his other friends. "But... I doubt she can finish those things off by herself."

"Yeah." Leon gave him a knowing look. "Bait."

Riku was already summoning Oblivion, knowing its power would distract the heartless and draw them back to him. Its comfortable weight returned to his hand, whispers of warning drifting to him.

_They know, they know, the neo-heartless... Beware their strength, beware. Natural heartless call to master._

As if on cue, the beastly heartless hesitated, their heads slowly turning back around toward Riku.

"Something feels wrong..." Riku muttered, narrowing his eyes at the—what?—Neo-heartless.

"They're coming," Leon warned. He turned away from the plaza to glance around the balcony as if looking for something. "Cid and Aerith may be able to fight, but you're right. They're too weak. We need to get moving if we want people to survive this."

"And I need to find Dark Sora," Riku added grimly, zipping his hoodie up all the way. He glanced at Leon, who met his gaze and nodded. "Let's go."

"This way," Leon instructed, motioning up to the roof. He climbed onto the balcony railing and carefully turned, leaping up and catching onto the edge of the roof. Once again, he effortlessly pulled himself up, his boots scraping against the red clay tiles as he shifted to find good balance. He leaned over after a moment, grey eyes sharp. "Can you make it up here?"

Eyeing the heartless once again gathering below the balcony, Riku silently lifted his gaze to Leon. He let Oblivion disappear, freeing both of his hands for climbing. As quickly as he could, he followed Leon's example, perching on the railing and then jumping to grab the edge. His fingers caught a loose tile though, and he slipped, the clay rectangle dropping to the heartless below, crashing against the cobblestone.

"Shit!"

Gritting his teeth, Riku held on, swinging his other arm back up for a handhold. Leon's gloved hand caught it and began pulling him up. Once Riku had half of his body onto the roof, the man grabbed one of Riku's legs and tugged him up the rest of the way, and then clutched into the purple hoodie to keep the boy from slipping off the roof.

"Thanks," Riku said as carefully got to his feet. He started to climb the steep slope, away from Leon's safety. "We need to get to the top—"

"Take it easy," Leon interrupted, voice laced with caution. "You know it's a trap."

"Yeah."

Riku continued without wavering, easily scaling the slope to reach the even peak, Leon right behind him. Moving to the edge of the roof, Riku planted his foot against a small, simple statue there, and looked out over the district. He stretched an arm out, calling his keyblade back to him, its warmth reassuring him. A chilly breeze brushed at his silver hair, and he reached a hand up to push his bangs back.

Up this high, he had a perfect view all the districts. He'd never seen Traverse Town look so dead, not even in the early hours of the morning. It was eerie.

Drawing in a deep breath, Riku leaned forward, raising Oblivion high into the air.

"Here I am, you assholes!" he cried, his voice carrying throughout the town, echoing off building after building, his return call sounding like some desperate mantra.

He didn't have to wait long for the neo-heartless to show up, scampering up the sides of the buildings like twisted superheroes, their long, spidery bodies looking even more intimidating now that Riku was off the safety of the ground. But they weren't what Riku wanted. No, the anti-Rikus arrived second, peeking their heads out of dark pools spreading across the roof behind him and Leon. _Those_ were the heartless that would bring him to Dark Sora.

As the clones climbed out of their shadowy homes, the neo-heartless began springing from the buildings nearby, antennae sweeping behind them as they landed crouched on the roof tiles, their yellow eyes almost electric as they watched the keyblade master and his companion.

Time to get out of there.

Leon and Riku moved as one, keyblade and gunblade alike cutting through the heartless in their way as they raced across the rooftop, boots slapping against the hard tile. Even as the edge drew near, they didn't hesitate, instead picking up their pace to leap from the roof. The feeling of weightlessness lifted Riku's spirits as his body arched through the air, wind rustling his clothes. Leon reached the next building first, Riku landing next to him and taking off into a run without missing a beat. Behind them, they heard the heartless crashing into the tile behind them, their limber bodies scampering up the new roof faster than the two men, already moving to attack—

But Riku and Leon easily evaded each attempt, ducking through the tearing claws and sprinting ahead, side by side towards the next rooftop, moving without thought or worry for one another, just trusting each other's strength. A neo-heartless would land in front of them and spring forward to knock Riku off the roof, but Leon would close in on its side with his blade and a fire spell, clearing the way for the boy; and similarly, Riku more than once let Oblivion fly from his hand, its sleek blade cutting down a few anti-Rikus before circling back and returning to Riku's hand, protecting Leon's runway.

"I _know_ Dark Sora's hiding here somewhere!" Riku insisted as they scaled their third roof, looking out over first district.

A flutter of leather and bone sounded in the air and Leon turned on instinct to defend himself, only to find Cloud suddenly landing on the roof with them, his wing spread and his mantle curling in the breeze.

"Hey," he greeted, buster sword slung over his shoulder as he moved to join their race.

"Hey," Leon replied as he darted after Riku, who hadn't waited.

"Nice of you to join us!" was the boy's welcome, right as he ran an anti-Riku through with his keyblade.

And just like that, they were a trinity again, Cloud easily cleaning up the heartless coming from behind, his heavy sword sometimes knocking the demons right off the building. They moved as a unit towards third district, Cloud's presence adding a silent, valuable strength to the fight, his techniques and agility easily outmaneuvering Leon and Riku, frequently finishing off their heartless before they could on their own. Still, Cloud was not without fault as well.

They got cornered on one of the shorter buildings on route to their destination, and Leon ended up standing right at Cloud's back, his gunblade twirling and slicing through the neo-heartless lunging from below. Riku took position at the men's sides, his powerful keyblade driving away some of the demons leaping from the taller buildings surrounding them.

The trinity moved and worked around each other like it was second nature, acting as a team, even during individual efforts—Riku would spin around two heartless and stab them from behind, just as Leon and Cloud closed in on the monsters from the front.

Anti-Rikus tried more than once to separate the keyblade master from the others, tugging on his clothes and pulling him toward the edge of the square roof, but neither of Riku's companions let it happen. Cloud leapt into the air, wing flapping wildly behind him to keep him aloft as he slammed his huge sword into the dark bodies surrounding Riku, and Leon took a more fierce approach, his gunblade taking broad strokes as he dove into the mass of heartless, kicking and cutting at them to drive them off Riku.

They may not have been a perfect trinity, but they did know how to fight together.

"Riku, don't let them surround you like that—" Cloud warned without looking up from the fight.

His clawed hand wrenched an anti-Riku off the boy, throwing it back. It landed squirming on the ground, hissing up at Leon as he approached it. His face was expressionless as he twirled his gunblade and stabbed the creature right in the gut.

Riku leapt back to his feet and immediately ducked, sweeping a leg out trip one of his clones—but the creature was too fast and somersaulted out of the way, landing crouched close to the flat roof surface, those yellow eyes narrowing at him in challenge.

When it came at him again, pouncing from the surface like a large cat, Riku lowered into a defensive stance, ready for it. As it drew close enough to attack, Riku grabbed its arm and kicked out with a foot, connecting with the heartless' stomach, right as he dropped his own weight. Riku rolled with the anti-Riku's momentum and sent the creature flying straight off the roof.

He didn't bother watching to see its fate, his hand already snatching Oblivion from the rooftop and jerking the blade into a neo-heartless grappling at his legs. With a powerful push off the ground, Riku angled his body up, boots connecting with another anti-Riku and knocking it back as he landed perfectly on his feet.

"Careful with those stunts, Riku," Leon called, but his voice held a certain air of amusement. "You could go rolling right over the edge."

"Ha, ha," Riku shot back with a grin, feeling a swell of pride for being able to impress Leon.

The man was pure motion, stalking across the roof with broad, fluid steps, cutting down the heartless with his gleaming gunblade. Even in all that leather, he moved gracefully, his eyes like cold fire as he fought, sweat-damp hair whipping about his face and across his scar, lion necklace glittering in the fluorescent lighting of Traverse Town.

Cloud was a picture of his own, his wicked wing beating at the air as he moved around the heartless, his gauze-wrapped buster sword making wide swipes through the black bodies. His tattered mantle moved like an entity of its own as he fought, dancing and curling in the air like red smoke. Unlike Leon, Cloud made faces as he slashed through the battle, his blonde brows furrowed together in concentration and those bright blue eyes hardening with purpose each time a heartless perished in front of him.

Riku could only imagine what he looked like when he fought—probably like a kid whose hoodie couldn't even cover his stomach when he moved. Wiping his forehead of sweat, he tightened his hold on Oblivion and returned to the fight, darting between two neo-heartless, plunging the blade back and forth and ducking a swipe at his head.

He twirled around them, feeling the music of the keyblade fill him, its rhythm guiding his feet and waist as he fought the large heartless. The sound of metal blades connecting with flesh, of the tinkling of the zippers of his pants, of the scrape of boots against clay roof, of the heartless cries of pain, of the keyblade's strong hum and flow of stories and warnings—it all surrounded him, warming him inside with its song, the song of battle. He closed his eyes, feeling the power flowing through him, sensing every movement of his enemies and comrades and sketching out how his own dance would go.

His keyblade was weightless as he sliced it into his enemies, spinning and ducking through them, plunging its blade into the tender, leathery flesh of the neo-heartless. Oblivion moved like a part of himself, twirling through the air in beautiful swoops and dangerous arcs, hacking into the shadowy bodies. He guided his weapon perfectly, gracefully, always knowing where it was going, even when it left his hand to protect Cloud or Leon, removing threats before they even came to play.

The dance was familiar and easy, quick and slow all at once, as intricate as poetry. His eyes slipped open, catching sight of his silver hair brushing across his cheeks as he spun in a tight circle. Yellow eyes closed in on him, black faces only meant for nightmares, and beyond them Riku saw something that made his heart wrench in surprise.

—_he'sherehe'shere—masterishere—_

He'd been expecting it, but—

There, perched calmly on a steep roof nearby, was Dark Sora.

He had a hand curled around a spire as he watched the fight below, yellow eyes focused on Riku. Actually stumbling in his dance, Riku had to act quickly to drive off the anti-Rikus trying to close in on him. Oblivion passed through their bodies and he shoved the damned creatures back, raising his face to look for Sora again.

When their gazes met, Sora's lips curled into a smirk, plainly amused. "Impressive, keyblade master," he called.

_Beware the dark master—! _Oblivion whispered in warning, and Riku scowled, feeling his fingers tighten defensively on his weapon.

The fight seemed to stop, the heartless sinking mostly into their dark pools, eyes peeking just above the surface as they waited for commands, watching their master and the keyblade wielder face each other. Leon and Cloud moved to stand behind Riku, their silent strength filling him with the confidence he needed to face the dark being that had once been his best friend, boyfriend, lover.

He was wearing something different from last time, a mix of black and dark green, full of buckles and dangling belts—a familiar style like his own, but Riku couldn't focus on the details, his eyes studying Sora's face more than anything. He looked so different like this, eyes and expression so unlike his Sora, yet... it was still him, somewhere in there.

"Like what you see?" the boy asked, yellow eyes glittering with something mischievous as he watched Riku through his bangs. "I raided the town's shops."

"Why are you here?" Riku demanded, forcing himself to take control of the situation. His eyes narrowed on Sora's figure as he tried to ignore the slightly mocking grin the boy was giving him. Gesturing at the town with Oblivion, he continued. "These people have _nothing_ to do with you!"

"No," Dark Sora agreed, beginning to stand. His buckle shoes scraped against the steep roof he was somehow still perched on, his balance on the inclination a strange impossibility. "They're just cattle anyway. Actually, I'm here to visit you," he said, lifting his chin and looking a bit smug. "A friend of yours called in a favor."

What?

"A favor?" Riku asked, not liking the sound of this. "Who? Get down here and face me already!"

Sora's grin spread. "You sure you want me to tell you?" he teased, soaking in Riku's annoyance with cruel delight.

Letting out a dangerous growl, Riku raised his keyblade as a silent threat.

This seemed to please Dark Sora. Brushing an eartail back, he smirked, yellow eyes narrowing at Riku's challenge. "Oh, alright," he drawled. "But only because you asked so nicely."

Riku braced himself as Sora let go of the building's spire and pushed off the sloping roof, leaping high into the air. Sora's grin returned, his eyes meeting Riku's, and a flash of fear twisted inside of Riku when he saw that Sora wasn't going to make the whole jump—

But a pair of dark wings suddenly materialized as they unfolded from his back, spreading and catching the air, raining black glittery magic. They weren't _real_ wings, just fashioned from the darkness, but their form, and on _Sora_...

They reminded Riku too much of the dark-winged Sora from his dreams.

His hand stretched out to Riku. "Come on, keyblade master!" he called. "Let's see how you fair without those friends of yours!" He laughed, turning toward third district and flaring his ghostly wings. They gave a powerful flap, pushing Sora toward his destination.

The neo-heartless immediately resumed their attacking, only with double the effort, their main focus on Leon and Cloud this time. Already heaving his buster sword into them, Cloud moved to separate the heartless from Riku. Leon was too, his gunblade like liquid silver amongst their black bodies as he sliced into them.

"Go, Riku!" Leon snapped. "We'll take care of this!"

"Don't hesitate about expelling Sora as a threat," Cloud added quickly, clearing a path through the heartless for Riku. "He's the enemy now."

Even though he didn't like hearing it, Riku nodded, beginning to move toward a window awning just below. He paused when he felt a touch on his shoulder. He turned, Leon's gaze meeting his, those grey eyes grim with reality.

"Be careful."

"I will."

And off he went, leaping onto the awning, and then onto the ground. He landed on his feet in a slightly crouched position, his hand pressed to the cobblestone. He felt a little uneasy leaving the rest of the trinity behind, but he knew what had to be done.

The anti-Rikus were back, climbing out of the street to meet him. Riku immediately broke into a run towards third district, hearing the padding of many feet behind him, knowing very well his shadowy clones were close at his heels. He pushed through the doors of third district, more than surprised to find Donald and Goofy there, and still conscious at that.

The duck gave a surprised squawk when he saw the horde chasing Riku, but he took a defensive stance, and the dog soon followed suit, eyes going wide as he raised his shield.

Oh hell no, those two were _not_ going to fight their way through these heartless!

"_Run!_" he cried to them, waving his free arm to get them to move. "Get out of here!"

But it was too late.

He felt a strong hand catch hold of the straps of his pants and jerk him back. With a "_Holy shit!_" of panic, he went flailing into the arms of the heartless behind him, a dozen anti-Rikus immediately surrounding and pressing in around him. One of them kept a firm grip on his pants, keeping him in one place as he fought to escape, kicking out and wildly swinging Oblivion.

They closed in, cold fingers clamping down on his arms, and he felt his heart seize in panic.

"No, no, _NO!_" he cried, thrashing against them, managing to free one of his arms to crack his keyblade upside an anti-Riku's head.

Like suicidal children—or very loyal warriors—Donald and Goofy came crashing into the swarm of heartless. Riku heard the sturdy knock of Goofy's shield against the heartless, and Donald's determined call for an advanced thunder spell. Lightning crackled around Riku but missed him, Donald's magic precise and powerful. A few of the anti-Rikus drew back at the attacks.

Riku twisted, pulling his legs free, trying with all of strength to break free of the crowd.

But just as he did, moving to join the dog and duck in their fight, a wave of darkness suddenly surged from the ground and slammed into them. Donald and Goofy released surprised cries and went flying across the plaza, hitting the back wall hard. They crumpled to the ground, unconscious, leaving Riku in the fight alone.

He spun around to find Dark Sora standing just beyond the heartless swarm, his arms crossed and an amused look on his face. Feeling a terrible fury building within, hating to see innocents like that just thrown like dolls, hurt because of _him_, Riku squeezed his eyes shut and screamed at the other boy, voice laden with desperation.

"_Why_ are you doing this!"

"Your friends don't concern me," Sora replied, waving a hand and looking bored.

The heartless closed in around Riku again, this time with sure grips, their cold fingers holding him back from attacking as they pushed him toward the back wall to pin him there.

In retaliation, Riku jerked an arm free and swung Oblivion around, slicing into one of Sora's precious anti-Rikus. It gave a sharp _Kyuuu!_ of pain as it went stumbling back, looking confused. Riku shot Sora a triumphant look, his green eyes hard with resolve.

"Neither do yours."

"Kill them, I don't care," Sora sighed. "I can always make more heartless." But he paused, lips quirking into a slightly disappointed frown. "I rather did like that one though."

"You're sick," Riku grit out.

Sora shrugged, his grin returning. "And I love your perseverance, Riku."

He moved forward, nodding at the heartless, which immediately acted to fulfill their master's silent commands. Before Riku could free himself further, he was roughly shoved against the wall, his stomach twisting with disgust as he felt the anti-Rikus press in around him. He could feel the chill from their bodies against him, a tremble running up his side as he felt a stray hand brush his bare stomach, icy fingertips tracing up his hoodie.

"And they just _love_ your body," Sora mused as he came close, the anti-Rikus parting to make way for his approach. "So warm and colorful, so lovely..."

Riku met his smile with a defiant glare.

But the boy wasn't finished yet. He paused right in front of Riku, one of his hands slipping into an anti-Riku's hair, fondly petting the creature, which nuzzled into its master's touch. Yellow eyes studied Riku as Sora continued.

"...and such a strong heart there for the taking," he smirked, glancing down at his anti-Riku. "They want it for themselves. All it would take..." He trailed off, giving Riku a pointed look as he pulled his hand away from the heartless. "...is just _one_ command."

Riku growled, tugging at the strong hands keeping him pinned. "Then why don't you just take it then, _Sora_?" he hissed, watching the boy's face cloud with displeasure. "You need me, don't you?"

"Do not call me by that name," he said, his voice sounding almost repulsed. "I rather dislike my host, thank you. Always moping around, _useless_. You may refer to me as Id, as the others do."

_Id..._

Riku's eyes widened at the name.

The man in control of Sora's body seemed to notice that Riku had recognized his name, for a very pleased smile curled at his lips.

"Oh, so you've heard of me?" he asked, reaching out to Riku. His hand slid down the other boy's side, almost in admiration. Those yellow eyes darkened with something wicked, but he did nothing more than touch. "That makes this a bit more fun, then."

Riku twisted away from his hand, but didn't get far, the heartless effectively keeping him in place. "What the hell do you want, _Id_—why Sora and why are you here?"

"Mm, Sora is connected in all this, just like you," Id replied simply. "And I'm here because your friend—Yami, he calls himself now?—asked me to retrieve something for him."

"Yami?" Riku echoed without thinking, feeling a stab of disbelief, not understanding. "But—"

Id interrupted. "You have something that does not belong to you, dear Riku."

His fingers slid into Riku's hip pouch, tugging out a familiar piece of folded paper. The Ansem report.

"No!" Riku growled, trying to kick out in retaliation, to no avail. "What the hell would Yami want with something like that! You're lying!"

"Am not," Id laughed, tucking the report away in one of his own pockets, giving the keyblade master a condescending grin. "For being who you are, and with those looks of yours, it's a shame you're such a brat. We could have had a lot of fun working together."

"Like hell!"

Id just shook his head, eyes glittering with amusement as he leaned in close, lips brushing a pale cheek. "Something about you just makes me want to... **violate** you," he murmured into Riku's ear, his hands sliding down Riku's sides again, eliciting an involuntary shudder.

Riku's heart clenched at the boy's tone of voice, so deep with wicked intentions, dark promises. "No no no no no no..." he groaned, cold tremors running through him, the trepidation making his skin crawl. Id turned his face and nuzzled it into Riku's silver hair, breathing in softly, almost reveling in the boy's scent, his fear.

"Mmm... Maybe I _will_..."

His knees shook, icy fear twisting inside of him. _Not again_, his mind was whispering. _Not again_.

Oblivion's warnings rang on deaf ears, Riku's anger and fear numbing him.

"RIKU!"

A fire spell suddenly crashed into the heartless next to Riku, the smoke and heat drawing him back to his senses, and into his fighting temper.

He couldn't afford to be weak now. Not like this.

He dropped all of his weight and tugged sharply on his arms, wrenching away from his restraints with a defiant cry. The anti-Rikus scattered as Leon, Cloud, and a healed Donald and Goofy came leaping into the swarm of heartless to save their keyblade master.

Just like that, Riku's fear was gone again, anger fueling him as he turned to Id, holding Oblivion ready.

Those dark wings materialized again, however, and beat at the ground, raising Sora's body into the air above the fight. Id gave an audible _tsk_ at the timely interruption.

"Attack," he droned, waving down at his anti-Rikus, who quickly obeyed, pouncing on the newcomers with hungry determination.

Riku stumbled through the crowd after Id, evading the attacks he could, and using Oblivion to protect himself when he couldn't avoid contact.

"Wait!" he called as Id turned to leave. He swiped his keyblade through two heartless trying to hold him back again. "WAIT!"

Id merely glanced over his shoulder, such a terribly familiar face, those yellow eyes regarding Riku. But he said nothing, merely giving a small wave of a hand in farewell. He then drew an arm through the air, ripping open a dark seam in front of him, a portal of some sort.

Behind him, Riku heard the others fighting for their lives, but he ran from the battle, something telling him to follow the other boy. But Id wasn't waiting for him, not evening glancing at him as he entered the portal with a powerful stroke of his wings.

Riku cried out, cleaving Oblivion into an anti-Riku pulling at his hair.

"NO, WAIT!"

But the dark seam began to close. The black scar dissipated into nothingness right in front of him, and once again Riku was without Sora, without a way to reach him, and left with a hundred questions with impossible answers. And once again, his supposedly _strong_ heart felt nothing like it.

"**_SORA!_**"

It was all he could do, his voice trailing off into a hoarse cry. Green eyes wrenching shut, the so-called hero dropped to his knees, curling his hands into his hoodie. A scream of frustration tore from him, echoing throughout the district.

And the keyblade that rested next to him held no comfort.

-o-o-

* * *

_To be continued in the next part of Chapter Nineteen: A Hero's Intrigue..._

Some of the past chapters have had inconsistencies with details, but everything will be fixed, so don't worry. I have some awesome rewrites planned for the first 11 chapters (and other chapters will be getting slight facelifts too, some minor mistakes fixed).

Notes to make: Sora's new outfit will be described in detail in the next part of this chapter. Also, I spent hours researching Mulan's house from the movie, and I hope it paid off? And, uhh... yes XD


	31. Ch 19: A Hero's Intrigue part two

_Author Notes:_

I forgot to make some notes last time. About the Mulan part—I had recently watched Mulan II, and the movie itself had some "Duty versus Heart" themes actually _mentioned_ by some of the characters, so I was like "Whoa!" and had to weave it into the return to China scenes. It was a huge, very cool coincidence. And someone mentioned that it hadn't been only a month since the war. Whoops! XD I guess I remembered wrong.

I was really impressed with the reviews from my last update. Some of you pointed out things I hadn't really noticed that I was doing! XD So thanks again for the great feedback, and thanks for sticking around with me. Things are going to get a bit hectic!

* * *

**_Chapter Nineteen: A Hero's Intrigue _**_– part two_

-o-o-

This place was familiar somehow.

Countless butterflies fluttered at his feet, fighting to keep their holds on the blades of grass as the gentle breeze pushed at their delicate wings. They created a small sea of blue and gold that waxed and waned in mimicry of the true ocean he was all too familiar with. Just at the offset of the plateau stood Sora, or, rather, the dark-winged Sora, his face tranquil and tilted into the dying sunlight. His back was turned towards Riku, and just beyond him and the cliff, the older boy could see the shimmering crests of waves.

He had been here once before, but as much as he tried, he couldn't remember when, how, or why, and as he studied the bleeding horizon, somehow he knew he wouldn't be getting the answer, either.

_You do not deserve it._

Something cold settled inside of him as the voice, as soft and sibilant as the wind, swept through his hair and kissed his ear.

"Deserve what…?" he whispered back.

Sora's wings shifted, those dark feathers trembling in the ocean breeze.

_You do not deserve him._

It brushed his other ear this time, almost teasing, and he turned as if to find it there beside him. But it wasn't.

"Sora?" he asked the voice, dread coiling in his gut like a worm. He knew, especially after that mistake with Yami, that he did not deserve Sora's affections, but still he hoped everything would turn out fine in the end, that Sora would forgive him, that the guilt constantly eating at his heart would someday fade if he knew Sora still loved him back.

A part of him knew, however, things weren't going to be so easy.

How could they?

_Sora…_

A warm gust carried through his hair, sweeping silver locks into his face as he watched the solitary figure standing against the sunset.

"I love him," he said, honesty lacing his words and curling within his heart.

Still Sora did not move, blue eyes staring far off into the sky and reflecting the pinks and yellows of the tired sun.

_Do you?_

The question struck Riku. Confused him.

"I love him," he repeated, this time more resolute. "More than anything."

This time, the response did not come right away. Wind rushed across the plateau, rustling Sora's feathers and upsetting the balance of the butterflies perched around their feet. Blue wings flickered, annoyed, but they did not flee.

And then, with hushed anger, the words traced along his lips, cruel and expected.

_Maybe love isn't enough._

He knew those words. He'd heard them before.

And they still hurt.

A great sigh passed through the air, and Sora finally moved, his wings unfolding with a rasp of silk, and then a snag of muscle and bone as they snapped out, stretching to their full width.

The sudden movement startled the delicate creatures at last, and within a moment, the air was clouded with blue and gold and Riku was surrounded by butterflies, their tiny bodies brushing against him in their hurry to take flight. Several touched his cheeks, attracted to his hair and the purple and yellow of his outfit, but then they were gone, lost to the silent call of nature, flitting into the distance in all directions.

_Riku…_

Heart giving its own flutter, Riku abruptly returned his attention to Sora, who was no longer alone at the edge of the cliff.

It was him—Riku—_another_ Riku there, and before the real Riku could make sense of what was happening, a scream tore through the silence and shattered the tranquility. Sudden fear struck Riku as he watched, horrified, as the other Riku's hands clenched painfully into Sora's left wing and _pulled_—

Like ripping _paper_—

And Sora let him.

The crack of bone was sharp, audible between Sora's hoarse cries, and the sickening sound twisted at Riku's nerves, tears stinging his eyes as he just stood there, paralyzed as he stared, unable to move to help, to blink, or even to look away.

He wanted to help, he did, as skin ripped and red wept down Sora's back, as feathers crumpled beneath the other Riku's pale fingers and he continued to pull and pull, his hands giving sharp little jerks to separate the wing from the boy.

Sora staggered backwards as the appendage finally gave way to Riku's strength, littering the grass with a shower of deep crimson. There was a heavy sound as the boy hit the grass, curled up on his side facing Riku, howling, his remaining wing giving a weak flap behind him.

Mind reeling with terrified confusion, panic, and cold, cold guilt though he didn't know why, Riku let out a choked cry as he was finally able to look away. He covered his ears to block out Sora's sounds of pain, his breath hitching inside of him as he tried not to release his own hysterical cries.

_Are you really so weak?_

The voice purred into his ear as he collapsed to his knees, clutching his head with both hands, silver hair twisted between his fingers. He trembled, the words echoing inside of him, a freezing, gnawing pain in his heart. He didn't understand the question, but the answer was already there, springing from his lips like a desperate cry for mercy.

"Y-Yes…!"

Not too far from him, he heard Sora's shuddery gasps of agony, and he gave his own groan, clenching his teeth to stifle a sob. Inside, he was screaming _Nononono__—Not Sora, please not Sora—take ME, kill me, use me, but not Sora!_

And the voice heard the silent cry.

_You would rather take his place than see him suffer?_

His response was immediate, escaping from him in a growl. "Yes!" And then he buried his face between his arms, fingers releasing his hair to clutch at the grass, his body wrought with chills, some unbearable sickness growing within him, poisoning.

…had he answered wrong?

But then the final statement came, soft and shushing like a mother's song.

_Perhaps there is a bit of hero in you after all._

There was a moment of comfort, those words filling him with faint hope—

Right before his body split apart. Searing heat cut across his shoulder blade, something burning, squirming and working its way past muscle and tissue and out of him, shredding skin and pushing to freedom. He was already howling in pain, a dreadful sound he did not recognize as his own as he lay thrashing on the ground, clutching himself as the rest of the appendage forced out of him. Bones and tendons and the clockwork pieces of life grew from his back to form a new burden for the so-called hero.

The wing was done forming within a minute, but to Riku, who felt the new weight behind him—heavy and unfamiliar—one minute had been enough in this dreamscape to completely change him. Sick dread filled him as he gave the wing a test stretch, shivering at the horribly nice sensation that coursed through him as he curled the wing around him, and shakily lifted and turned his head to study the thing. Stretched out over the grass, cold and quivering in the sea air, was not the beautiful thing he had seen on Sora's back, or even Sephiroth's—

It was leathery and wicked, slick with blood and sweat, _ugly_.

_This is what you deserve._

Familiar boots stopped in front of Riku and he felt his heart clench inside of him, knowing that if he raised his eyes, he'd be staring into his own face, the other Riku's, whoever he was and whatever he represented.

_This is just a dream,_ he whispered to himself, as he did many times before. _Just a dream…_ But it felt real, as always, and even though he knew this was just in his mind, he couldn't wake up to escape it. A prisoner in his own body, that's what he was, but he knew he deserved the punishment.

"That's right," the other Riku whispered, crouching beside his shivering form. He leaned in close, breath cool against the real Riku's damp cheek. "Some hero you are."

And then Oblivion was suddenly in the twin's hand as he rose to his feet and left Riku there, returning to Sora's side at the edge of the plateau. The boy was still curled on his side, watching the real Riku, tears shining in his eyes and a smile of gratitude and love and relief lighting his face. He looked… _free_.

Riku felt his eyes narrow into a glare.

A warm gust swept through the grass just then, the black feathers of Sora's broken and discarded wing lifting into the air, dancing and twisting around the three boys. The keyblade's sleek design glimmered strangely in the dying sunlight as the other Riku brought it high over Sora's small form.

And at that moment, all Riku could feel as he stared back at the boy he loved, was every emotion to counter Sora's—

Envy, despair, and the utmost hatred. Hatred because Sora could look so free and Riku could not, even when they shared the same burden.

And the feeling terrified him.

_Hypocrite._

The keyblade began to descend, cutting through the air towards Sora's neck, who made no move to stop it. His grateful smile widened just a little, and then it was over.

-o-o-

Riku woke with a scream, flailing and falling out of his bed, scrambling to his feet and towards the bathroom, half crying at the pain suddenly eating away at him. He collapsed onto the sink, fingers desperately gripping the edge of the bowl as he heaved dry sobs into it, his entire body trembling as he fought to remain standing. His hair didn't fall past his shoulders as it usually would, a cold sweat keeping the silver locks matted to the curve of his neck even though he stayed bowed over the sink for a long moment, listening to his own scared gasps and trying to calm his racing heart.

And then, fear flashing through him, he lifted his eyes to the dirty mirror, peeking through his wet bangs as though expecting to see something curved out of his reflection's back.

There wasn't.

It had just been a dream. Just a dream.

He was back in Traverse Town, in his and Sora's little home. There was nothing to be scared of.

Riku released a long, shaky breath and swallowed against his raw throat. Taking a step back, he ducked his head, pressing his forehead to the cool edge of the sink. He just stood there, fingers still clutching the basin, and tried to steady his erratic heart.

He wasn't sure how long he was like that before Aerith showed up, but he had at least calmed down enough to pull away from the sink and straighten himself. A wave of nausea swept through him, vertigo sending him stumbling back a few steps, holding his head and groaning.

"Riku?"

Her concerned voice startled him, his green eyes wide as he turned to face her.

"Aerith—"

"What's wrong?" she asked, immediately coming to his side. She reached out to touch one of his shoulders, his skin reveling in the warmth of her hand before she even touched him, and when she did, she abruptly pulled her hand back with a gasp. "You're freezing! Riku, what happened?"

He shook his head, turning his face away so she couldn't see the tears in his eyes or how pale he looked. "Just a bad dream," he croaked, and then winced, rubbing at his throat. It hurt, like he had drunk scalding water or something when he had been sleeping.

"Another dream?" she asked, coming close to him, resting her palm on his arm.

He flinched and drew away from her, pushing past her to return to his bedroom. "Did Cloud send you?"

She must have taken the hint. Her voice was soft and withdrawn when she spoke again to answer him. "No, Merlin did. He wants to speak with you."

Oh great.

Riku nodded though, stomach sinking with dread. He wasn't in the mood for anything right now, but he knew what he had to do, what his duty was. Everyone else only wanted to help.

Snatching his hoodie from its resting place—on the lid of a small trunk that stored both his and Sora's few possessions in this world—he slipped it on and zipped it up, pushing his silver hair back. Then, shooting Aerith a solemn look, he flopped onto his bed and reached for his boots.

"What does he want to talk about this time?" he asked with a tired sigh.

She took a moment to respond, her eyes studying him with serious concern. "He wanted to show you something. Riku, are—"

"I'm fine," he said.

"But you've lost weight," she insisted, as if that explained everything or gave her the right to play mother. "The others don't say much, but I know they're worried too."

Had he? Was it that obvious?

Well… a lot had changed.

"I'm fine," he repeated. But he knew he wasn't.

"Riku—"

"I'm _fine!_" he snapped, giving her a hard look, and she stopped. He was silent after that as he pulled on his socks and boots, but he still felt the tension in the air, knowing Aerith was waiting for him to speak again, or admit she was right, or deny the facts or whatever, but he wasn't going to.

He liked the woman, he honestly did, but he didn't like it when people approached him so directly about his problems—and lately, too many people had been doing it. Even voices in his head. Besides, he had done fine all his life without his own mother acting like, well, a mother. He didn't need anyone else thinking they needed to.

So he remained silent, shunning the help. If that made him cold, or a brat, or a bad person, then so be it.

As it turned out, she didn't try to speak to him again until they were out of the house and on their way to Merlin's place. They passed through the thin crowd of second district, Riku trying to discreetly hold his hoodie so that it covered his stomach in public, and Aerith suddenly spoke up.

"Cloud tells me that the last world you went to, you had already sealed?"

"Yeah," Riku said quietly, not feeling very talkative. "I'm planning on visiting some new worlds to try to help the survivors, and to seal those, too…"

That was his main mission as the keyblade master, but then there were the problems with this bastard who called himself Id—Dark Sora. And those Ansem reports, too, they were a factor. He wanted to collect and read more of those, but he wasn't sure where to even begin looking.

Most importantly, he was worried about Sora. A part of him had been hoping that the boy would somehow find a way to come visit him, like Yami seemed to be able to all the time, but no… The only time he saw Sora now was when the boy was in his dreams, or when he was under Id's control. Somehow, Riku wanted to face Sora—the _real_ Sora, and pull him into his arms and apologize.

And speaking of those dreams… That last one…

What had it meant…?

"You have a lot on your mind," Aerith noted quietly, gently smiling at him.

He managed a faint smile back, but he knew it didn't reach his eyes.

With that last dream still fresh in his thoughts, he wasn't feeling particularly well or friendly.

When they got to Merlin's, he was not surprised to find everyone there waiting for him—he had been expecting a big group meeting to discuss everything and catch everyone up and plan out what to do next, but he had not been expecting it so soon or at Merlin's. In fact, there was a reason why they _were_ meeting there of all places, and the reason was a little too happy to see him.

Riku entered the warm home, eyes scanning over the expectant faces of the people he'd grown to trust over the past few weeks—Leon and Cloud, Mushu, Donald and Goofy, and Yuffie and Cid, along with Merlin, of course—

But it was the new face that stopped him dead in his tracks, his heart missing a beat.

"_Kyuuu_"

A dark figure was suddenly leaping at him, yellow eyes narrowed, black arm stretched out to reach him—

And with a startled cry, he backed up _really_ fast, nearly tripping over himself in his hurry to get away from the heartless—no, anti-Riku!—trying to grab onto him. Right where he had been standing, Merlin had set up a menagerie composed of magic, and in that cage was the heartless shaped like him, its black arm stuck through the bars of light, fingers spread, hand straining…

Whatever trace of good mood Riku had possessed before was replaced with disbelief and a deep level of fear and hatred. A heartless! Here! But he quickly hid his disgust, not wanting the others to see just how much these damn creatures disturbed him. Thrusting his hand out, he pointed accusingly at the heartless and demanded in a very dark, very calm voice:

"What the _hell_ is this thing doing _here_?"

Merlin happily answered him. "There was no other room, m'boy! Do watch your step."

Riku's eyebrow twitched and turned to glare at the occupants of the room. "I meant, why is there a fucking heartless here?" he gritted out. "Why didn't you kill it?"

"_Kyuuuu__…_"

"And can you _please_ get it to shut up before _I_ kill it?" he added.

But Merlin didn't seem to listen. He was leaning towards the heartless, adjusting his spectacles and looking fascinated. "Oh my, if I do say so—I believe that is the most reaction we have seen out of this little creature!"

Little creature? What the hell?

Yuffie spoke up from across the room where she was lounging in a large arm chair with her legs dangling over the side. "Maybe it got hungry," she muttered. She sounded terribly bored. Idly waving a hand, she rolled her head back to glance upside down at Riku. "Welcome to the party," she said dryly. "It's _so_ much fun."

No one else bothered to comment on that, but Merlin studied the heartless with interest that worried Riku. "It could be starved of hearts, yes," the old wizard mused, almost mumbling.

"What the hell is going on?" Riku asked impatiently, immediately looking to Leon and Cloud for an answer.

The brunette just crossed his arms and relaxed against the desk he was leaning on, and Cloud was the one who graced him with a quiet explanation. "The heartless was injured in the fight yesterday," he said.

"Uh-hyuck! That's right!" Goofy suddenly threw an arm around the duck next to him and gave a laugh. "It was hurt and Donald stunned it with magic!"

Donald didn't seem to be too happy with Goofy's affectionate gesture and squawked at his friend, brushing him off. "We should have killed it!" he grumbled.

"The capture could very well help us uncover these creatures' secrets," Merlin pointed out. "Studying it could provide the key to defeating them."

Riku eyed the anti-Riku skeptically, who had relaxed in its cage, its yellow gaze focused on him and only him, almost curious despite its expressionless face. "How are you keeping it in there?" he asked.

"Light magic, m'boy," Merlin said.

Aerith, who had moved past Riku to stand near Cid, explained. "The heartless thrive on darkness, so Merlin took the antithesis and created an effective heartless trap."

"The bastard can't shadowcreep or anything," Cid added. He actually sounded slightly disappointed, like he wished he had thought of it first.

Riku kept his gaze on the anti-Riku as he approached the cage again, passing a hand through one of the magical bars keeping the heartless from escaping. The creature moved toward him, giving a soft _kyuu_, and Riku hastily pulled his hand away.

"It looks just like you," someone commented into his ear.

Riku turned, a little surprised to find Leon suddenly next to him. The man met his gaze with a knowing look, and Riku wet his lips and nodded, lowering his eyes. Leon was the one person who knew what the anti-Rikus meant to him. Leon was the only person Riku had told the entire story to, about what had happened in Hollow Bastion…

"...I know," he whispered back.

"I still think we should have killed it!" Donald grumbled again.

Leon calmly glanced at the duck. "To understand the nature of your enemy is to be better prepared against it," he said bluntly, to which Donald gave his usual sound of irritation and dropped the subject.

Brow furrowing as he returned his attention to the anti-Riku, Riku studied the creature cowering in the corner of the cage. "But how you do you expect to understand a heartless?"

To their side, Cloud shifted a little and looked away, and Riku glanced at him, wondering what was wrong—but then Merlin was already speaking again.

"Heartless are adapting creatures, m'boy," the old wizard said cheerfully as he pulled out his wand from one of his dangling sleeves and waved it. Everyone watched as what looked like a large chalkboard suddenly appeared where the desk once was, and three pieces of chalk, by themselves, began sketching out a few different forms of heartless on the black slate. "You've seen enough evidence of that in the worlds you've traveled to," Merlin continued. "They change as their environment changes."

The chalk finished their rather accurate drawings of the heartless and then vanished. On the board was a regular shadow, next to it was one of the bizarre heartless Riku had seen on Mulan's world all those weeks ago, and the last drawing was one of the flying creatures he had seen at Hollow Bastion—though he wasn't sure how Merlin or the chalk knew what he had seen in the first place.

The wizard turned and gestured to the anti-Riku. "Because this particular one was modeled after the keyblade master, I couldn't help being intrigued by its nature."

The heartless tilted its head at Merlin but didn't approach or get up from its crouched position.

"I also took its appearance into consideration and I was right in assuming that it has a quick learning pattern, too," the wizard continued. "If I recall, even our finest warriors had problems fighting this type—" Here he glanced at Leon and Cloud. "They were probably designed to keep up with the real keyblade master—therefore, I cannot help wondering for what purpose this creature was made." His wise eyes settled on Riku, as if knowing the boy knew the answer and expected him to give it.

So he did. There was no reason to hide the truth anymore, anyway. "It's an anti-Riku," Riku immediately replied, his casual tone hiding what he really felt about the damn creatures. "Sora named it that," he added quietly after a moment, lowering his eyes. "He made them to fight me."

A thick silence stretched across the room, everyone's gaze focused on the keyblade master, even the heartless, who broke the awkward lull with one of its _kyuus_.

"Anti-Riku?" Aerith repeated, sounding surprised and somewhat disturbed.

"So they're assassins," Cloud said. It could have been a suggestion, but the way the man stated it so firmly, it sounded like he _knew_.

"They do seem like they want to get Riku the most," Aerith agreed in a hushed voice.

Mushu chose then to speak up for the first time from his perch on Cid's shoulder. "Yeah, well, maybe it just has the hots for Riku like Sora does, if Sora made them and all that."

What?

The strange suggestion piqued Riku's curiosity, a faint trace of hope rising within him, as silly as it was. His eyes settled on the heartless again, wondering.

"Be serious!" Donald snapped.

"Y'know, uh-hyuck, I think he might have a point."

"Oh please."

The anti-Riku stared back at Riku, cocking its head to the side in question.

It… was possible. Now that he thought back, the anti-Rikus never really wanted to kill Riku, so much as… get into him, somehow. They were always grabbing at him, tugging his clothes, their cold hands roaming over his skin as if searching for something. They'd had plenty of opportunities to kill him.

"Maybe they want Riku the most because his heart is the strongest. He is the keyblade master," Cloud pointed out, "and they are heartless."

Which was true, too…

As Riku moved a bit closer to the cage, the heartless crept forward on its hands and knees, yellow eyes narrowed almost cautiously, as though sensing something wrong about its prey. Something nagged at Riku about this creature, like he was overlooking an important clue, but he couldn't figure it out. He frowned, a sick fear growing within him as he watched the heartless slowly rise to his height, standing just a foot away from him but trapped behind the bars of light.

A black hand reached out. Beside him, Riku felt Leon tense slightly when Riku didn't pull away from the heartless' advance. Cold fingers curled into Riku's hoodie and a low, almost hungry _kyuu_ resounded in the tense atmosphere.

Riku came to a decision.

"There's one thing I know for sure," he said, voice firm. He stared at the heartless tugging insistently at his clothes. "This thing has been around Sora."

Almost as though reading Riku's mind, Leon gave him a sharp look. "Riku…" he began in a warning tone, but trailed off. He didn't have to finish his sentence—Riku knew what he was going to say: _Do you know what you're doing?_

He didn't know. But he wanted to risk it.

Riku turned to glance at Merlin. "Do you think the heartless can keep memories? Or anything? Are they that smart?" he asked.

The old wizard looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well…" A pause. He leaned forward, stroking his white mustache. "Perhaps… Yes, I believe so. Though most of it might be instinct."

That's all he needed to know.

Nodding, Riku stretched an arm out to his side, summoning his keyblade. The heartless shrunk back, eyes narrowed to angry slits as it hissed at the weapon.

He heard the others behind him, whispering questions of confusion, and even Merlin asked with a curious, "What are you planning?"

"I just want to try something," Riku told them, trying to push back the sick feeling he had.

"Careful," Leon warned, no doubt remembering what had happened the last time Riku had dabbled with Oblivion's innate powers. The boy nodded in response, understanding the danger. He knew. After all, what _would _one find in a heartless' memory?

The keyblade was already channeling semi-coherent thoughts from the anti-Riku.

–_nokeybladeno__—Mastergone—sohungrysohungry—wantRiku'sheart—_

Which made Riku hesitate, surprise filtering through his worry. The heartless knew his name? This was the first time he'd heard it from one of the creatures, and… now that he _knew_…

He swallowed and took a brave step forward through the light and into the cage. The anti-Riku watched him carefully for a long moment, notions of suspicion and fear—fear!—and hunger and yearning dominating its thoughts, which Riku listened to with growing fascination and curiosity. Though everyone was watching him, he no longer cared about their presence, his entire focus on this strange creature that looked so much like him.

He knew that at any time, the heartless could turn hostile, attack and plunge its hand into his chest to steal his heart, but somehow… he wasn't concerned about that. Now that the anti-Riku's 'master' wasn't present, and it didn't have anywhere to run, the thing seemed more scared than anything else. To imagine—a heartless could actually express fear? For creatures without 'hearts', they seemed to have at least a range of primitive emotion.

Testing his luck, Riku brought his hand forward, watching the heartless shy away from his reach.

"It's alright," he said, feeling crazy for trying to coax the damn thing. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"_Kyuu_" it asked, tilting its head, eyeing his offered hand.

"I want to know about Sora," he tried.

—_Sorasadlonely__—helpSorafeelgood—_

Were those its orders?

"Yes," Riku said, taking another step towards the heartless. "You can help me make Sora feel better…"

The creature seemed to understand his words, but not his intentions, its face blank as it just watched Riku approach. Then, as if deciding it could risk it, it cautiously crept forward, lifting its head as it crouched at Riku's feet, blinking up at him.

So far, so good.

Riku practically felt his skin crawl as he knelt in front of the heartless, his stomach twisting. Swallowing, he stared into the dark face in front of him. Aside from the obvious, it was like staring into a mirror. Creepy as hell, that's what it was.

Suddenly apprehensive, Riku felt his free hand tremble as he reached out again, and the anti-Riku didn't move away this time. His fingers curled around the creature's icy arm, feeling the muscles of its bicep tighten slightly in response.

—_sowarmlikeSoramaster__—_

Riku had to push down the disgust surging inside of him when the heartless began _purring_ at his touch.

Oh _gross_…

Deciding that it was probably a good idea to get this done quickly, Riku brought Oblivion around without warning and pressed the blade against the anti-Riku's arm where Riku was holding it.

Even though he hadn't known what to expect, he was surprised when the memories came to him so _easily_, like nothing else was in the creature's mind to inhibit them, or like it didn't know how to hide its precious, private memories, if those even existed for a heartless.

As it turns out, they did. They didn't come to him in a chain of events like they had with Sephiroth's story, but instead as a scattered collection—only a few memories, but powerful ones, ones that drew Riku in completely—

—and then he was no longer in Merlin's home, but outside and perched on a rooftop, surrounded by his brothers.

No, wait.

The anti-Rikus. Not his brothers. This was a heartless memory.

It took him a moment to mentally collect himself enough to begin picking out what was him and what was the anti-Riku he was inhabiting, and when he did organize himself, everything felt so completely surreal.

He wasn't sure at first what to make of the change in perspective, so he decided to approach this much like he had Sephiroth's memories: just become the person and watch.

He was still Riku, very human, but seeing through a heartless' eyes, feeling heartless emotions and hearing its thoughts like they were his own. Its thinking was still the constant stream of babbling he was used to from his last encounters, but some of the ideas were more advanced, like the anti-Riku recognized more in its surroundings. This creature was curious like a child in that aspect, and less like the brainless automatons that were the other heartless.

That, and the emotion was surprising. It was more faint than something Riku would feel as a human, but it was definitely there. This sense of eagerness just dominated the anti-Riku's range of emotions—it was excited about something, something that was happening. Something big.

The heartless instincts were also new. It could feel the other anti-Rikus around it, literally, their emotions and thoughts filtering into its, but the creature at least recognized those as not its own. There was power behind its body, too, like gravity had no hold on it, like it could do anything it wanted with just the simple command from its master.

The shadows were its playground, and it knew it.

The creepy part about it was that its body _felt _like Riku's—they were shaped the exact same way, same weight, same hair and features and everything. Aside from the change in clothing, Riku felt like this was him, much like he had when he had been in Sephiroth's body. The differences were there, but the similarities were overpowering and drew him even more into the memory as if it were his own experience.

Its eyes honed in on the smallest hint of darkness below, caught even the slightest trace of movement as it watched the humans run in a blind panic through the streets below, fleeing from the anti-Rikus' more violent cousins, the neo-heartless. To a heartless, each person had a distinct aura—a brightness about them that seemed to indicate how strong or pure his or her heart was. Most of the people targeted had the brightest hearts, Riku noticed.

Though, as strong as the hearts were, the people still stood no chance against the dark creatures. The tall heartless easily sprinted after their prey, long antennae sweeping behind him as they launched from the ground and slammed into the humans, knocking them to the ground to feast.

"Neo-shadows," Master said to himself, voice hushed but laced with amusement.

Riku froze hearing that voice. Sora's voice, but not. Id.

Something about that statement would have sent chills down Riku's spine, had he really been there to witness it, but Id's tone only infuriated him—that casualness, the sick pleasure he seemed to get out of knowing that innocents were being consumed by his disgusting pets. The people living in Traverse Town were all survivors from worlds that had been destroyed—people who had suffered enough without Id terrorizing them like it was all a game.

At least, that's how Sora would have seen it. Sora would have seen the cruel injustice of it all.

In all honesty, Riku was more pissed about Id using Sora like that, and that Id had attacked an entire town just to lure Riku to him to steal a fucking report, and that Yami had supposedly asked him to do it. Yeah, Riku did see the hero's perspective about the attack on Traverse Town—but he was more selfish, he realized. He cared more about the things that directly affected him, and cared less about what a real hero would. Sora would have made a better hero. But there he was—a shell to a fucking psycho.

Sora was the last person to deserve something like that.

"Here he is…"

Sora's voice drew Riku out of his thoughts again. The anti-Riku's excitement suddenly skyrocketed, so much it hardly sat still, fidgeting and giving tiny _kyuus_ of anticipation. It took little to figure out why.

There came this strange sensation—like a sudden pull, a directional urge, and the heartless turned its gaze toward the town entrance, where it saw the brightest hearts out of the entire town.

It was _him_—Riku—with Leon and Cloud right behind him. This was when they had just gotten back from Mulan's world to find the town under attack.

At his arrival, Riku felt the other anti-Rikus tense around him, excited whispers flowing through and around him—_keyblademaster__—takehisheart!—formaster—_and it sickened him. _Really_ sickened him, especially now that he knew just how excited he made a heartless just by being there. Ugh.

Down below, he saw himself save the woman from a regular shadow heartless, his keyblade's appearance sending small tremors through the anti-Riku's body.

—_keyblade!—_

The fascinating part about it was that, much like humans had different auras because of their heart, and heartless gave a more comforting darkness, Riku saw his own brightness, like a halo of white around him. And when the keyblade was in his hand, the halo _flowed_, like liquid, around him, through him, through everything that came in contact or close to it. The keyblade itself had a distinct glow about it, an odd pulse, like a heartbeat, as if it were alive as well.

The heartless were terrified of it, but at the same time greatly attracted to Riku's heart, and at their master's command, they'd risk everything to get that heart, keyblade or not.

What an utterly sad existence.

Their anticipation was almost too much now, especially with the keyblade master's appearance. Id seemed to understand.

"Go. Enjoy yourselves," Master said, his voice hardly carrying over the screams, but the heartless didn't need to hear him. They felt the sudden freedom, the permission to do as they pleased, and they wasted no time in carrying out the command.

Riku suddenly felt this pulling sensation as he—the anti-Riku—melted into the rooftop, becoming the puddle of shadow on the ground that Riku had grown to know so well from fighting these things. But as the actual heartless, it felt natural, like swimming through liquid darkness towards its destination, nothing standing in its way.

Sudden dread sank inside of Riku as he realized what was about to happen. It was a memory—something that had already happened, something he couldn't change, and that only made it worse for him.

Riku couldn't do anything, just _watch_, trapped in the heartless' mind as the creature sprang out of the shadows and onto the first person it came across—a little boy with green eyes who reminded Riku of a younger Sora—who let out a terrified cry when the anti-Riku knocked him clean to the ground. Horrified at the sight and experience, and disgusted with himself for being so utterly fascinated by it, Riku watched with growing dismay as the heartless practically purred as it straddled the young boy.

There was no remorse, no thoughts of how wrong this was—this was a heartless, and it had waited too long to get a taste of its first heart. The mind of the heartless was focused purely on its own excitement and pure, unadulterated hunger, and Riku recognized all too well how ravenous the creature was for the life now trapped beneath it.

The boy was shrieking now, screaming for his mother as he thrashed at the anti-Riku on top of him, his arms and legs flailing, his small body putting up a grand but meaningless fight against the monster pinning him to the cobblestone. Tears glimmered in his wide green eyes, reflecting the utmost fear as he stared up into the anti-Riku's blank face.

It was horrible for Riku because he knew he couldn't do anything for the kid and because he knew he was about to experience something straight out of a nightmare. Riku could feel the heat of the child's body, the rhythm of his erratic heartbeat, how strong and innocent and _delicious_—

_—rundevourfeedhere—_

Oh fuck.

Black fingers plunged through clothes and tissue and bone and curled around the boy's shivering heart, jerking it free without thought, and Riku felt the boy's terrible scream echo inside of him—right before his small body collapsed, went still, and his tears slipped down his babyish cheeks.

Lips descended, devouring the heart like air, its glowy mass tasting a bit like sugary milk and vanilla, a gruesome treat that Riku had to admit tasted pretty good, as appalled as he was. Its pure warmth settled within the heartless, a tremble of pleasure coursing through the creature—so _wrong_, so utterly _wrong_—but the heart was only temporarily pacifying for its hunger, for those eyes were already scanning the crowd for its next target.

The body beneath the heartless erupted into a shower of magic and dissipated into the air, leaving no trace of the little boy that had just had his heart stolen—

**Riku's always pretended to be strong... He'll do anything to keep that image.**

The darkness pulsed around them, a comforting atmosphere despite their master's sudden sadness.

_no__ he hasn't forgotten me_

Something was wrong with their master. Things were changing, something missing in their master's heart. They tried whispering their warnings, but their master ignored them, his hand clenching painfully around the pretty pendant in his hand.

_—masterbecarefulbecalmdon'tworrymasterit'sokaywe'reherewe'rehere—_

But their master did not seem to hear their murmurs of comfort. He suddenly stumbled out of the bed, away from his pets, and brought his hand back, hurling the pendant against the wall—his love's last gift before the betrayal.

Riku recognized it as Oathkeeper.

It clinked pathetically against the wall before falling to the floor.

_he's__ going to fight me! _

And the master's pets lifted their black hands, tugging him back onto the bed, into their dark solace.

**I just want to know what I did wrong…**

—and quite suddenly, the memory shifted and slowed, and Riku found himself on a large bed with a few of his brothers, the rest of them scattered in lazy positions across the floor of the large room. Hollow Bastion? Sora's room. It was dark, he could tell, but to the heartless' eyes, the shadows were no hindrance, only dimming the colors and not the light in the room.

Trapped inside of the anti-Riku's mind, Riku was still mentally shaken from witnessing first-hand what it was like to be a heartless on the prowl. Shit… He'd be having nightmares about this. He was scared to find out what else he'd see.

No one was present in the room, just the anti-Rikus curled up with each other, who were not quite sleeping so much as just resting, waiting. Riku did not have much time to wonder what the purpose of _this_ memory was, because the door suddenly burst open and the heartless sensed two strong hearts hurrying toward the bed.

Sora and Yami, and Yami had Sora by the arm.

Not surprisingly, Sora had a strong, bright aura about him, though at the moment it was shimmering angrily because of Sora's mood. Riku was immediately on alert, wondering what had gotten Sora so pissed—he couldn't recall seeing his best friend so _infuriated_ before.

_—masterintrouble?masterangryneedscomfort—_

Sora was roughly thrown onto the bed and Riku's anti-Riku had to quickly move out of the way to make room for the boy's body.

"_Kyuuu__…_"

Then, sensing Sora's frighteningly strong anger, the heartless moved forward again, snuggling up to the boy's warm body to comfort him even though Sora wasn't paying attention to them, his fury directed at the amber-eyed boy in front of him.

No, Riku hadn't been surprised about Sora. The shock came from _Yami_, whose aura was, well… _pure_. Like, Riku could sense this underlying darkness that the heartless recognized and was familiar with, but then there was also this startling purity that the heartless felt helplessly drawn to, much like Riku's own heart, just more pure and not quite as strong. The heartless desired Yami's heart but knew it couldn't have it because of who Yami was… almost like the heartless had a command not to touch Yami.

"_Kyu__…?_"

Riku watched with rapt attention as Sora scrambled off the bed and back to his feet, stalking towards Yami. Anger emanated off the boy's form as he thrust his hands out and violently shoved Yami away and _screamed_ at him.

"You asshole! What the hell was all of that for!"

His fingers curled into Yami's shirt, almost threatening, but Yami did nothing except smile.

_Smile_, like this was a game to him.

**_SLAP!_**

Yami's face snapped to the side from the force of Sora's blow, and Riku was almost worried when he saw Sora lean in close to hiss in Yami's ear.

"Don't you _ever_ touch me again."

Touch him? Wait, _what_? Had Yami—! No way!

Sudden fear flashed through Riku as he continued to watch, wanting to know answers. The anti-Riku did nothing, just feeling sorrow as it witnessed the scene transpiring between the two boys.

Yami slowly turned his face back to Sora's, amber eyes narrowed and gleaming with something dangerous. When he spoke, however, his tone was calm. "Then please refrain from wandering into dangerous places."

"And why?" Sora demanded back, his voice actually cracking from emotion. "Because you don't want me befriending your enemies? Because you don't want me to find your secrets?"

A hint of relief made Riku relax—so Yami hadn't touched Sora…? And Riku had to wonder just whose side Sora was on, if he was the enemy of Riku's enemy. How far back was this memory, anyway?

But before he got any answers, the setting abruptly shifted, segueing into the next.

**I _know_ he loves me. I guess I'm worried... he'll cry. I never want to see him cry.**

He was suddenly back in Traverse Town, third district, facing Id himself and following the master's orders, filled with an intense desire for the human trapped amongst all of their black hands. His brothers and he finally had the keyblade master within their grasp again, his familiar body so warm and colorful compared to theirs.

Still trapped inside of the anti-Riku's mind, Riku felt a sickness overcome him as he recalled this moment—it was so eerie witnessing it again, but from a heartless' point of view. He could literally feel himself, the Riku of that moment, pressed up against the anti-Riku he was in right now, and it was fucking creepy. With the anti-Riku's firm grip on the Riku of then, Riku realized how weak he truly was in comparison to these terrifying creatures. The heartless knew they had him.

And once again, he felt that searing hatred for the entity calling himself Id. Though the anti-Riku's eyes were focused on the Riku of then, he could feel Id nearby, this overwhelming presence of darkness surrounding Sora's usually bright aura.

"_Why_ are you doing this!" he heard himself scream, and his own voice sounding so desperate back then made him realize how easily worked up Id had gotten him. He had probably seemed so childish at that moment, so unlike the hero he was supposed to be.

"Your friends don't concern me," Id replied.

Through the anti-Riku, Riku felt Id's silent command filtering through the other heartless, and their dark bodies closed in around the Riku of that time, fingers clenching firmly into his warm body to keep him pinned. The anti-Riku that he was currently trapped in had a first-row seat, standing right at its prey's side, both hands pushing Riku's arm against the wall.

But the attempt to keep Riku pinned didn't work.

The keyblade master suddenly jerked at the anti-Riku's hold—

_—keybladenorunescapetoolatescared!—_

And Oblivion sliced cleanly into the heartless' side. Riku felt pain lance through the creature—sharp and burning and far more intense than any other feeling this heartless had experienced, except hunger—and it abruptly fell away from the keyblade.

"_Kyuuu_"

Confusion and surprise and pain, so much pain, swept through the heartless, who didn't seem to know what to do about the wound now in its side. Riku still didn't feel pity for the damn creature, even if it could feel pain and it wasn't its fault it was an almost brainless puppet. Through the anti-Riku's racing mind, Riku managed to focus on the memory again, hearing himself speak again, this time his voice reflecting a hint of triumph for hurting one of Id's pets.

"Neither do yours."

And as soon as those words left his mouth, the world was spinning again.

**Sora named it Anti-Riku. Perhaps to mirror his own thoughts.**

Oh God.

Riku knew this memory too well.

He had replayed it over and over and over in his mind no matter how hard he had tried not to, to block it out, to just escape. He knew it was _that _memory immediately, and a cold, cold sense of dread and fear clenched at his heart back in the real world, for he did not want to relive this nightmare again.

It was the first time he had met Id. The first time he had seen the heartless shaped like him. The last moments he had been at Hollow Bastion.

He saw himself there, trapped in the middle of all the black bodies of the anti-Rikus, looking so scared and young and helpless as he turned around and around, watching dozen upon dozen of heartless climb out of the shadows and stand, all watching him—the keyblade master—with narrowed yellow eyes and blank faces. Through the heartless, he felt a deep sense of hunger for _his_ warm body, his strong heart, his…_everything_ that the heartless weren't.

Riku could tell by their entirely primitive thoughts and emotions that the anti-Rikus had just been given their forms, their not-quite life and sentience—only their most basic animalistic needs were aroused as they stood and felt the world for the first time.

_Hunger_—it was this feverish ache inside, tearing right into the heartless' mind, overwhelming and consuming conscious thought with just the desire to _feed_, to take everything for itself. It recognized its precious master and the commands it had already been given, and good commands they were:

To taste and terrorize and take this warm life so wonderfully presented to them.

So the heartless obeyed without question, eagerly surrounding the keyblade master, each of them wanting to be first to feel their first prey. The heartless weren't even afraid of the keyblade as it was carried far away into the horde of black bodies.

Riku was a mere toy, just a delicious plaything to them, their hands pulling at his clothes, fingers curling and clenching around his limbs, and palms and lips skimming over his warm, pink skin, touching and tasting and trying to feel every last inch of him even as he writhed and squirmed and screamed and screamed and screamed.

This time as he relived the scene, he was one of those monsters, thoroughly fascinated by the pale skin that was revealed as clothes were torn away. The anti-Riku's gaze caught the sight of red—blood—dripping down length of his arm, and, curious, it moved close, its black tongue darting out to taste the crimson essence. Its hands shoved past the hands of its brothers, seeking the keyblade master's warmest parts, trailing under his shredded clothes to feel that lovely skin.

Horror-struck, Riku tried to feel nothing, to remain numb as he watched himself in the center of the heartless, their very own helpless, living feast. Unable to escape feeling what the creature felt, Riku fell witness to the creature's pleasure, its fascination as it caressed along his listless body, its craving as it reached up over his racing heart, wanting more. The desire for his own body made revulsion and nausea wash over him again, and he could do nothing to stop what he was seeing, feeling, remembering.

Even when Yami broke through the crowd to rescue the Riku of then, he felt numb, shaken, traumatized, and it wasn't until the memory ended a few moments later that he was able to grasp onto some semblance of control of himself and remember that this had already happened. It was in the past. Nothing could hurt him here.

**Revenge…? No… I don't want to hurt him…**

The shift in scenery settled again and, though wary and frightened, Riku was surprised to find that he was back in the same dark room from before. Sora's room in Hollow Bastion. But this time Sora was huddled on the bed with the heartless. This memory felt safe and lazy, far unlike the last one, and Riku allowed himself to relax into it easier, taking it as it came to him instead of fighting it.

The anti-Rikus were pressed in around Sora, arms draped across his body, over his lap and circling his waist, fingers tracing through his brown hair in a tireless, comforting fashion. Riku's heartless was one of the closer ones, its cheek actually pressed to Sora's hip as it clung to the boy.

The level of security Sora seemed to feel from these creatures thoroughly disturbed Riku. He hated to think about it, that _his_ Sora had to revert to _heartless_ to find _comfort_—it was repulsive. _Wrong_. And not for the last time, Riku felt that shame wash over him, knowing he could have avoided all of this if he had just ignored Yami's advances. He could have been the one there to comfort Sora, not these disgusting creatures. A part of him was unnerved knowing that Sora had actually stooped so low instead of coming to him, the _real_ Riku.

Did Sora really hate him that much now? He didn't want to think about it…

Riku focused on the memory as Sora suddenly stirred, rolling over onto his side. Riku's anti-Riku was the first to move, sliding up and stretching out directly at Sora's side, facing the boy and staring into his face. He felt another heartless shift closer as well, pressing flush against Sora's backside and Sora pressed back, and at the close proximity those two shared, this anti-Riku—the one Riku was trapped in—felt a faint emotion that surprised him.

Jealousy. The heartless was envious that one of its brothers was closer to Sora. That was really… _weird_.

The anti-Riku didn't particularly notice it, instead focusing on how to fix the problem. It nuzzled its face into the sheets where Sora had just been resting, feeling the warm imprint the boy had left behind. As if sensing the movement, Sora glanced at the heartless as it lifted its face, a tendril of black hair caught in the corner of its mouth.

Sora's attention remained on the heartless, staring right into its face and studying it, and Riku felt a sudden wave of nostalgia because it was like Sora was looking right at _him_, not the heartless. Oh God, he missed Sora so much, and being so close to him like this, memory or not, it was a little piece of heaven to see him again, to be looked at like this again.

And the longer Sora gazed into the anti-Riku's face, the more content it felt, so content that something very strange happened.

The heartless smiled.

_Smiled_.

The expression felt as foreign on its face as it was frightening to Riku.

Learning creatures _indeed_. If they could learn emotion like this, and even how to express them, then what was keeping them from becoming more human? Though they lacked a heart, they were still incredibly humanlike.

The smile didn't escape Sora's notice either, those pretty blue eyes widening in fascination. Something about that look in Sora's eyes seemed wrong, though. A hint of worry twisted inside of Riku as he continued to watch, wondering what this memory meant.

The boy's lashes fluttered a little as tears filled his eyes, still studying the anti-Riku's smile like it was the real Riku there, not a heartless, not a monster of the darkness. Riku couldn't help the sense of dread building within him—he had a feeling he knew where this was going, and he hoped beyond hope that he wrong.

Aware of the intense longing filling Sora, the anti-Riku knew he was doing something that would benefit itself if it kept up what it was doing. The ideas were simple but they raced through the heartless' mind so fast that Riku gave up trying to understand them and decided to just see what happened. The small smile on the creature's face widened, and, to Riku's immediate dismay, Sora's hand began to reach out toward him.

_No way, Sora—this isn't me! It's a fucking heartless!_

Warm fingers brushed the heartless' cheek, and a sharp sense of triumph filled the creature. It kept smiling, even when Sora's tears fell, trailing down to the sheets, and Sora's hand slipped into its black hair, giving it a long, gentle pet, almost _fond_.

The heartless loved this. Riku wanted to cry out at Sora to stop, to snap out of it, that he shouldn't be taking comfort from a _heartless_, but he knew he couldn't do anything to change this. It had already happened, after all.

And when the anti-Riku's eyes slipped closed, happiness sweeping through its hollow body, Riku felt his own anxiety rise, suddenly fearing this memory as much as the others. The heartless pushed its cheek into Sora's warm hand, nuzzling, a loving gesture, and gave a content sigh before _kyuu_ing. Then its smile spread, and Riku heard Sora's breath catch inside of him.

Oh no.

As if deciding something, Sora relaxed and released a sigh, then curled his fingers into the anti-Riku's hair…

No no no!

He started to pull the creature's face closer.

Riku panicked inside of the anti-Riku's mind, silently screaming out for the boy to stop, wanting out of this memory _now_—

But it was too late.

Sora's lips were so warm and soft against the heartless' own. The anti-Riku's mind was practically reeling with confused happiness, but it didn't pull away, wondering what to do and how to please its master. Sora pulled momentarily away—Riku's hopes rose—

"Riku…"

It was just a hushed murmur, but all Riku needed to hear. An unbearable sadness filled him, and he would have cried if he could, right then, because he knew Sora wanted _him_—

But Sora's hands cupped the creature's black face and drew him closer for another, more firm kiss. Sora was so astray in his longing for Riku that he couldn't even recognize him anymore. That knowledge wrenched at Riku's heart and left him empty.

As Sora deepened the kiss with the heartless, and it let him, Riku felt his own mind slip, lost with despair. It faded gradually into the anti-Riku's consciousness, so that, as this painfully beautiful kiss continued, he took it as his own with Sora, his heart crying with need. He didn't want this to be a memory anymore, so that's what happened. It ceased to be one.

Soon, it was _his_ hair that Sora was desperately grasping between his fingers. It was _his _mouth the boy was pushing into, _his_ tongue that tasted Sora's, _his_ body that suddenly trembled from the pure sensation, from the warmth.

Riku lost himself in Sora's touches, welcoming the hot hands that slid up his shirt, ran over his muscles with so much worship. The kiss was a bit more clumsy than Riku was used to, but he didn't complain, letting his body guide him as the duel of tongue and lips became more passionate, frenzied, _ravenous_… Riku heard every little sigh Sora gave, and knowing that he was so content being able to touch Riku again, drove Riku wild with need, but he couldn't do anything. He wanted to touch back, push Sora onto the bed and show him how much he loved him, wanted him, needed him—but something was holding him back.

Intense jealousy filled him when he saw and felt the other anti-Rikus close in around Sora, wanting some of the boy as well, their curiosity getting the better of them the longer they watched Sora and Riku continue their delicious exploration. He wanted Sora to himself, though, and it seemed Sora felt the same way.

Surprise and intense satisfaction flashed through him when he felt Sora pull away from the other heartless, and Riku suddenly found himself on his back, being straddled by the boy's feverish body. Sora's attention was on him alone and it was _perfect_.

A groan escaped Sora, trilling inside of Riku, escalating his desire, but it was like he didn't know what to do with it, something keeping him back as Sora took control and began grinding against him, desperate. Riku's entire focus was on Sora at that moment, completely entranced by the boy's emotions. He felt lost and helpless, not knowing what to do to help his master, but he definitely knew he liked the feelings that were threatening to consume him. It was so powerful—not quite like hunger—and he wanted to feel more of it somehow.

Master knew. He would teach.

Those warm hands pulled his shirt off, baring the skin of his chest to the world for the first time, palms skimming all across the planes of his dark skin, and he couldn't help the _kyuu_ of surprise and pleasure that escaped him when fingers brushed the little nubs of flesh there.

Master was crying now, his cheeks glimmering with tears as he clenched at Riku's shoulders and thrust firmly against him. The bliss was exquisite, feeling master's emotions flow into him, that heat, something hard grazing against him, whatever it was. There was a new feeling, too—almost painful, but something else, something like… the need to get _in_ master, join with him, become _one_—

But then something shattered the spell and Sora cried out, eyes snapping open, the pretty blue swirling with desire and confusion and—

Then he focused on Riku, a look of utter horror and disgust filling his face. He had just realized what he had been doing. To a _heartless_.

The memory ended abruptly at that moment, throwing Riku's mind back into the present where he flew to the ground with a sharp cry. His back connected with the edge of a table nearby, and sharp pain cut through him as he collapsed, breathless, trying to collect himself.

He was in Merlin's home. The menagerie of light was in front of him and the anti-Riku was thrashing on the floor, an intense purr rumbling from its black body as its hips thrust into the air and it twisted its hands into its hair, giving a long, obscene moan.

"_Kyuuuuuuuuu__..."_

Fuck, how _gross…_

Riku weakly struggled to his knees, burying his face against the rug as he shuddered, trying not to retch as wave after wave of nausea slammed into him. The world spun around him, dizzying, confusing, and he squeezed his eyes shut, all of the heartless' memories flashing through him and twisting his stomach and tearing his heart apart.

Leon was the first to reach him, his large hand grasping Riku's arm and pulling him to his feet. He was still trembling uncontrollably, his mind swirling with everything he had just learned, trying to piece it all together at once and not succeeding. Most of all, there was that _utter_ disgust at what Sora had done.

"Riku!" someone cried.

"What happened?" came from Cloud, who was suddenly there at his side, too, with Leon. "Hey—"

Riku violently pulled away from the men, breath hitching inside of him, his eyes going wide with sudden panic. He whirled around, screaming almost hysterically. "_Don't touch me!_"

Everyone promptly backed away.

"What happened?"

"What the fuck was all of that!"

"Riku?"

He froze, staring in shock at all of the confused, concerned faces of his friends—

And he realized he couldn't stay there. He had to go, he had to leave, he couldn't tell anyone what he had seen, he could hardly believe it himself, and oh fuck, FUCK! He needed to find Sora.

He tore past Leon and Cloud, ignoring everyone's concerned questions and calls at his back, and he ran out of Merlin's home, fighting back the overwhelming sense of panic he felt. He hesitated just outside the shanty, shivering as the cool breeze brushed at his clammy skin. He clutched at his heart, fighting back a dry sob of disbelief, his mind managing to focus on exactly one thing from the memories.

"Oh God, Sora," he rasped. "How could you…?"

But then he knew, deep down, that he had done something just as awful in Sora's eyes.

-o-o-

Sora woke with a start.

For a long moment, he just rested there, feeling his heart pounding as he wondered what had woken him up so abruptly. Then again, why he had been sleeping in the first place, and—

Hey, where was he?

He blinked up at the unfamiliar ceiling for a moment before turning his head one way where he saw row upon row of books and shelves around him. Ah, the library. Why was he in the library? He was on the second story and seemed to be laying on a sofa, though he couldn't really remember there being a sofa here before. Still, its comfortable cushions kept him relaxed as he tried to sift through what he last remembered, because he really wanted to know why he felt so dirty and tired and confused.

Things didn't start coming back to him until he rolled over and saw a familiar figure seated at the desk nearby. _Yami?_ he wondered, frowning as he watched the man silently working. _Oh—YAMI!_

He suddenly remembered the encounter they'd had in the castle's chapel. Yami had been suffering from the darkness or something, and after that lady had upset him, Yami and Sora had talked, and… Oh yeah. Yami had gotten pissed at Sora, hadn't he?

…but Sora couldn't remember anything after that. What the hell had happened, anyway? How long had he been asleep? Why did he ache all over?

Sora sat up, clutching his head, trying desperately to remember. At his movement, he heard a strange jingle—huh?—and he glanced down to find that the noise had come from his clothes.

_New_ clothes.

…when had he gotten new clothes? And why was he wearing his crown necklace again? Granted, they were pretty cool new duds, but his memory lapse was really starting to scare him.

_Id?__ Id, what happened? Do you know? What happened to my clothes? Where did these come from?_

But his questions went unanswered.

Okay, this was getting freaky. Maybe if Yami wasn't still mad at him, he'd tell Sora what had happened?

The boy lifted his face, feeling apprehensive as he glanced over at Yami, who made no sign that he knew Sora was even awake yet. The guy was seated aristocratically at the desk, calmly scribbling away at a stack of papers in front of him. He had his long white hair rolled into a sloppy bun, some of his long bangs framing his face, and he was wearing spectacles, which Sora thought made Yami kind of… non-threatening. Refined.

Sora had to admit that at moments like this, when the guy wasn't being a creepy bastard, or seducing _his_ boyfriend, he was sort of cool, how composed he always seemed (except for the whole darkness thing). Yet there was this air about him sometimes, where he looked almost… sad. And from the drama he had witnessed between Yami and that woman, there was a lot of crap Sora didn't understand yet.

It was true that Sora had every right to hate the guy—and by all means, he wanted to, for what he had done to Riku and him—and Sora _had_ been furious for a long time… But Sora was honestly getting tired of trying to hold a grudge. He wanted to be the angry type and never forgive the bastard, but he just couldn't stay mad. It just wasn't in his nature. Sure, it still upset him a lot when he thought about it, but he missed Riku more than anything right now and just wanted him back… He could care less about _Yami_. Maybe Yami was telling the truth and only doing what he did because he _didn't _have a choice. Or maybe…

Maybe he was as lonely as Sora was.

With that idea in mind, Sora felt a bit more sympathy for the guy (but he wasn't just going to up and forgive him all of a sudden just because he felt sorry for him). So, satisfied with just sympathy, Sora took a moment of distraction to study himself now that he wasn't so panicked to find out what had happened to him.

One thing was for sure, he felt a lot more warrior-ish in the new clothes. The design kind of reminded him of Leon—with all the belts and all, but that would have meant a trip back to Traverse Town, which made him more confused.

The top was black with green trim, made from a thick, clingy material and modeled a bit like a wetsuit, Sora thought, except this zipped up the front. He liked the neck, which came up high to his chin and flared out a little and cut down into a V in the front. The short sleeves were a little weird, though, because they stuck out, just a hint of green poking past the shoulder hem. A thin belt was sewn over each shoulder, angled towards the center of his chest, with silver buckles… But Sora was disappointed to find they were just design, because when he tried to unclasp them, they didn't budge. Figures. The rest of the top was also excessive, like from his ribs down there was thick lace on each of his sides, tied in loopy bows at his waist.

Of course, the pants were no better, and they had useless belts and lace, too. They did fit him well, not balloon-like or too clingy, which was good. They were black with silver buckles as well, but with no hint of green this time. Belts draped from each of his hips inward to the inside of his thighs, loose with their tails dangling to his knees. More silly belts circled his legs, and just beyond the knees, the pants flared and lace ran up the sides. He was beginning to think that whoever had dressed him had a weird fetish or something. Jeez.

He did like his shoes though! They were also black, and shaped a little like his old yellow ones in the way they cut off at the ankle and had a good thick grip at the bottom. Where the shoe hugged his leg, it split and didn't have a tongue—and instead of lace, a single buckle folded over the width of the shoe, clasping on the outside and holding the sides together. At the toe, there was a design imprinted that looked like it was a frowning face, which he had to admit was kind of cute.

His gloves matched, too—fingerless with a buckle at the outside wrist. He had different colored armlets—one green, which stretched from the middle of his forearm to his wrist, and one black, which only hugged a few inches of bicep. Aside from that, he had minimal accessories—just his crown necklace, and his old chain dangling from his waist.

A fond little smile curled at Sora's lips as he lifted the familiar piece of jewelry around his neck, the silver crown glinting in the soft light coming through the tall windows. Maybe all those changes—the new clothes, new weapon, new life with Riku—hadn't been a good thing. For a while there, he'd felt so uncomfortable with himself… Kind of fake. Confused. So instead of changing to become a better person to match with Riku, who really seemed impossible to catch up with right now, maybe he should have just… kept at his own pace. He needed his own direction.

Maybe whatever had happened to him while he had been asleep was a good sign, and it was time to start living for himself again. Yeah, that sounded good. And if Riku wanted to find him and make up for what he had done, he could do that, and maybe they both could move on…

Feeling better with himself, Sora let his necklace go, its chain clinging against one of the buckles on his shirt. This time, the sound seemed to alert Yami, who took a second to finish his sentence and then set his quill aside in the ink well before rising to his feet and turning to face Sora. The boy blinked at Yami, suddenly feeling a little awkward under that amber gaze, but Yami made no expression as he circled his chair and approached Sora, gracefully sinking onto the couch next to him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked in a subdued tone as he reached out, pressing the back of his hand to Sora's forehead.

Sora just blinked at him, wanting to pull away to put distance between them, but he didn't. he admitted after a moment. "But okay, I guess…"

Those white brows drew together in curiosity as Yami regarded Sora. "What do you remember?" he asked, pulling his hand away.

"Just that you got mad at me," Sora replied quietly, lowering his face, but meeting Yami's gaze with a guarded look.

The man's eyes softened, surprisingly, and he gave a small frown as he glanced away. "Ah… so I did," he said, sounding almost… remorseful? "I apologize for getting like that."

Whoa. What? Yami apologizing?

Sora gave him a confused, scrutinizing look. "Why _did_ you?" he wondered.

Yami didn't glance at him, his expression solemn as he stared off toward the windows. When he spoke again, it was in a grim tone. "You have never had too many terrible things just… build up so much that it overwhelms you and you do not know what to do with yourself?"

That was kind of cryptic. Sora opened his mouth and hesitated, not really sure what to say. He could recall a few times where he'd felt something like that, but he didn't like to think about it. After a moment, he settled with just, "…sometimes, I guess."

Yami turned to face him again, sighing softly, a hint of sincerity in his voice. "I reacted violently when I should not have," he said.

Why was that kind of familiar? There was something about it…

Sora fell silent, blinking a few times at him, wondering why Yami felt really familiar at the moment. When he didn't say anything, Yami got to his feet and crossed back to his desk, probably thinking their conversation was done, but before he could sit down there, Sora realized what that nostalgic moment was.

"Riku's like that."

Yami froze at Sora's voice.

"Riku's like that," Sora repeated, this time with confidence. He lowered his eyes, remembering back to the times at home. "He can't stand it when people throw his problems in his face. He'd only come to me to talk about it," he said, glancing at Yami. The man was just regarding Sora, waiting, so he continued. "The darkness, and that lady, and I kind of did that to you…" he admitted, feeling a little ashamed. "Threw your problems at you, I mean. …I can see why you got mad."

Something faint—sadness? understanding?—flickered in Yami's eyes before he frowned and turned away. "Hm," was all he said. He slipped back into his seat at the desk.

Sora studied the man's back, wondering what that look had meant. Then, remembering his predicament, he tried not to get his hopes up as he asked, "You're not going to tell me why I woke up in the library, are you?"

Yami didn't look at him. "If I was permitted to tell you, I would."

Just who was keeping Yami from spilling all his secrets? Wasn't it up to Yami to tell about that kind of thing? Why was everyone leaving him in the dark, anyway?

"You would, huh?" Sora muttered, scowling down at his lap. "…I thought you hated me."

Yami was silent for a moment before answering. "I did think about what you said," he confessed.

Sora lifted his head, frowning. "What?"

"About how you hated me," Yami clarified, "but still made an attempt to be friendly."

"So you _do_ hate me?"

"Maybe."

Sora couldn't help smiling at the ambiguous answer, having a feeling he knew what it really meant. "I don't think you do," he prompted.

Yami slowly turned to glance at him. When he saw Sora's smile, one of his own graced his lips, and he calmly shook his head. "No," he stated. "I do not." His gaze hardened a little, however, and he sighed, looking tired. "You are wondering why I did the things I did."

"Yeah," Sora admitted, feeling really awkward. "If you don't hate me…"

Yami seemed to hesitate, as though searching for the right words to explain, his eyes distant. Then, curling a hand over the back of his chair, he lifted his gaze back to Sora, serious.

"It has oft been said that one cannot be happy unless one hurts someone else," he said, voice steady, sounding a little hollow. "To me, the question is not 'who you hurt.'" He paused, expression turning grim. "The question is 'who will strike?' Who is willing to be the villain?" He sighed again, closing his eyes. "That is why I did what I did."

And with that, he turned back towards the desk and reached for the quill.

Sora said nothing, those words striking something deep within him, filling him with sadness. He watched Yami return to his work, wondering how the guy could stand keeping all of those secrets bottled up inside of him and still be stable enough to keep going. It almost hurt to think about, and Sora knew he didn't know half of it.

This strange misery that seemed to come from Yami… It reminded Sora of the last time he had seen it from him. It'd been in that one room where he'd found the portrait of that man. Yami had reacted kind of weird to that…

Feeling a little apprehensive, Sora swallowed and wet his lips, deciding to ask.

"Did you know Ansem?"

Yami's quill paused in the middle of its flight across the page. Then, almost guarded, Yami replied. "Why do you ask?" he said quietly as he began to write again.

"You know a lot about him," Sora said. "And… you look like him. From the portrait."

Sora watched as a faint smile crossed Yami's face as he glanced over his shoulder, still writing.

"So did you know him?" Sora asked.

"No…" Yami's hand paused. He slowly blinked, staring down at his paper as if seriously contemplating something. "I thought I did," he admitted after a moment, his voice dropping. "But…"

Sora waited for Yami to continue.

He did. His back straightened and he lifted his face, staring off into the library as he spoke. "Did you know that Ansem originally started his experiments with hearts in order to find a way to _save_ his world?"

Huh?

"No…" Sora said. He didn't know much of anything about the guy named Ansem. "How do you know?"

"I read his reports."

Sora looked at the stack of papers on the desk where Yami was writing. "Is that what those are?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Why are you writing on them?"

Yami glanced at them, too. "I am editing them," he said, as if it was obvious. "It has been nine years since Ansem recorded his theories and findings, and much more has been discovered than what he knew at the time."

"Should you be doing that to _his_ stuff?" Sora asked.

Yami paused and turned to glance at Sora, giving him that mysterious smile of his. "Ansem is dead," he pointed out. "I sincerely doubt he would mind."

Well… that was true, he guessed. Frowning, Sora continued to watch Yami as he went back to writing. "What else do the reports say?"

"That Ansem was consumed by darkness and went mad," Yami said calmly, his quill flitting quickly across the parchment. "He risked everything in the reckless pursuit of knowledge, and in the end he lost."

"It actually says that?" Sora wondered.

"No," Yami replied, actually giving a soft chuckle. "But that is what happened." A quiet smile formed on his face, but it didn't reach his eyes. "He lost sight of what was important. He was a fool."

Sora hesitated at that, wondering what that meant for him. Ansem had been trying to find a way to save his world, and somehow the darkness got a hold of him and things went really bad? So, even if someone uses the darkness for good, bad things still happen? …did that mean that Sora was going to end up like Ansem?

"Well…" Sora began, sounding a little scared. "You and me… we're in the darkness too, right?"

"Yes…" Yami agreed. He paused in his writing, turning slightly in his chair to regard Sora. His expression was one of eerie calmness. "But you have not lost sight of what is important," he said. "And I…." There he hesitated, smile spreading. "Well. I know what must be done," he finished.

Sora studied that strange smile, giving Yami a confused look. "Why do people smile when they're scared, nervous, or sad?" he asked.

Silence stretched between them as those words struck home.

Yami's smile slowly faded, and he said nothing.

-o-o-

* * *

I promise it'll all start making sense soon. I'm not pulling all of this out of my ass, I swear. XD; Still, I hope you liked it, as strange as it was! One more part to this chapter, and it'll be a big one in terms of the plot, so I'm anxious about it!

Oh, I disclaim the Modoru Motoni-ish quote in there that you may or may not recognize—I liked the concept, and couldn't remember exactly how it went, so I altered it, but I still disclaim the concept.

Meanwhile, review?


	32. Ch 19: A Hero's Intrigue part three

_Author Notes:_

I'm not dead. College is just being a time-whore again and I've been... moody. Bad things have been happening, which kills my drive to write. I promise I'll write when I can. I'm not giving up on this fanfic. I would have had the update out before October (I did have it written in time, anyway), but things came up.

I was pleasantly surprised by the feedback for the last update. XD You guys are awesome. Thanks for all the encouraging reviews, and also thanks to my betas. I know your lives are busy, too.

* * *

**_Chapter Nineteen: A Hero's Intrigue _**_– part three_

-o-o-

He just couldn't stop thinking about it. The dream, the anti-Riku's memories…

They kept replaying over and over in his mind, things he wouldn't be forgetting for a very long time, and it made him sick inside. The voice from his dreams kept whispering inside of him, a cruel mantra of _This is what you deserve_, and the longer he brooded about what was happening to Sora because of _him_, he had to agree.

Even the warm afternoon breeze held no comfort for him at his current spot on the gizmo shop's roof. He had remained curled up here and staring out into the busy second district for the better part of the few hours since he had run away from Merlin's place.

Whenever he had a problem or wanted to escape and think to himself, he had always liked to pick high spots where he could feel the open air… But the industrial murmur and electric air of Traverse Town was nothing like his little perch on the bent paopu tree back at home. Funny how he had spent so long yearning to get off those damn islands only to suffer constant nostalgia when he finally had.

At this point, he'd give anything to turn back time and be back there. Or… at least have another chance.

Riku missed everyone. He could hardly remember what some of his friends looked like back home, and it bothered him. Despite the many people around him, he felt so _alone_—were heroes supposed to feel so alone?

...which made him wonder how the hell _Sora_ was handling things. No wonder the boy had taken solace in his disgusting pet heartless.

Somehow, keyblade master or not, he felt like _he_ had somehow provoked all of this—the heartless, Destiny Islands' destruction, Sora's fate... Yeah, it was a weird thing to think—and maybe a little selfish—but he couldn't help thinking about it.

Besides...

A few people and events had been hinting at something he'd begun to notice more and more. Sephiroth had asked him if he was on the right side, had hinted at some innate darkness or something inside of him, had even made a comment about Riku maybe getting a wing of his own one day. Then Riku'd had that dream earlier today...

What did it all mean? _Was_ he doing the right thing?

_This is what you deserve._

….shit.

Burying his face in his arms, Riku sighed. He didn't even know what he was fighting for anymore.

Some hero _he_ was…

-o-o-

After waking up in the library to Yami's care and then actually having a decent conversation with him, Sora was honestly confused.

His curiosity usually got the best of him and then got him in trouble (used to at home, anyway), and he knew this case was no different should he decide to snoop into Yami's affairs—but the guy was practically begging for Sora to butt into his business with the way he kept blatantly dodging questions and crap all the time!

Sora just wanted to pick at his brain, find out what exactly he was up to, where he came from, what made him so _sad_…

Sora had a problem with subtlety though. He always had. So, in an attempt to keep himself from getting into too much trouble yet, he'd decided to avoid Yami until he could come up with a good way to leech information.

He'd been pretty successful for the past few hours and had entertained himself by exploring some of the inner rooms of the castle now that he had permission. He hadn't uncovered anything extraordinary though, and he was getting impatient, which was never a good thing when it came to Sora.

By the time he'd gone through his fourth room and found nothing, he headed for the place he knew he'd find something interesting.

The dungeon, where the beast was. Maybe he could ask him some more questions about Belle, or where he came from or something. The guy was probably as lonely as Sora was. So, with many good excuses in mind, Sora was prepared to face the beast again.

What he hadn't been expecting was for the beast to already have company.

He also hadn't been expecting to run into Yami again so soon.

When he heard their voices echoing from the dark, damp cells of the dungeons, he froze in the middle of his descent on the winding staircase that led below the castle. The beast's deep rumble reverberated along the stone walls, but Sora couldn't make out any words. Maybe he was murmuring... Yami's voice, however, was smooth and clearly audible and poised and... something else.

"I understand. I will do my best to hurry."

Almost... sympathetic?

The beast murmured something again, and then there came the sound of porcelain and silverware and the shuffle of feet. Despite the approaching footsteps, Sora stayed in his spot, trying to comprehend the situation.

Yami and the beast weren't fighting? Didn't they dislike each other? Hadn't Yami _captured_ the beast and put him there?

Sora frowned, beyond confused. There were just too many questions.

When Yami rounded the corner and began ascending the stairs, Sora realized he was caught, though Yami did not seem surprised to see him there. Sora noticed that the guy was carrying a dirty plate and a glass, and he wondered if it had been for Yami's dinner or the beast's. If it was the latter, why was Yami bringing him food?

The dark-skinned boy lifted an eyebrow as he approached Sora on the stairs, probably curious about Sora's silence. Might as well humor him.

"What was that about?" Sora asked, gesturing towards the dungeons. "Didn't he hate you a few days ago?"

In response, Yami gave his mysterious smile as he moved past Sora. "There is a curious phenomenon that sometimes occurs in situations like this," he began calmly.

Sora began following after him, back up the stairs. "What?"

"A syndrome, you could say," Yami continued, "in which, after spending so much time in the company of his captor, a prisoner begins to identify and sympathize with the so-called enemy."

Skeptical, Sora pursed his lips and thought about that. "So even though you're keeping him in that nasty dungeon, he's suddenly nice to you."

"Putting it in simple terms, yes."

"...that's stupid."

"Call it what you wish," Yami said patiently as he led them back into the hallway. He paused for a moment to set the plate and glass down, and Sora found this curious, but he didn't say anything as Yami continued walking, leaving the dirty dishes there. Maybe Yami was in a hurry or something.

Sora picked up his pace, falling into step next to him, searching for something good to say. Yami beat him, though.

"On his world, he is the ruler," he explained, his voice solemn, "of a once beautiful castle." He paused here, sounding almost nostalgic. "Many years ago, he made a rather selfish mistake... and, as a result, he was changed into a frightening beast."

Yami trailed off for a moment before glancing at Sora, giving a sad smile.

"Their stories are so parallel, it is uncanny," he commented quietly.

Sora blinked, giving Yami a confused look. "Whose stories? What?"

"The beast... and Ansem," Yami calmly answered, glancing forward again as they continued walking. "Granted, there are obvious differences, but..."

"Go on," Sora urged, now curious to know what the heck the guy was talking about. Plus, he wanted to know more about the beast in the dungeons, and more of Ansem's story couldn't hurt either.

Yami nodded, complying. "Ansem was once ruler of this bastion," he reminded. "In those days, this was a beautiful place to live, completely untouched by the machinery now found throughout the structure."

Whoa, really? Taking a glance around, noting the orange pipes sometimes cutting through the stone of the walls and leading elsewhere, Sora found it kind of hard to believe that the machinery hadn't been put there on purpose. Yami almost made it sound like the stuff had _grown_ or something, not been built.

"The beast's castle was once beautiful as well, he told me," Yami said, quick with his points. "Both he and Ansem made silly, selfish mistakes." He lifted one hand as he spoke. "The beast—a prince at the time—turned away an ugly old woman who had gone to him seeking shelter. Even when she offered a rose and warned him that beauty is found within, the prince still turned her down..." He paused, lifting his other hand this time, continuing with Ansem's story next. "Ansem neglected his people and those he cared about, recklessly experimenting and meddling where he should not have, in favor of more knowledge."

Sora thought back to all the times Cid and Aerith and the others had talked about Ansem, and not once did he remember them mentioning how psycho Ansem had been as a ruler. It made him wonder just how much Yami had learned by reading those reports of Ansem's... It didn't seem likely that Ansem would have recorded all of _that_...

Glancing at Sora, Yami finished his comparisons. "As punishment for the prince's selfishness, the old woman, who was really an enchantress, transformed the prince into a beast. Ansem was also transformed—the darkness drove him mad."

Sora had a feeling that wasn't all to the stories. The way Yami kept pausing to carefully contemplate and choose his words... It seemed like he was definitely hiding things again. Waiting for him to speak again, Sora silently watched him, noticing how Yami's expression seemed to darken.

Just what was he thinking about...?

After a minute or so, Yami finally lowered his eyes. When he spoke again, his tone was withdrawn.

"Both can be considered monsters now," he said, "but I wonder who _truly_ reflects what they deserved..."

-o-o-

Riku wasn't surprised that it was Leon who came to see him first.

The incident at Merlin's place was hours in the past, and Riku, after his rooftop brooding, had spent the day sprawled out on his stomach in bed, lonely as hell but, at the same time, not wanting to see anyone. They'd ask questions... and he didn't feel like answering.

Leon said nothing as he entered, but Riku didn't even have to look up to know it was him. His belts made a distinct sound when he walked—different than Cloud's—so Riku knew it was him even though he hadn't spoken a word yet.

"Where's Cloud?" Riku murmured from his pillow.

Silence met Riku, and for a moment he wondered if maybe he was mistaken about it being Leon there—

But sure enough, the familiar deep voice came to him and he smiled to himself.

"He disappeared earlier," Leon replied shortly. "To think."

Riku found that amusing for some reason. "To think, huh…?" he said as he lifted himself a little off the bed, glancing at the older man. "He's been doing that a lot lately."

Resting a hand on his hip, Leon shifted his weight and impassively watched the keyblade master. "He has a lot to think about."

"Hm." Riku rolled onto his back, tucking his hands behind his head. "Where does he go?" he wondered.

"Not sure," Leon muttered, sounding unconcerned. After a quiet moment, he added, "If something's bothering him, he'll come to me."

Riku lifted an eyebrow at him, wondering if that was true. "You really don't seem like the type to care about people's problems," he commented.

Despite the honesty in Riku's words, Leon's expression turned a bit disgruntled. He shrugged, looking tired. "Whatever," he muttered. "I helped you not too long ago."

Which was true. Besides the brief version he had told Merlin, the only other person Riku had really told the Hollow Bastion story to was Leon, and Leon _had_ comforted him. Riku remembered feeling completely despaired at the time, thinking that Leon was going to lecture him about the thing with Yami, but the older man had only given him that awkward half-hug.

At the time, it had been completely unexpected, and so unlike Leon... If it hadn't actually happened, Riku wouldn't have believed it possible.

"Yeah," Riku said quietly after a moment, "but it still seems like you'd rather tell someone to tell their problems to a wall than come to you."

Leon's gray eyes focused sharply on him, narrowing a fraction, and Riku could have sworn he felt his heart skip a little. But then Leon looked away again, closing himself off, leaving Riku to wonder what the heck that _look_ had meant.

"Cloud's different," Leon curtly replied.

_So does that make me different too, then? _Riku wondered silently, studying the aloof man. _Since you helped me... _Out loud, he altered his thoughts a bit. "Oh, right." Here he forced on a smirk, trying to be teasing even though his heart wasn't really in it. "...am I different too, then? That's why you came here, right?" _To ask me questions... To find out what I saw._

"Maybe," was all Leon said, and then they both fell silent.

Maybe? What was that supposed to mean? Why else would Leon have come here? Just to chat? Yeah, right. He had to be here to find out what had happened. Maybe someone else had put Leon up to it, but that still had to be the reason.

Rolling onto his side, facing away from Leon, Riku tucked a hand under his pillow and kept his voice casual, dismissive. "Well, you made the trip for nothing," he announced. "I really don't feel like talking about it."

Maybe that way they wouldn't have to ask at all.

Somehow... he felt his heart sink, hearing Leon's answer.

"That's fine."

That was it?

...did they not care?

His own feelings confused him, wondering why he felt so disappointed if he didn't even want to talk about the anti-Riku in the first place. Was it because he had expected it...?

Frowning to himself, he asked Leon, "You're not disappointed?"

The reply was so impersonal, it hurt.

"Just wanted to make sure the keyblade master is stable enough to travel later today."

...did Leon even know what an ass he could be?

Swallowing, closing his eyes, Riku curled a hand into his sheets, glad he was facing away from Leon and able to hide his upset expression. Keeping his tone stable was more difficult, and his voice gave a tremor as he stated, "So it's a duty thing, then."

So he was just a keyblade master to them, was that it? And here he had thought he had meant something a bit more than that. Leon and Cloud and the others—they only pretended to care? Or... Or was Leon just protecting himself, too? Riku closed himself off sometimes when he was embarrassed, so maybe that's how Leon was...

"Mostly," Leon replied. "The others are worried, too."

"…are they…" Riku said.

Leon's tone grew significantly more firm. "You didn't exactly leave them reassured, Riku," he said. Riku knew he was right. "I had to explain what you were doing to that heartless because they didn't have a clue."

Yeah... that was true...

Riku bit his lip, feeling guilty and hating it.

Leon wasn't done, though. "Watching you explore the thing's memories like that—" He paused, his tone darkening. "It scared them."

Riku had a feeling that Leon actually meant, "_It scared **us**._" He could only imagine what it must have looked like, witnessing a so-called hero freak out over a couple of heartless memories. He'd screamed at them, hadn't he? Something like _"Don't touch me!"_ and then he had burst out of there without an explanation.

Yeah... He would have been worried too.

Wetting his lips, he spoke softly. "…did it scare you?"

There was a definite pause before Leon replied.

"No."

Liar.

"But I know it got to you," Leon said. Riku heard his boots shift slightly on the floor, and for that split second, Riku was tempted to roll over and look at him, but he didn't move.

God... Yeah, the anti-Riku's memories had gotten to him. He didn't admit it out loud, but he knew he didn't have to. Leon had him pinned.

"You think you're strong because you're the keyblade master, Riku," he said, voice growing solemn, "but you can't do all of this alone."

Hah. This was coming from _Leon_?

"I used to think I could handle anything by myself," Leon did admit. His tone dropped, however, and Riku was surprised to hear it suddenly so open. Unmasked. "But someone made me realize otherwise."

At this, Riku did roll over, his brow knitting as he gazed up at Leon, curious. "Cloud?" he wondered.

Something twisted in his gut when he saw Leon shake his head, those gray eyes narrowing in deep thought.

"No, someone in my past. When I was a kid. After Rinoa died."

-o-o-

By the time Sora followed Yami into the main hall, heading towards the inner sanctum of the castle, he realized he was doing just that: following Yami. He wasn't sure when it had become an automatic reflex, but it made him uncomfortable. Since their conversation had died anyway, and nothing had been spoken for a few minutes, he started to turn around to leave.

As if knowing Sora's intentions, Yami stopped him with a question. "You were going down there to visit him, were you not?" he asked.

Sora knew Yami was talking about the beast. Recalling the last time he had been caught in the dungeons, he felt apprehensive about admitting it, but he did. "Yeah..." Then, as an afterthought: "You're not mad, are you?"

"Why would I be?" was Yami's response.

"Uhh..." Sora blinked at him, his voice taking on a confused tone. "Because... last time you sorta... dragged me out of there."

Amber eyes slowly turned, coolly regarding him. "Did I?"

Sora frowned, not liking that he was being played with. "Yeah. And I yelled at you and hit you," he said, slightly bitter. "Or did you forget _that_ too?"

Something subtle passed through Yami's gaze, like remembrance, as if he really had forgotten. He gave Sora a calm smile and turned forward again. "I have no reason to be upset with you, Sora. You have permission to wander freely now." He paused, lips curling a little in amusement. "Besides, you saved me the trouble of finding you."

"Huh?" This caught Sora a little off guard. Why would Yami need him for something?

Somehow, the answer did not surprise him.

"The mistress wishes to speak with you."

He had been expecting another confrontation with her, especially after her last promises of giving him something productive to do. He didn't really like the sound of that, but since she _had_ helped him learn all that magic and was still letting him stay here, he knew she would be expecting him to return some of her kindness.

"Why couldn't she find me herself?" he wondered.

"She is currently visiting with a guest."

Wait, what? "A guest?" Sora couldn't remember her having guests before. And how the heck did they get here? This world was practically abandoned.

"Yes," was all Yami provided. It might have been Sora's imagination, but Yami didn't look too pleased.

"So that means you're still working for her?" Sora asked, recalling what had happened yesterday between them. "Why? I mean... After what she did to you..." And what Yami had tried to do to her, but Sora left that part out. Best not remind him again. Yami probably still felt humiliated about being teased in his weakened state yesterday.

Yami's eyes thinned at Sora's statement, a quietly angry frown forming on his face. "I do not have much of a choice," he replied, voice slightly acidic. "...at the moment."

A cold chill swept through Sora. He didn't like that tone. Hugging himself, he looked away from Yami. "Do you hate her?" _Are you going to kill her?_

Silence passed between them for a long moment. Then, in a low mutter, Yami answered.

"She is more of a fool than I am."

-o-o-

"No, someone in my past. When I was a kid. After Rinoa died."

Riku studied Leon's guarded expression for a long, quiet stretch before he dared a guess. "Sephiroth?"

When Leon shook his head again, something cold settled within Riku, and he wondered why this conversation suddenly felt wrong. He had a feeling that if he pried this time, something bad would happen. Though... just what could be so scary about asking questions? But even Leon looked a little disturbed.

"Sephiroth did help," Leon admitted after a moment. "I remember everyone at the orphanage, but... it feels like there's a hole." He closed his eyes and pressed a hand to his forehead. "Something important is missing."

Riku sat up all the way, tucking his legs under himself as he looked up at the older man, curious as hell again about that missing piece of Leon's past. "Still can't remember, huh?"

Motionless for a few seconds, Leon slowly slipped his eyes back open, gaze distant as he lowered his hand, clenching it at his side with a quiet creak of leather. "It never bothered me before. I don't think I even noticed..." he said grimly. "Sometimes I just know things even though I can't remember where I know them from... and even though I don't think anyone ever said them aloud, either."

Riku gave a small nod, silently encouraging him to continue. He understood.

Shifting his gaze towards Riku, Leon briefly regarded him as if to make sure he was still there. "It's because you keep asking about Ansem."

Riku's stomach gave a small flutter as he heard that name coming from Leon. It might have just been his imagination, but the way Leon said it... Well, he didn't say it like everyone else did. Cid, occasionally, had a bitterly curious tone when he said the man's name, mainly because of all the mysteries that had surrounded the ruler of their world. Cloud, too, sometimes spoke Ansem's name with an underlying tone—mostly venom, for what Ansem had done to him. The others, however, were always casually indifferent, like Aerith or Yuffie, which was how Leon used to speak of Ansem.

Now, though... He said it differently. Riku wasn't sure what it was.

"Ansem?" Riku asked.

"...yeah," Leon said, folding his arms across his chest. "I know what Ansem looks like... but I can't remember ever meeting him, for instance. I just know."

Riku frowned. "Well, maybe you saw a picture or something...?"

But Leon didn't look convinced. He gave a half-hearted shrug and closed his eyes again. "I talked to Cid about it and he told me that I used to visit the bastion as often as the other children had. In other words..."

"Sephiroth and Cloud," Riku finished, catching on and not liking where this was going. "You think... if _they_ were Ansem's apprentices or whatever, and Ansem was actually using them as test subjects, you think Ansem might have done something to you too?"

Leon remained still for a moment, but then, hesitantly, he nodded. "Except I have nothing to show for it."

"Except missing memories," Riku pointed out.

At that, Leon fell silent, gazing off towards the door. "...Cloud remembers Ansem _too_ well." He turned his gaze back towards Riku, gray eyes dark. "So why can't I?"

A hush fell over the room. Riku turned his face away from Leon's piercing stare, feeling strangely uncomfortable. He didn't know what to tell Leon. He was used to being the one with all the questions, so hearing it from someone else, especially _Leon_, it was... weird.

Then again... he was the keyblade master. He was supposed to help people, wasn't he?

The words were out of his mouth immediately. "I can try using—"

But he stopped mid-sentence at the sharp look Leon suddenly gave him. He spoke in a pointed, dark tone. "After the way you panicked this morning, you shouldn't be messing with anyone's memories again."

Riku bit his lip, glaring down at his bed sheets, feeling stupid. "That was different," he grumbled.

"Was it?"

Riku met his eyes, wanting to feel defiant, but his heart wasn't in it. Not today.

Turning away, he wilted, looking gloomy. "I was just trying to help," was what he managed in his defense.

Silence stretched between them until Riku heard Leon move towards him, boots shuffling against the floor, his belts clinking together as he approached the bed. Riku didn't glance up at him again, expecting a lecture or something.

That wasn't what Leon seemed to have in mind, however.

"Fine," he said.

Riku blinked, confused, and lifted his gaze to Leon's. "What?"

"I said fine," Leon sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Let's try it again." Then, noticing Riku's blank look, he smirked a little. "The keyblade."

Somehow, Leon's nonchalant approach to this only made Riku more apprehensive about what they would find.

Wetting his lips, Riku nodded anyway, giving a hesitant smile. "Alright."

He only hoped that whatever he did find in Leon's memories was nothing like what he had experienced that morning.

-o-o-

Meanwhile, Sora was hoping that whatever the lady wanted from him, it wasn't anything he'd feel bad about doing. Considering that he had Yami as an example as one of her lackeys, he was more than worried.

Their conversation had died off again and they were heading deeper into the castle, Yami leading the way. As he walked behind him, Sora studied the aristocratic way Yami carried himself. The lady walked like that too, he had noticed, with the straight shoulders and chin held aloft; except, in Yami's case, his proud air was more of a show, Sora thought. Ever since the talk he'd had with Yami this morning, he'd been studying him carefully, trying to figure out what was really _him_ under all of his acting, but it was hard.

"We're here."

Sora came to a stop behind Yami, confused as to why they were pausing a little bit away from the actual room. He could hear voices nearby, presumably the woman and her guest. Looking to Yami for an answer, he frowned.

"Why are we—"

"Shh." Yami promptly held up a hand, silencing Sora. He glanced at him, those amber eyes narrowing slightly, and then he raised a single finger to his lips as he slowly began moving closer to the door.

Curious and a bit apprehensive, Sora followed him quietly until they were standing just outside the doorway and the woman's voice was clearly audible. They were going to spy on her? Man, no wonder she didn't trust Yami. Despite the fear of being caught, though, Sora stood next to him, listening carefully.

"—growing impatient. Inform them that the task will be done when the last resource has been delivered."

She sounded completely impassive yet in control as usual, her voice drawling a little as she spoke. She seemed to be taking a bit more care in choosing her words, however, and Sora wondered just what kind of guest she had.

A man's voice came next, also with an obvious drawl, and he seemed slightly amused about something. He sounded kind of... lofty and shrewd. "My _dear_ Maleficent, why rely on a fraudulent little rat when it would be just as easy to take control of the situation yourself?" he asked, his tone suggesting something condescending and... wicked.

Something stirred inside of Sora when he heard the woman's name. Maleficent... That sounded all-too-familiar, but surely he had misheard. Surely that's not who she was.

Despite her guest's dry mirth, Not-Maleficent didn't sound amused. "Rat or not," she droned, "there is more than meets the eye about him. Only a fool would disregard such a threat."

The man didn't sound as serious, his tone turning a bit flippant. "If _I_ were having such problems, I would have already had him tortured."

"He already has the princess, Vizier—" she began, pausing when her guest cut in.

"Jafar, if you will," he said, using a faux-polite tone, about as saccharine as a venomous snake.

She sneered in return. "_Jafar_. He is using the princess to delay something."

Talk about princesses again? Were they referring to Belle or some other princess?

Sora glanced at Yami for an explanation, but he wasn't surprised to find the other boy with a grave, displeased look on his face. He wasn't paying attention to Sora at all.

So Sora had been right. Yami and the woman were still at obvious odds with each other, and she was planning something really big and needed Yami to do it. There were other players, too—like Jafar, and Sora wondered just how many others were out there.

He had feared he was on the wrong side before, but now he had the proof. Nothing was black and white anymore. Yami might not have been a good guy, but that didn't necessarily make him evil. There were a lot of different angles in this game, Sora realized.

The man named Jafar continued. "Oh? Perhaps to delay his eradication, then, as he knows you are not pleased."

"...perhaps," she replied flatly. She didn't sound convinced. "She is near. The door reacts constantly to her presence, but I have yet to discover where he is keeping her."

"Surely a sweep of the castle—"

This time she interrupted _him_. "Several have already been done, Vizier—"

And he cut in yet again. "Jafar, if you will."

"..._Jafar_." Even though she expertly masked it, Sora had been around the woman enough to recognize the impatience in her voice. "He is hiding her well."

At this point, Yami seemed to decide he was done eavesdropping. His hand curled around Sora's arm and he tugged the boy into the room with him, Sora giving a small yelp of surprise. Not-Maleficent and Jafar both turned only their eyes as the two of them entered the room, hurrying across the stone floor to stand in front of them.

At first Sora thought it was kind of funny how similar the woman was to her guest. Both stood to a scary height, with ridiculous hats to add to their imposing stature. Both held themselves with an air of sophistication. They both had thin lips and narrow eyes and a long fingers that held staves with similar grace and ease. Jafar's staff seemed to be in the shape of a cobra, its ruby eyes kind of creepy from Sora's standpoint. Both the woman and Jafar also had large birds perched on their shoulders—Not-Maleficent with her crow, and Jafar with a fat parrot.

Both birds were glaring daggers at each other, and for a second Sora could have sworn he saw the parrot make a face at the crow, but he brushed it off as his imagination.

The woman's eyes narrowed at Yami and him, and Sora had the distinct feeling that she _knew_ they had been listening just outside the room, but she said nothing as they presented themselves. Yami released Sora's arm once they were stopped in front of the two intimidating schemers.

Not-Maleficent pursed her lips, looking displeased as she regarded Yami. "I suppose that abomination in the dungeons is unfortunately still alive and well, then?"

Sora wasn't surprised that she knew about Yami's visits with the beast since she seemed to know most of everything else. What he was surprised about was that she obviously wanted the beast dead. Then again, that probably shouldn't have surprised him, since they had put the beast in the dungeons in the first place, but it was still slightly appalling to actually hear the adversity from the woman. She acted so nice to practically everyone else (except Yami, which had been proven yesterday).

Yami made no sign of being bothered by her words, however, and he answered smoothly. "As much of a distraction and threat you think he is, Madam, I can handle him. You left his fate to me, if I recall correctly, and that is the fate I chose for him. Leave it at that."

She gave a derisive sniff, her lips curling at him, but she turned away from him to return her attention to Jafar.

And in that moment, Sora couldn't help feeling a surge of pride for Yami.

-o-o-

And at that moment, Riku couldn't help feeling like he was about to do something taboo.

He and Leon were now sitting knee-to-knee on Riku's bed, Oblivion clenched between their hands as they stared at each other, both mentally preparing for what they were about to do. It felt similar to the one time he and Sora had found Sora's mother's Ouija board under her bed and had taken it out to play with. The feeling he'd had then as they tried to use the board was eerily similar to the feeling he had now.

Were they allowed to do this? What kind of damage could be done by messing around with something as possibly dangerous as this? What would they discover? They were playing with powers beyond their comprehension and neither of them knew what would be the result.

The look in Leon's eyes told Riku that he was as uncertain as he was. It wasn't comforting.

Fingers trembling slightly, his mind fresh from the experiences of that morning with the anti-Riku, Riku felt a sick feeling of dread twist inside of him as he nodded to Leon, silently telling him he was ready even though he was not. Neither of them were.

Leon nodded back.

Riku closed his eyes and released a long, shuddery breath, trying to relax as he opened his mind up.

It wasn't too unlike the attempt on Mulan's world, when Riku had tried to pry into Leon's memories. He felt his magic brush Leon's, but, like last time, nothing came willingly to him. With Sephiroth, Sephiroth had taken control and forced his memories on Riku. With the anti-Riku, nothing had been there to hinder Riku from entering the heartless' mind. But with Leon—there was this mental barrier, and as open as Leon was presenting himself, that part of his mind would not open willingly.

Riku remembered all too well what had happened last time, though... It had backfired and hurt them both. But if they wanted to know what was missing from the man's past, they were going to have to risk it again.

_I know, Riku,_ came Leon's silent assertion, flowing into Riku through their connection with the keyblade. _Do it already._

_I'm going, I'm going._

Tightening his hold on Oblivion, Riku concentrated harder, feeling around the locked cage of memories inside of Leon. It felt weaker now and Riku wondered if maybe that was a result of his attempts to enter last time.

With that notion in mind, he decided to aim what he could in that spot.

He silently gathered his powers, concentrating them around himself, drawing in some of Leon's quiet power to strengthen the energy. He felt the man's worries and questions swirling inside his own mind, but he brushed them aside, focusing on his task, announcing only one thing when he was ready.

_This is going to hurt._

He felt Leon's hands tense around the keyblade. Then, without any other warning, Riku sent the magic hurtling into Leon, wave after wave of concentrated power slamming into the invisible barrier of Leon's locked memories.

There was an abrupt cry and Riku wasn't sure if it was him or Leon or both, and then a sharp _crack_ rung inside of them and Riku—

**I would hate for anything terrible to become of you.**

—was tugging on an old, delicate book?

"Let it _go_, Seifer!"

Riku was suddenly aware of the pale face in front of his, grinning a malicious, teasing grin with narrowed green eyes. The kid's blonde hair was short—very short, and he looked like a schoolyard bully with the way he was built, as young as he looked, which was barely adolescent.

"No way! I want to see what's in this stupi—"

_Rrrriiippp!_

Riku suddenly found himself on his ass, grasping one half of the book in his hands as the other boy stood there, carrying the other half and looking surprised.

"Oops. Haha."

An intense surge of anger and sadness and—fear?—swept through Riku—Squall—and he scrambled to his feet, _hurling_ the torn half of the book at the blonde kid—Seifer? It hit him in the side of the head, pages scattering, sweeping across the floor, and Riku felt the utmost hatred fill him as he _glared_ at the other kid, saying absolutely nothing.

He could have sworn he saw Seifer's amused expression falter for a moment, but then he sneered at Squall, covering it up. He slapped the other half of the book onto the ground.

"I bet he's gonna be pissed that you ruined his book and he ain't gonna let you borrow any more!"

Another surge of emotion rose within Squall, along with a few defiant thoughts. _It wasn't me! I didn't do it!_ But then, there was that fear, an icy fear that clenched at his heart, and Riku was surprised to find that it felt like Squall wanted to cry.

_I ripped his book... he's going to be so sad..._

But on the outside, Squall reflected nothing except anger, keeping the rest to himself.

**Do you want to know the reason I have avoided you lately?**

A new memory already. He was seated now, a glossy obsidian mantle and a row of black and white rectangles laid in front of him. It was a piano... and it felt familiar. Very familiar.

He tentatively pressed down on a deep note, the piano key a perfectly polished white against his small finger. The music notes on the crisp page in front of him looked so foreign, but determination filled Squall and he touched the next key, starting to play. One key after another. Deep, deep, deeper, lighter, and then the next, and then—

No. No, that hadn't sounded right.

Squall shook his head, slightly disappointed, but that was okay... he always got _that_ one wrong...

Riku was surprised when a hand suddenly covered Squall's, the palm warm and comforting to the boy. Familiar. Even though Squall had expected the interruption, he still tensed a little when he felt the hand rest over his, moving his finger to the correct key.

A rich voice gently whispered into his ear as their fingers pressed down together.

"This one, Squall."

"...thanks..."

**You should not drift so far away from the… light.**

Squall was carrying a book again. No, wait...

Book_s_. A stack of them.

Happiness was completely filling him, excited thoughts racing through his mind as he hurried down a dirt path towards a modest, old fashioned building, clutching the books to his chest. Something silver—a chain—was tucked into one of the books, its end slapping against the back of a cover as Squall quickly walked.

Riku wondered what had made him so happy in this memory because it didn't last long.

A familiar voice, which sounded older now, called out to Squall, and a blonde-haired boy came jogging up the trail after him.

"Hey Squall! What'd you get this time?"

A flash of possessiveness came over Squall and he clutched the books more tightly to himself as he picked up his pace, avoiding eye contact with Seifer, who did look older now.

"Just more books," Squall replied curtly.

"What's this—"

And Seifer's fingers hooked on the silver chain, easily tugging it out of the book and away from Squall, who immediately narrowed his eyes, indignation rising within him.

"Give that back!"

A very familiar necklace dangled from Seifer's fingers—the pendent was a lion's head, the design ending in a crossed point, and it was the same necklace that Riku _always_ saw Leon wearing.

"Whoa, cool!" Seifer laughed, holding it up.

Squall wasted no time in snatching it back, glaring daggers at the other boy.

Leveling his eyes on the slightly smaller boy, Seifer asked with a derisive tone, "Did you get that from your _boyfriend_?"

Squall pushed past him, fingers clenching tightly over the silver pendent, making it clear that no one would ever be able to take his necklace from him again. "Whatever, Seifer," he muttered and continued down the dirt path.

**_GO! Get out of here!_**

The voice rang sharply in the air and fear, stark and cold, filled Squall as he cried out. Riku caught a glimpse of shattered glass raining down on him, fragments of red on white, and then—

The memory suddenly ended.

All of the power Riku had been concentrating on Leon backfired, sending Riku flying off his bed. He yelped right before he crashed into the floor, Oblivion skittering away from his hand from the momentum before dispersing into a shower of magic and disappearing.

"O-Oww..."

Riku rubbed his skull, wincing as he sat back up, lifting his gaze to see where Leon had ended up. He was still on the bed with his head bowed, shaggy brown hair covering his face and his fingers twisted tightly in the strands. He was breathing a little raggedly, his body tense, but for the most part he seemed to be okay.

"Leon...?"

The man relaxed a little. His shoulders rose slightly as he sighed, slipping his hands free from his hair. When he spoke, his voice sounded hoarse.

"I don't know what it means."

Riku got to his knees and moved back towards the bed, starting to climb back onto it, not feeling nearly as nauseous as he had the previous two times he'd done this. Maybe he was getting more resilient or something.

As he settled next to Leon on the mattress, he glanced up at him. "Well... You remembered Seifer..." he offered.

Leon shook his head, his brow knitting. "I already remembered Seifer. He wasn't new..."

Riku frowned, a little confused. "Then why were those memories lost?" he wondered.

Gray eyes rose to meet his, a little distant as he gazed at Riku, and then he looked away, deep in thought. "It was the books. They were special, but I don't remember why."

"And the necklace," Riku added.

Leon closed his eyes and nodded, and Riku glanced at the lion pendent hanging from the man's neck.

The scraping of boots in the hallway outside the door alerted both of them and they looked up as the door opened, revealing Cloud. When he spotted Leon and Riku sitting together on the bed, he lifted a blonde eyebrow at them.

"Did I come at a bad time?" he asked, a slightly amused tilt to his lips as he crossed his arms.

Despite Cloud's quiet humor, Riku felt suddenly awkward and wondered if Cloud even knew what Riku had been doing with Leon's memories lately. He glanced at Leon, who had already looked away from Cloud.

"Where did you go?" Leon asked him.

Cloud stepped into the room but stopped just in front of the door, his wing relaxing a little. "The rooftops. It's peaceful up there." He glanced from Leon to Riku again, who tried not to look guilty. "I guess Leon already talked to you, if he's here."

Riku blinked, not sure what kind of talk Cloud was referring to. "Er... Well..."

Leon spoke up. "Riku didn't want to talk about it." He dragged a hand through his hair, lifting his eyes to regard Cloud. The two men shared a silent look, and then Cloud sighed, giving a slight nod.

"Alright," he consented, but then his gaze sharpened on both of them. "But if this trinity is going to survive, Riku is going to need to stop trying to carry all of the weight himself. And _you_—" Here he narrowed his eyes at Leon. "I know you're up to something. You haven't said anything, but I can tell. What were you two doing? This place reeks of magic."

Riku felt his eyes widen slightly. He hadn't known that Cloud could sense stuff like that. Did that mean he'd known last time, back in Mulan's world, but hadn't mentioned anything?

"Well..." Riku began, but hesitated, glancing at Leon for permission. The man merely turned his gaze away, closing himself off, so Riku continued. "Leon's been worried about some stuff he can't remember from his past..."

Cloud's blue eyes hardened, his expression turning grim. "So you were using your keyblade on him. Like you did with that heartless."

"Basically..."

Cloud did not sound happy. He regarded Leon again, his tone firm. "What do you think you're forgetting?" Riku had a feeling that Cloud also wanted to ask something like, _And why didn't you tell me?_

Indeed, it was a good question. They were supposed to be a couple or whatever and yet they hardly shared anything with one another.

Leon didn't beat around the bush, however. "Ansem."

Cloud's expression darkened when he heard the name. "You've never told me this before."

A small shrug was Leon's response before he lifted his eyes to Cloud's. "I hadn't noticed. Ansem wasn't really at the forefront of any of our minds. When Riku started asking us about him, I realized... that I really didn't know."

A troubled look crossed Cloud's face, and he nodded.

"I've managed to help Leon remember a few things," Riku said, "but they don't really make sense."

"How does that work anyway?" Cloud wondered, moving further into the room. "Can you choose the memories?"

Riku shook his head. "No. It's more like they choose themselves." He paused, thinking about it. "Well, Sephiroth gave me the memories to remember... That's how I learned how to do this."

Studying Riku quietly, Cloud just nodded again, so Riku went on.

"And with the anti-Riku... nothing was in the way of getting into its mind," he explained. "But with Leon, there's like this barrier... It's hiding stuff. And sometimes, right when I'm getting a good memory, our connection will break off and shut me out."

Cloud was silent for a moment, his wing shifting behind him, which Riku had learned was a sign that Cloud was worried about something. When he at last spoke again, his tone was careful. "What exactly are you remembering?" he asked.

Leon and Cloud's eyes met again.

"Griever," Leon said, and Cloud's gaze shifted towards Leon's necklace. "The red wings were stained glass windows in the bastion somewhere. And I remember getting books... from someone. And the piano."

A frown of confusion pulled across Cloud's lips. "I don't remember windows like that," he said. "And the piano at the orphanage?"

"No," Leon replied. "This one was tuned... and well kept."

A thick silence filled the room then, Riku glancing from Leon to Cloud, who were gazing at each other, lost in thought, leaving Riku to only guess at what was going through their minds. He would have liked to have been clued in, but they didn't offer any explanations.

Instead, Cloud just broke the silence with a sigh. "Alright. But at least make sure I'm there when you decide to try the memory thing again," he said. "Just in case..."

Riku nodded in agreement, finding it comforting that Cloud wanted to be there next time. It relieved him that he'd have back up if anything bad did happen, even though he didn't think it would.

Leon's consent was just a soft hum as he looked away, shifting his weight on the bed. "So now that we're all here, what's the next course of action?" he asked, arms folding across his chest as he glanced at Riku.

The boy gave a faint smile at him and then lifted his eyes to glance at Cloud, glad that he had such an awesome trinity. Relaxing, he pulled his legs under him and gave a thoughtful sigh, ready to get back to work.

"Well, we can always scan the Eastern strip of worlds..."

-o-o-

"...worlds have been successfully overrun with the creatures and our sources in each of those respective worlds have begun to move at last," Jafar was announcing.

Sora was appalled.

He didn't want to be working with the bad guys.

Just because he could somehow command some heartless, just because his boyfriend (ex-boyfriend?) was the keyblade master... just because of that damn Gemini thing, if that was even real... That didn't make him a bad guy, did it? Was it because of Id?

This couldn't be happening...

He had already come to terms with the woman's name being Maleficent, as sick as it made him feel inside. All this time, he'd been learning magic from _her_... He remembered more than a few people warning him about the evil witch-fairy by that name.

How had it gotten this bad?

"Excellent," Maleficent said coolly, her slender fingers sliding up her scepter, one stroking the green orb at the top. Her crow ruffled its feathers, glaring from Yami to Sora. "I trust you have been successful as well?"

Jafar faltered slightly, his thin lips falling open as he searched for words. "I admit my attempts at retrieving the magic lamp have been... less than victorious."

Maleficent's lips curled, cruelly amused. "Oh?"

Jafar lifted a hand, calmly waving it. "The street _rat_ unfortunately has possession of it."

"The aforementioned 'diamond in the rough'?" she asked, chuckling softly. "Vizier—"

This time he did not correct her.

"—I seem to recall you saying that if you had problems similar to mine," she continued, voice slightly acidic, "you would have already tortured him."

Jafar looked a bit disgruntled at this. "Yes, well, different circumstances."

The crow shifted on Maleficent's shoulder, narrowing its eyes at the tall man. She just smirked. After a moment, she lifted a hand, gesturing to Sora and Yami. "I will send the child to help your endeavor. Surely he can get closer than one of your paltry disguises."

Jafar narrowed his eyes at Yami and Sora, lip curling at them. "Hm."

Sora glanced at the boy next to him, a little worried, but Yami already had that bureaucratic air about him as he stepped forward, ready to take care of whatever she wanted.

"What would you have me do?" he asked.

Sora felt himself jump a little when Maleficent started laughing. _Laughing_. She reached a long finger out, her crow stepping onto it as she lifted it to her face, scarily amused. Her crow leered at Yami from its perch as Maleficent's laughter subsided.

"Did you hear that, my pet?" she asked the bird, smiling venomously. "The insolent messenger boy still wants to help. Why, after all the charades and that horrid act of defiance a mere day ago, I am surprised he thought I would even consider him for another task so soon."

With that, she slowly turned her gaze to Yami, smirking. Even though he had remained mostly impassive up until then, now Yami was openly glaring at her, almost bristling.

"No," she said simply. "Not you." Her lips curled a little more. "We require the assistance of someone more..."

Here she paused, her gaze traveling. When it leveled on Sora, his heart skipped a beat.

"Fresh," she finished, and her smile spread.

-o-o-

_The worlds are getting even more strange. Yesterday, we spent the first half of the day exploring a crazy wonderland of some sorts with talking doorknobs, purple cats with floating heads, and a crazy Queen of Hearts that wanted to behead me for bitching her out... Sora would have laughed at it if he had been there._

Riku paused, tapping the end of his pen against his lips as looked up from his journal.

The gummi ship was on autopilot and Cloud was settled in the driver's seat, leaning forward and speaking through the viewscreen with Cid, who was eating packaged noodles that actually looked really good to Riku's empty stomach. Leon was in the backseat by himself, resting, his muscular arms folded behind his head, and his boots crossed on the back of Riku's seat, the passenger seat.

"We finally got the numbers in," Cid was saying as he slurped around his food. "About fifteen people disappeared during the heartless raid. There's a couple more homeless kids now that their foster parents were lost..."

Riku felt his heart sink at the news. Fifteen people he could have saved... All for a stupid report. All because of Id... And Yami.

"Aerith is talking about opening an orphanage again, instead of just finding the kids new homes in the town," Cid continued. "Taking after the Gainsborough's place back home."

What were they talking about?

Cloud just nodded, though, as if he understood it completely. "I see. That might be a good thing... Aerith would be the perfect candidate for that."

Cid wiped his nose, leaning closer to the viewscreen to see into the gummi ship. "So what's the status report?"

"We went to two worlds," Cloud said.

"Already? You were only gone for a day."

Cloud shrugged, tapping his claw against the control board. "We fight well. The work gets done faster."

Cid seemed to accept this and grinned a little. "So what'd ya find?"

At this point, Riku turned his attention back to his journal, positioning his pen back on the page.

_The other world was cold and forested. Not as cold as Mulan's world, but snow was there. It was getting late according to the ship's time, but we didn't want to spend the night in the cramped ship, so we tried venturing into town to see what we could find. _

"...successfully sealed the first world. The heartless boss was relatively weak against our attacks..."

_The people there all looked like something out of a fairytale. They all dressed in old fashioned clothes and stuff. We ended up visiting the local tavern where most of the adults were gathered, having a good time. Everyone froze when we entered, though. It was like something out of a Western. A few people even paused with their drinks raised to their lips._

"...so easy, so we went ahead and went to the next world, which was kind of like back home."

"Was it?"

"In some ways... The people weren't nice though."

_We stood out a lot. Compared to all of their ragged slacks and dirty shirts, we must have seemed really intimidating. Cloud had his wing hidden, but I don't think that made much difference. After Leon did some curt speaking, enough to convince the people we weren't there for a fight, the guy that seemed to be in charge let us sit at a table and we were given drinks in dirty cups. I didn't taste it. _

_For a while we sat in silence, just resting, with people murmuring around us, but then the guy from before came over all cocky and started asking questions about where we came from, what we were looking for in their fine town, and if we had happen to see or hear about a Beast or a girl named Belle. Both had gone missing, which I found curious. A beast?_

_Leon did most of the talking, which made the guy—who introduced himself as Gaston—a bit suspicious of Cloud and me. I don't really remember what happened, but someone had the guts to lift Cloud's cape, out came his wing, and there was a bunch of screaming and an attempt on Cloud's life._

_Which, by the way, was really funny. Gaston had a shotgun or something, and probably was intending on mounting Cloud on his wall of stuffed prizes or something—they thought Cloud was a beast, too—_

_But Leon and I kicked their asses. Cloud did his share, too, and it was pretty fun._

"I think they learned their lesson."

Cloud was telling Cid about the story too, it seemed. Sometime since Riku had started writing again, Donald and Goofy had shown up on the other side of the viewscreen, listening in on the story with Cid, who was cracking up about the townspeople trying to best the trinity.

Donald was _not_ happy.

"You're not supposed to be meddling!" he said, looking very irate.

Cid casually pushed Donald away from the screen and replaced him there, still looking amused as hell.

"Oh whatever..." Cloud sighed.

Riku smiled and continued writing.

_No one was killed, but we made sure they wouldn't be looking after us. We left the town and camped in the gummi ship after all, and then went exploring today. We found an abandoned castle. Actually, I think it was haunted because I kept hearing voices behind us, but no one was ever there. _

_Strangely, there were no heartless there. I found the keyhole in an out of the way room in the west wing. The place was torn to shreds, and there was a strange rose under a glass case, glowing pink. It was wilting. _

_Cloud told me to leave it alone, as much as I wanted to touch it. I sealed the keyhole, which was near the rose. As we left the castle, I felt an overwhelming sadness just leaving it there. I wonder who used to live there._

Finishing up his journal, Riku clicked the pen closed and set his stuff down, climbing over his seat to join Leon in the back. The man had his eyes open and hardly turned his gaze to regard Riku.

"What's up?" Riku asked, settling on the floor.

Leon lifted an eyebrow. "Avoiding Donald's attention?"

"Pretty much," Riku grinned.

A faint smirk graced Leon's lip in response and he sat up, lowering his boots to the floor of the ship. "He really does want to help you. The king basically wanted him and Goofy to be your trinity."

Riku made a face at that. "Really?"

Leon nodded, gray eyes a little amused.

"So you met the king, then?" Riku asked.

"Briefly," was all Leon said.

Riku gave him a displeased frown, showing that he wanted a better answer, but Leon remained silent about that, so he decided to drop it until later. He chose a different topic. "So what was that thing Cid said about the... uhh... Gains Bore..."

"Gainsborough Orphanage," Leon corrected stiffly.

"Yeah, that," Riku said, tilting his head. "What did Cid mean?"

"Aerith's family was well-off back at Hollow Bastion. They owned the orphanage that I grew up in," Leon explained. "And Cloud... And Sephiroth. Seifer, too. Cid was the... unofficial matron." He smirked a little at that. "He wasn't the best person for the job, but we all respected him."

Riku smiled. "Yeah, Cid's pretty great."

Leon glanced at him, nodding, and then looked away, his mirth gradually fading.

Riku knew what Leon was thinking about. "Still worried?"

Gray eyes lowered to regard Riku again and he said nothing, but Riku still knew.

"We're almost back to Traverse Town..." Riku pointed out. "If you want, Cloud's here, so... We can try..."

Cloud was actually not paying attention to them, still answering Cid's questions and saying no, no there was no gummi, Cid, stop asking, and the such. Leon glanced in their direction before returning his gaze back to Riku.

Riku's stomach gave a strange twist when Leon spoke again.

"Yeah. Let's try it again."

-o-o-

After Maleficent had given the task to Sora, she had dismissed him for the day, and for over twenty-four hours, Sora had been avoiding everyone as best as he could.

He felt sick to his stomach every time he thought about what he was doing here. He didn't even want to go back to his room to rest, knowing he'd find his anti-Rikus there. He didn't want to have anything to do with the heartless right now...

And he felt bad for Yami.

Two days ago, he would have been furious with himself for even _thinking_ about being sympathetic for the guy, but... well, how could he not, now?

Sora curled in on himself, hugging his knees and lowering his chin, sighing. He'd been hiding out in the library for a few hours, sitting on that bench that he had woken up on after his last blackout. Nothing was on the desk nearby, and Sora hadn't seen Yami since yesterday.

He had a lot of questions to ask him, but... Sora didn't want to go out of his way to find the guy. He didn't want to end up running into Maleficent... or worse, _Jafar_. The man was just... really creepy, and that's all there was to it.

_Don't trust him_.

Sora blinked, lifting his head. "Id?"

_Did you miss me?_

Not really, but... "Where were you?"

_You didn't miss me? I'm hurt, Sora. _

Sora rolled his eyes, sighing, and lowered his face again. "If you're just going to be annoying, go away. I don't like how you get all silent after something scary happens when I need you the most."

_That's all part of the fun, though._

"Go _away_," Sora muttered again, clasping his hands over his head.

"Problems, Sora?"

He abruptly lifted his head, blue eyes widening with surprise. "Yami!" he said, not really meaning to sound so, well, caught, but he hadn't heard the guy approaching.

Yami stood next to the bookshelf nearby, calmly smiling at him. It wasn't reaching his eyes again, so Sora thought maybe Yami was sad. Pursing his lips in thought, Sora studied him, noting how casually he was dressed today. He wore just a simple white shirt that reminded Sora of Leon's, with a black belt with maroon studs hugging his waist over black pants that looked too long for him and covered what seemed to be heavy boots.

"Where do you keep getting your clothes?" Sora asked aloud before he could stop himself.

Yami looked genuinely amused at that. Crossing his arms, he began to approach Sora. "The king's wardrobe, believe it or not."

"You mean Ansem?" Sora asked, making a face. "But he's dead."

"Yes, well..." Yami gave an empty chuckle. "He will not be missing his clothes, then. They are a bit big..."

Sora gave Yami a scrutinizing look, trying to picture the guy from the portrait in some of the clothes Yami wore. "You're weird..." he sighed, shaking his head and lowering his knees off the bench.

"That makes two of us," Yami replied patiently.

Was that a joke? Oh man...

Still, Sora smiled, feeling a bit more at ease than he had all day. "I meant to ask you yesterday... where _are_ you keeping that last princess?" he asked in a quiet voice, trying to be careful despite his burning curiosity. "And why do you need them? And are you going to let them all go when you're done?"

Yami's eyes studied Sora for a long, silent moment, and he slowly shook his head. "I am not permitted to reveal that information to you, Sora."

To which Sora promptly frowned. He fell onto his back, stretching his arms behind his head, sighing. "And here I thought I was in the inner circle now or something..."

"You do not want to be in this inner circle," Yami said in a hushed voice.

Sora blinked, wondering if Yami was trying to be cryptic with that tone—which was working—but then he heard the squawk of a parrot and realized Yami had gotten quiet because they now had a visitor.

"Ahh, there you are," came Jafar's nasally drawl.

Sora promptly sat back up, feeling that fear squeeze at his heart. He lifted his gaze to Jafar, who had just come up the stairs and was regarding Yami and Sora with a lifted eyebrow.

"Maleficent informed me that I would find you here."

"Here we are," Yami muttered, closing his eyes and turning his face, leaning against the bookshelf. He was already putting himself out of the loop, leaving Sora to deal with this situation alone. It reminded Sora of something Leon would do.

He stared up at Jafar expectantly even though dread was eating at him. "Yeah?" he asked.

Jafar's lip curled at Sora's informality, and Sora could have sworn the parrot rolled its eyes. "I have come to retrieve you, boy. Your services are required."

Sora frowned up at him, feeling more bold than he should, and feeling stupid because of it. "What do you want me to do?"

Jafar's long fingers moved over the head of his snake staff and he drew closer to Sora, giving a false smile. "Why, all you have to do is masquerade as a thief and get close to the street rat who stole something which rightfully belongs to me. I merely want you to return it to me."

Whether Jafar expected him to buy his story or not, Sora didn't. Actually, he had every intention to refuse to do it.

Jafar, unfortunately, seemed to notice the growing look of defiance on his face, and drew even closer. Nearby, Yami had slipped his eyes open, and Sora noticed him shift his weight slightly as if he wanted to intervene—

Was that a warning?

Sora blinked, glancing up at Jafar, who was slowly raising his cobra staff towards him. The ruby eyes caught Sora's attention and he felt his heart flutter with fear.

_Just say yes, Sora._

Id's presence flared inside of him, actually comforting this time.

Say yes? To Jafar? But he was... obviously evil...

_He's going to hypnotize you if you don't say yes. Just do it._

Drawing strength from that fact, because Sora definitely would rather be under his own control than Jafar's, he met Jafar's eyes. "Alright. I'll do it. You don't have to cheat to make me say yes, you know."

Jafar smoothly pulled his staff away, lips pulling into a pleased smile. "Whatever do you mean?"

And Sora knew this was going to be a tough battle of wits. He ignored Jafar's innocent act and glanced over at Yami, his heart sinking a little when he saw that the other boy was already leaving. He descended the stairs slowly, his hand trailing along the banister, and not once did he glance back in Sora's direction.

It was in that moment, Sora felt utterly alone.

_You still have me,_ Id offered.

"Shut up," Sora sighed.

"Why was I stuck with another brat," Jafar muttered nearby.

-o-o-

The barrier around Leon's memories was significantly weaker this time, but despite Riku's hopefulness at maybe finally uncovering Leon's missing memories, there was this sinking feeling of dread. It was thick in the air, tension strung tight around them, and even Riku's heart was racing.

They'd be fine. He'd done this before and it'd just be like the last times. Yes. Nothing to worry about at all.

He closed his eyes, concentrating on the power flowing around them, poised and strengthened like last time. This was it. All he had to do was shove through Leon's defenses and attack that bubble of hiding memories.

Testing, he reached out with his powers, brushing against the barrier. He automatically felt Leon tense in front of him, those strong hands painfully clenching Oblivion's blade. The connection was strong. Good.

_Going in_, Riku silently announced.

Both of them took deep breaths, holding it in to calm their pounding hearts. Riku felt terrified all of sudden. Before he could even think about chickening out, he threw his power against that damn barrier, hitting it hard.

There was an abrupt cracking sound again, like last time, but then the entire cage around the memories _shattered_.

He'd done it!

Excitement rising within him, he pressed onward, literally feeling the barrier give way under his power, a storm of memories rising up to greet him.

Memories of happiness. Memories of uncertainty. Memories of tragedy.

But most surprising of all?

Memories of _love_.

Riku was abruptly jerked into them, once again in young Leon's place in the memory, looking through his eyes from the past.

He found himself staring straight into dark amber eyes.

Surprise flashed through Riku—Yami?—but the man's skin was darker, his bangs pulled back, and Riku had a second to recognize the man as the same one from Sephiroth's memory. This was King Ansem, not Yami... And Riku had indeed uncovered something.

Squall's pulse was racing, a mix of confused fear and hopeful excitement coursing through his teenage body. Ansem's hand was around his wrist, and Squall was slightly turned as if he had started to leave the king. He hesitated, however, when he saw the look in Ansem's eyes. Riku knew that look well.

Desire, that's what it was.

Squall swallowed against his dry throat, managing a quiet, "Ansem...?"

But then he was suddenly being pushed against a bookcase—it was the Hollow Bastion library!—and he released a soft gasp at the unexpected movement, the wood digging into his back. A large hand pressed against the books beside his neck, the other curling fingers around a shelf above Squall's head, and Ansem drew closer, pinning the teenager's body against the shelves.

Squall stared up at his king, feeling his heart thundering inside of him, all too aware of how close Ansem was to him, especially his handsome face. Ansem's breath was a warm gust against his own lips, and something forbidden stirred within Squall at the other man's proximity.

_What is he doing...?_ the boy wondered frantically, dozens of other thoughts whirling through his panicking mind. He couldn't speak, somehow afraid that if he did, he'd ruin this moment, and by the light he did _not_ want this to end yet.

Riku just watched, completely entranced by this memory, surprised about what was going on, but a part of him was just as fascinated with Ansem as Squall was.

"Do you want to know the reason I have avoided you lately?" came the hushed whisper, Ansem leaning slightly closer.

A pleasant tremor moved through Squall. His eyes traveled over Ansem's face, focusing on his lips before trailing to his hair, which was spilling over his shoulders. Squall really liked that, and Riku found himself silently agreeing.

"So you admit to avoiding me," the boy said, attempting to sound normal despite his dry throat and fluttering heart.

"Yes," was Ansem's response, amber eyes narrowing a fraction.

Faint disappointment filtered through Squall at the confession. "All right..." he said, looking away. "Why... Why have you been avoiding me?"

"Are you certain that you wish to know the answer to this question?"

A warm fingertip traced so very gently across Squall's cheek and the boy's breath caught in his throat. His eyelashes quivered at the affectionate touch, and he closed his eyes. His voice sounded so young when he spoke again.

"An—Ansem?"

"Do you wish to know?" Ansem repeated quietly, his soft hand slipping into Squall's hair now, combing through it. His tone became slightly teasing. "Come now, Squall. You were so insistent a mere moment ago. What has your tongue now?"

The boy recognized that as a challenge. Indignation rising, he lifted his gaze back to his king's, and narrowed his eyes, raising his chin in defiance.

"Fine," he said. "Tell me."

An amused little smirk pulled across Ansem's lips, and it looked painfully familiar.

**Don't lock me out. What are you hiding from me?**

The memory shot forward and Riku suddenly found himself—Squall—in a cramped space, caught right in the middle of something heated. Firm arms were encircling his lithe body, hands sliding down his sides as something hard ground into his own arousal. Heavy gasps filled the hot air, lips tracing along his throat and strong fingers massaging into his hips.

Squall's mind was running wild with licentious thoughts, his body reacting eagerly to his lover's talented hands. He felt slightly awkward in comparison, his smaller hands slipping under Ansem's robes and skimming across feverish skin, loving how the man's muscles moved under his palms, sensitive to his touches as well.

"Ahh..."

Ansem moved closer, pressing Squall against something—a windowsill? Ah, they were behind a curtain—his mouth catching the boy's in a deep, well-practiced kiss, passionate and a bit needy, and Squall reacted with as much hunger. Large hands moved up Squall's body, kneading into his abdomen and eliciting a muffled groan into the kiss, before those fingers slipped further upward, tracing Squall's ribs and making him shiver.

Having just been thrown into the situation, Riku found himself not getting as quite into it as Squall. He was surprised, _beyond_ surprised this was happening, that Squall had been hiding _this_ in his memories. King Ansem and an orphan boy in a relationship? Did the others even suspect such a thing? Who would have guessed? They must have hidden the relationship well.

Squall pulled out of the kiss, panting for air, pushing his hips into Ansem's.

"Please..."

"Shh..." Ansem's lips brushed Squall's ear. "Not tonight."

"You're always so.. nngh..."

"Busy?" Ansem offered, his warm fingers drawing back down Squall's body, slipping over the curve of the teenager's bottom, squeezing. "You _do_ know who I am, Squall..."

Squall just bit his lip, stifling a pleasured sound, a shudder running through his body.

"Lord Ansem?"

The voice was a girl's, and it was coming from beyond their curtained space. At the sound of the oncoming interruption, Ansem quickly pulled away from Squall and began straightening his appearance, looking a bit irate at not being able to finish what he had started.

Within a few seconds, he looked completely unruffled aside from his hair, and, only pausing to give Squall a brief, meaningful kiss, he turned and slipped out from under the curtain to attend to other affairs.

"Yes, Sasha?" his voice came several moments later, down the hallway.

"Oh, there you are..."

Back behind the curtain, Squall pressed a hand over his racing heart.

**I'll always love you. No matter… No matter what. Okay?**

"ANSEM!"

Chaos.

Riku recognized the presence of darkness long before he realized what was happening in this new memory.

Complete confusion and the utmost fear filled Squall as he writhed against his bonds, jerking out of the black talons trying to pull him into the shadows before him. He cried out—a loud, choked sound of despair—and he broke free of the heartless, collapsing onto the fine rug just out of their reach.

It wouldn't stay that way for long, though. They were already climbing out of their shadowy homes.

"A-Ansem?"

"_GO! Get out of here!_"

Riku could only watch as Squall panicked, wide eyes catching sight of countless arms of darkness snaking out of the ground, curling around Ansem's body. The man didn't look scared—just sad, just worried.

Squall didn't have a clue what was going on, but Riku picked up on a few thoughts wondering about Ansem's secrets, and if this had to do with them. Riku could only wonder, too. Ansem and Squall might have been lovers, but Ansem hadn't told Squall a thing about his experiments.

"_ANSEM!_"

"**_GO!_**"

A surge of darkness suddenly rose in front of Squall, snapping out, slamming into him. He was thrown across the room, his back grazing across the rug as he slid from the powerful force. Riku heard him cry out, but it was swallowed by the sudden shattering of glass.

Heart jerking in his chest, Squall lifted himself up, eyes swimming with tears as he watched the destruction of the stained glass windows overhead. They had been red wings, but now, as the colorful glass rained down on him, he found no beauty in them.

Somehow, Squall knew that would be the last time he'd ever see Ansem.

**Squall? What happened? Why are you crying? Squ—**

"—eon! Riku! What are you doing!"

The stream of memories cut off and the power that Riku had been channeling suddenly flared out and shoved Riku and Leon apart again. The boy painfully hit the side of the gummi ship, crumpling to the floor in a daze.

The ship lurched in mid-flight because of the powerful backlash of magic, and a deep, gut-wrenching scream of pain cut through the air. The sound immediately brought Riku to alert, and in a panic, he scrambled back up to see what was going on. His heart nearly stopped.

Leon was curled on his side and clutching at his head, his body convulsing and a trail of blood running down his chin, staining his white shirt. Riku suddenly felt cold, cold fear wash through him, numbing him as he watched his friend, completely at a loss as to what to do.

What had he done?

"What the fuck—" Cid's yell cut through Leon's ragged gasps. "Did you get hit by a meteor again! I told you to fucking steer off autopilot if there were any around! It's not that fucking hard to follow instructions!"

Cloud's panicked cry came next. "I know! It wasn't me! Oh God—"

Riku was pushed aside as Cloud shoved past him, moving into the back of the ship to get to Leon, blue eyes filled with fear, face twisted with worry.

"Squall? Squall, stay with me! _Fuck_—"

A hand grabbed Riku's leg, getting his attention. He blinked, snapping out of his trance, regarding Cloud with a scared expression.

"Stay with him—I have to land the ship—" Cloud said quickly, voice actually shaking a little. He jerked Riku to his knees, forcing him to sit next to Leon as he moved back to the front of the ship, pushing several buttons. "Cid, we're coming in. It'll be a few minutes. I need you to get me Merlin and any healers—"

"What the _fuck_ is going on?"

"Something happened to Squall! He's—"

Riku pressed trembling hands against Leon's suddenly very still body.

Had he passed out?

_Please let him only be unconscious... Please. _

That was all he could think as he shakily curled in, slipping his arms around Leon's shoulders. He pressed their foreheads together, holding him tightly as he fought back tears, silently praying.

_Please._

-o-o-

* * *

Um... Surprise:D

Chapter 19 is DONE. So much for "a hero's intrigue"—Riku just landed in some deep shit, yes?

Review?


	33. Ch 20: When Ambivalence Reigns part one

_Author Notes:_

For those who missed it, November 4th was SS's 3rd birthday. I celebrated it by writing the **Sephiroth/Cloud/Leon threesome** (which won the poll). It's posted on my site under chapter 18 and will not be posted here because it's too graphic.

Also, for Christmas, I wrote an **Ansem/Squall** that could be considered part of the prestory to SS. It's under Oneshots on my site. (Check my profile for links.)

I am absolutely FLOORED by how well-received this fic is still even after three years! I love all the feedback (even the negative stuff)! I know a lot of you will be happy to know that, now that another one of the prestories has been revealed, the story with Riku and Sora will indeed get a move on. Thanks for putting up with the wait again and thanks for coming back. :3

Aaand, I totally stole a quote from _The Lion King_ because it fit so well.

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty: **When Ambivalence Reigns _– part one 

-o-o-

"So tell me, m'boy... What happened?"

Merlin's aged voice soothed some of the tension that had been eating away at Riku. It was a mellow and patient tone, comforting in the patriarchal way that Riku had never really experienced before.

With the question came the offer of tea, the bitter smell making Riku's stomach churn with both hunger and sickness. He shook his head, and the green teacup disappeared without a sound.

The two of them were seated at the small round table in Merlin's home, and Riku had remained slouched in his chair staring at the white tablecloth for over an hour now. In his cage of light near the door, the anti-Riku watched them with silent curiosity, knelt on the floor with its legs spread behind it. Everyone else was absent, either fretting over Leon or respecting Merlin's wishes by letting him speak to Riku alone first.

Speaking about what he had seen was the last thing Riku wanted to do, but if it helped... he'd do it. The problem was picking a place to start, really.

He released a soft sigh and thought back to his time with Sephiroth at the coliseum and how the man had first demonstrated Oblivion's innate power. All of the things he had seen hadn't really been his business, yet Sephiroth had freely divulged the information. Then had come the anti-Riku's memories, and with them a glimpse of how Sora had been handling himself. And finally, Leon's untold past... A past that he himself had buried.

Had Riku been wrong in wanting to know? Had he pushed too hard? He hadn't meant to hurt Leon, but he had kind of been expecting something traumatizing... There had to have been a reason for Leon to lock something away inside of himself—and now Riku understood.

Closing his eyes, he slowly sunk deeper into his chair, resting against the back with his head lowered. Then, recalling all that he could from Oblivion's memory diving, Riku relayed his experiences to Merlin, backtracking a few times to fill in holes and answer questions. It took nearly another hour, and when Riku was finished retelling the few memories he had seen from Leon, his throat was raw and he really wished he had that tea now.

"I've never seen someone as strong as Leon freak out like that," he commented, guilt weighing profoundly on his heart. "A part of me is scared he won't wake up again."

Merlin sipped calmly at his cup, draining it of the brown liquid before setting it back onto its saucer. "Well, I have to admit you picked fascinating individuals for that trinity of yours," he said with a quiet chuckle, reaching into his sleeve for his wand. He waved it and refilled his cup, and when Riku looked next, he saw that he had one of his own without him even having to ask.

He pulled the cup closer to himself, cradling it. "Yeah," he agreed, hating how he sounded so worried. He kept remembering the cry Leon had given, and then that seizure... and the blood. Getting him out of the gummi ship hadn't been pretty, either.

"He will recover quickly," Merlin assured, as if picking up on Riku's thoughts. "Though I have to advise precaution when dealing with the keyblade's more powerful attributes."

Riku's shoulders stiffened. He lifted his face, expression grave. "I'm not going to use it like that again. I've already decided."

Merlin said nothing to that and coolly lifted his teacup, blowing at the steaming liquid before taking a slow drink.

"It's too dangerous," Riku continued. It seemed weak to him, though, like he was trying to convince himself. The words felt so foreign. Just a few weeks ago, he would have been leaping right into that danger, reckless in his pursuit of a thrill. He wasn't even sure he meant it.

"_Kyuuu..._"

The soft cry made him turn to look at the anti-Riku. The heartless had moved closer to them and had its hands curled around the bars of light, its face pressed between one of the gaps. Its posture reflected fatigue, and Riku wondered if that was a sign of boredom or helplessness.

"Rikyu misses his master," Merlin informed easily, but the simple notion of a heartless feeling that kind of emotion bothered Riku to no end. Especially in regards to Sora. "He has grown considerably weaker as well, but I would rather not experiment by feeding him."

_Feeding him._ That meant giving the thing a heart.

"Can't believe you named him that," Riku grumbled, not amused at all. He picked up his tea and tried it, liking the way its warmth soothed his parched throat from talking so much.

Merlin glanced at him, his eyes twinkling with amusement from behind his spectacles. "The girls found it endearing."

"It's _disturbing_," Riku said, shaking his head. "As soon as you give things a name, you get attached. And that _thing_ is the enemy."

Merlin's bushy brows lifted, and he offered a secretive smile. "Is he?"

Riku shot him a confused frown, wondering what the hell that was supposed to mean. He was in the middle of lifting his tea again when Yuffie suddenly burst into the room, partially out of breath.

"Squall—he's awake!" she called, and Riku was immediately on his feet, slamming his teacup back onto its saucer.

Before he could turn to go, Merlin stopped him with a calm, "Riku." He glanced at the old wizard expectantly, who gave him a knowing look. "Your trials have only just begun. Whatever comes at you from this day forth will be more difficult to handle than anything that you have encountered before."

Riku hesitated, expression grim. "How do you know?"

That wise gleam in his eyes fell into a smile. "Take it from someone who has seen too many young boys like yourself get pushed into situations too large for them to handle alone. And remember—" He lifted a finger, pointing it at the boy. "—you can find help in the most unlikely of places."

He nodded, looking grateful, and then turned to leave the mystical house. Those insightful words carried with him as he hurried through town to Leon's place. Relief had mostly overcome his worry for his friend's condition, but dread still burned inside of him whenever he wondered how Leon was handling what had happened.

How much could those memories complicate things any more than they already were...?

When Riku reached his destination, Aerith was sitting in the den with Donald and Goofy. She looked up as he entered, giving him a sympathetic smile, but its calming effect was lost when he noticed Donald's peeved expression. Goofy gave a friendly wave, which made Riku uncomfortable because he had never really been nice to the two of them, yet Goofy at least always had a smile for him.

Riku awkwardly lifted a hand in response, glancing towards the short hallway that led to Leon's room. "Is he...?"

"He's up, like I said," Yuffie said, coming in after him. "Cloud's with him, but it's okay."

Cloud... Oh man, how was he taking the news? Cloud hated Ansem for what he had done.

As he slowly moved towards the hallway, unsure of what he would find behind the door in front of him, Riku suddenly felt very young—as young as he _really_ was, keyblade master or not. He was still only fifteen. When he was out there fighting or even dreaming of other worlds, he could forget that he wasn't as experienced as or had gone through as much as Cloud or Leon. But now, facing something that he had once again recklessly done and had hurt someone he cared for, he felt small.

He hesitated just outside the door, uncertain, and lifted his eyes to gaze through the open crack. He could see part of the room beyond.

Leon was sitting up in bed and seemed noticeably haggard with his hair more unkempt and his frown deeper than usual. His eyes were guarded when he did glance at Cloud, Riku noticed, and they were ringed by dark shadows, making the cold gray seem more melancholy.

Cloud had his hand, and Riku watched as Leon spoke to him very softly, expression unchanging. Whatever he had said, Cloud's brows drew together, his blue eyes hardened, and his fingers clenched around Leon's.

The moment felt too private for him to interrupt.

Taking a step back, he began to turn around to leave, guilty—

"Where the hell do you think you're going?"

—and found himself bumping into Cid's broad chest.

"Wah!"

Cid's large hand pushed at his forehead, making him stumble backwards into the door, pushing it open and interrupting Leon and Cloud's moment. The older man gave him a gruff grunt and waved him off, and as he left, Riku had the impression that they all had been expecting him to avoid Leon.

Riku tentatively turned to face the other two men in the room, who were watching him with similarly guarded looks. Sometime since they had brought Leon back here, his jacket had been pulled off and draped over a chair near the bed, and Riku's eyes focused on the silver lion necklace centered on his chest. Griever? Though he had told himself that he wasn't going to memory dive anymore, and even though he felt like shit for putting Leon through all of that, he was still dying to ask questions about Leon's past with Ansem.

But he didn't. Dragging a hand through his hair, Riku sighed and approached them, totally at a loss for words. His mind had a hundred meaningful things it wanted to say, but he couldn't bring himself to utter any of them.

No, it picked one that was obvious and _lame_.

"You're awake."

Leon just stared at him.

He mentally smacked himself and tried again. "How... are you feeling?" he asked, pausing at the bedside.

Cloud wasn't looking at him anymore, he noticed, and his hand had left Leon's some time after Cid had forced Riku into the room. The two of them had never really been that open about their relationship, always waiting for Riku to leave the room or something before they got even slightly affectionate. At least that hadn't changed.

"...just tired," Leon replied, low and guarded.

Riku felt his heart sink, understanding that tone very well. He used it a lot, too, when he was speaking to people he didn't want around. What made him sad was the fact that Leon was using it with _him_.

Back when Riku had first met the man, both of them had been pretty wary with each other, only speaking as much as they needed to. Over the last few weeks, though, Riku had really grown to appreciate Leon's support, his rare words of advice, and his comforting presence... Leon made it a point not to listen to people's problems, but he had somehow opened up enough to Riku and Cloud to help them. That was part of what had made them such a good trinity.

But now Leon had closed even _him_ off.

"Oh... Well, we were all... pretty worried," Riku murmured, running a hand through his hair again. _Really worried, actually. _He narrowed his eyes as Leon glanced away. "Did you want to talk about it?"

"Not really." Nonchalant. Cold.

"It might help," Riku offered again, sounding sincere.

But again, Leon brushed him off. "Just forget about it."

It made Riku a little mad, even though he understood why Leon didn't want to talk. "Well," he started, letting that hint of bitterness reflect in his voice, "I thought I'd at least try. Since you were so persistent to know about my own problems not too long ago."

Leon's eyes flicked up and met Riku's, growing sharp with ire, but it didn't deter the boy.

"It's true," Riku said, jaw tightening. "You were _so_ eager to help. You said, 'We can't _try_ to understand until you tell us what happened.'" Those gray eyes narrowed even more, but Riku went on. "'Don't be such a brat, Riku,' you told me."

"Riku," Cloud warned quietly. "Don't."

Riku shot him a look next, almost disbelieving that _he_ was being admonished. "Oh, so it's healthy for Leon to keep everything cooped up inside of him, and it was totally bad for me? Or do you just not want to know what happened between him and Ansem? Is that it?"

Cloud's lips thinned and he said nothing, but it was obvious that Riku had struck a nerve.

Turning back to Leon, Riku continued. "Is it because it's none of my business or something?"

"I just don't want to talk about it," Leon replied in a tense voice.

"Are you _ever_ going to want to talk about it?" Riku asked.

Shrug.

Riku found himself glaring at the older man, holding back angry words, knowing that Leon didn't deserve his indignation. Riku had been like this, too, and the others had been patient with him. He knew he just needed to give Leon his space.

But... he knew he'd only get snappy with Leon if he kept coming to see him and the man refused to tell him anything. Riku couldn't stay here. He'd spent long enough dawdling because of his own problems, and as much as he was concerned about Leon, he _did_ have a duty. Leon had been the one to teach him that.

"Okay," he said, his tone a little forced. It had a sense of finality to it that made both Leon and Cloud glance at him again, curious. "I know apologizing won't do shit, but... I'm sorry." And he meant it. He paused, swallowing past the knot in his throat, trying not to seem like he was trying to make them feel guilty, because he wasn't. "And... I really hope you sort things out, Leon. It hurts knowing I screwed things up again."

Leon's eyebrows furrowed like he wanted to say something to counter that, but he didn't open his mouth.

Riku looked away and went on. "Anyway. I don't want to make any more of a mess, so take your time recovering," he said, starting to turn away. "You guys gave me plenty of time. I don't want to be an ass and end up pressuring anyone." Taking a slow, deep breath, he began to leave. "I'll be back in a few days."

He had taken two steps before Leon's deep voice stopped him.

"Where are you going?"

Riku's back straightened, but he didn't turn. "...to go fight. Worlds are dying, remember? I'm not the sick one, so there's no reason for me to stick around."

He heard the rustle of sheets as Leon doubtlessly started to get up. "Like hell. You're not leaving me behind," he almost growled.

It was kind of amusing. And it made Riku feel a little better knowing that Leon at least still wanted to fight with him. That told Riku that Leon hadn't completely closed himself off.

Riku couldn't risk a distracted trinity, though. Leon did need time to brood, and he couldn't do that in the middle of battle. Well, that wasn't to say that Riku didn't trust Leon's ability to separate himself from emotion while he fought—because Leon _was_ good at that—but Riku kept thinking back to his own experiences and how hard it had been on him. He'd had Leon and Cloud to help him through that. He also kept thinking back to Cloud's reaction to his past, and how he had had both Sephiroth and Leon there to sort things out with him. Cloud was a lot better now because of that. And, he kept thinking back to Leon, Leon's memories, and the complete freak out that had happened in the gummi ship.

Leon was strong, but his own mind was his worst enemy. He needed someone here with him, whether he liked it or not.

"No," Riku said, voice stern. "You need to stay. Rest. Let Cloud take care of you. Let him repay the favor, okay?"

To that, Cloud of course had something to say. "What? You can't fight alone."

_Who says? I'm more than capable..._

But he did think back to what Merlin had told him. The old wizard had been the one to suggest the trinity in the first place, and he _had_ just told him that his 'trials' were about to get harder...

Riku lowered his face in thought. "You guys need to take a break. I can't, though. I'll be careful," he assured. "I'm not scared."

"Being brave doesn't mean you go looking for trouble," Leon said firmly. "And that's what you'll be getting yourself into if you think you can cover your own ass."

A snerk suddenly resounded in the room, and Riku gave Leon a disbelieving look. "Oh, that's rich, coming from _you_," he half laughed. "I seem to remember the time you broke out of my team at the coliseum just to fight Cloud alone."

Both Cloud and Leon exchanged glances and looked away again.

"That was different," Leon said at last.

"Like hell it was! How?" Riku demanded.

Cloud shook his head. "Squall's right. It's different. For one, you're the keyblade master and can't afford risks," he said in a quiet, firm tone. Riku opened his mouth to interrupt, but Cloud lifted a hand to cut him off. "For two, as strong as you think you are, you aren't."

"I am _too_!"

Both Leon and Cloud gave him a very pointed look about that, and he fell silent, jaw tight and gaze averted.

"You're not," Leon emphasized. "Keyblade master or not, you're still a kid."

Shit. Stole the words right out of his head.

Riku curled his hands into his pants and bit his tongue, scowling at the floor.

"For three," Cloud continued, "that fight at the coliseum had nothing to do with you. Squall had every right to want to fight alone. The fight that you're in the middle of now, of heartless versus the people, everyone is involved. Anyone has a right to fight this one if they wish to risk their lives."

"Not if they've just gone through mental trauma," Riku countered, looking stubborn. "If you want to talk about risks, take a look at yourselves. What kind of trinity would we be out there?" He failed to mention how left out he already felt with the two of them so close to each other.

Leon gave him a steady look. "You're not going alone."

"And I'm not taking you," Riku said, meeting his eyes.

They stared at each other for a long, unwavering moment in which Riku wanted to tear his hair out in frustration, but he refrained, and after a minute or so, Leon's frown slowly pulled into a smirk that Riku did not quite trust.

"Fine. Cloud and I stay here," he relented, voice cool, which Riku also did not quite trust. "But you're not going without backup."

"Then who the hell do you suggest I take?" Riku grit out. "Yuffie and Cid? Aerith and a _Moogle_?"

Needless to say, Riku regretted his big mouth very soon afterward. They organized a quick group meeting in Leon's living room, but before Riku could choose his new back up from the few fighters present, Leon did it for him by suddenly announcing that Riku had decided to accept help from the king.

At first Riku was confused, but his unasked questions were quickly answered by two sudden outbursts.

"It's about time!" Donald snapped, and Riku could have sworn that his jaw dropped as everything fell into place.

Oh no. Oh _hell_ no. Leon had _not_ just set him up with _them!_

"Well," Goofy said thoughtfully, "we _were_ supposed to follow the key, ahyuk."

"Aww, I wanted to go this time!" Yuffie whined, followed by a soft shush from Aerith, who seemed to know what Leon was setting up—and Riku did not like it. At all.

He looked pleadingly at Leon, who had taken position on the couch instead of against the wall as usual. He was probably still feeling really weak, but that didn't excuse him for this _in_excusable arrangement!

Leon didn't meet his gaze, however, and kept his attention on the group as a whole. "Contact us if anything happens," he said. "And I don't care if I'm half dead if you guys get into trouble. I'm not going to sit around forever." He paused, crossing his arms and leaning back against the couch. "Don't take it personally. I'm not worried. I just don't like feeling restless."

There was still an appalled expression on Riku's face when everyone turned to look at him expectantly. "You've gotta be shitting me," he said, glancing from Leon to Donald and Goofy. "I can't... I mean..."

Donald crossed his wings, making a disgruntled noise. "Don't think I like it either, brat."

Riku knew Leon was internally smirking at him. Smug bastard. This was revenge, that's what it was. Cloud was probably amused, too. Argh. Even Cid looked like he was trying to hide a grin.

He didn't have time to get pissy, though, because Goofy suddenly threw his arm around him and gave a cheerful laugh. "Now don't be shy with us!" he encouraged, pulling Riku to him, who flailed to keep his balance. "We'll be great friends, Riku!"

Not even trying to get away, he stared numbly at Leon.

He couldn't believe this was happening.

The worst part was that he couldn't say no to them. They _were_ warriors—good or bad, he wasn't sure now—and they did have orders from the king... whoever _that_ really was. Riku wasn't even that sure. Just that the king knew more about what was going on than _he_ did.

Leon still didn't meet his gaze, and Riku, still being squished by Goofy, felt somewhat betrayed.

"Aww, hehe, looks like the keyblade master needs some happiness!" Mushu teased from Cid's shoulder. "If ya need some Mushu-lovin', I'll go!"

"_Please_," Riku insisted, eyes wide. A part of him was ridiculing himself for practically begging Mushu to come with him, but he was not looking forward to being in a cramped gummi ship alone with _them_.

Mushu scrambled up his side and took a perch on his head, giving a triumphant laugh. "Alright, let's get this show on the road!"

"Oh phooey," came from Donald, who waved them off and started to turn away. "Let's go."

Soft laughter came from behind Riku, but he didn't dare to turn around to see everyone smiling at his misfortune. Dreading this new trinity, Riku frowned as he started to trudge after Donald, cursing his luck.

Goofy's large hand pulled him back, stopping him. Riku regarded him with an unhappy look.

"Gawrsh, you can't go with us looking like that, Riku!" he said, holding a finger to his mouth as he studied the keyblade master.

Even Donald paused at the door to watch.

"Looking like _what_?" Riku grumbled.

"Our group works with happy faces!"

Riku stared at him. "Tell that to Donald," he said plainly, earning a harrumph from the duck.

"Oh, that's easy!" Mushu cut in, climbing down. Riku scowled even more as the small dragon used his hands to pull Riku's lips into a false smile. "See, look. All better now," he said with a cheery voice, which faded when he noticed Riku's angry brows. "Aside from that scary glare."

Goofy put his hands on his hips, trying to look stern, which only made him seem a bit more comical. "You gotta put in more of an effort if you wanna be strong, Riku!" he said, and Riku felt a little more guilt weigh onto his heart.

As ditzy as the dog seemed, he had never been anything but nice to Riku, too, so... it was the least Riku could do, especially if they were going to work together. He reached up to pluck Mushu from his mouth and sighed. As the dragon climbed back onto his shoulder, silent and watching, Riku stayed quiet for a moment, collecting himself.

Then, lifting his face, he gave a tiny but believable quirk of his lips. As small as it was, it worked.

Unseen until then, the tension that had been spread amongst the witnesses in the room suddenly vanished, and Goofy grinned, reaching out to pull Riku into a hug again.

"Ahyuk, that wasn't so hard!"

"Wahh, s-stop!" Riku managed to get out, flailing again as he was crushed in a surprisingly strong embrace. "Gck—help me—" And, one eye closed from the strain of Goofy's hug, Riku glanced over to see Donald watching them from over his shoulder.

There on the duck's face, though a little hesitant, was a smile, and Riku wondered if maybe these two weren't that bad after all.

-o-o-

Sora really, really did not like Jafar.

He also really, really did not like that man's bird.

Or this job.

Yeah.

He had decided that he was definitely not cut out for this bad guy business right from the start.

Plus, his disguise really stunk. Where had Jafar gotten it from, anyway?

He picked at a stray thread, wrinkling his nose.

"You, _boy_—"

Sora tensed, immediately snapping to attention, pretending he hadn't not been listening to Jafar drone on and on about what he was supposed to do. It was a stupid plan anyway. "Yeah?"

"Pay attention," Jafar warned, the impatience very noticeable in his voice by now. Sora had been slowly grating at it for the past hour or so, which he thought was a pretty good accomplishment.

"I _am_," Sora easily lied, giving him a convincing grin.

Both Jafar and his parrot—Iago?—sneered at him, but didn't call him on his lie. They didn't have to. It was a mutual understanding, and Jafar was probably wondering not for the last time why he was relying on Sora for this.

The plan was simple, and, again, retarded. At least, he thought so.

Sora was dressed up like an orphan living out on the streets—street rat, Jafar had said—with a ratty, faded blue vest over an even more ragged tunic that might have been white at one point.

His hair had been too obvious, so he'd had to wrap it in a turban, which felt really awkward. He kept wanting to scratch his head but couldn't without messing the thing up, and he totally had no clue how to fix it if he did take it off. His baggy pants were full of holes and patches, and they sorta itched in a way that Sora didn't want to question for fear of finding out something unpleasant. Oh, and he was barefoot. Double awkward.

He had managed to convince Jafar to let him hold onto his crown necklace, which was tucked safely under his clothes, though the chain could be seen a little before it disappeared into his tunic. After all the necklace had been through with him, he felt weird not having it somewhere within reach—in his room or on him, anyway.

So, Sora was dressed like a street rat, and the plan was for him to blend in until he found Aladdin... and then take it from there. He had been given several options, actually. He could follow Aladdin, find the lamp, and steal it without Aladdin knowing—not likely. He could befriend Aladdin, get close, steal the lamp, and get away—a little more likely, but not really. He could corner Aladdin and kill him—definitely not likely. Or improvise.

Sora was going for the last one.

In all actuality, he just wanted to leave and go eat.

He and Jafar were in an inconspicuous alleyway on the desert world, and the bustle of the streets was obvious even from here. The place was gritty and stunk, but he figured that this was normal here. Laundry lines were strung high overhead, and shouts from the marketplace nearby could be heard all the way from where they were. Sora could see a small area of it from where they were at the moment, and he definitely saw a stand of fruit that looked very appetizing... but he doubted that he could get away with stealing any food. And he doubted even more that Jafar would be giving him money, especially if he was supposed to be a 'street rat' at the moment.

Holding a hand over his stomach, he tried to concentrate on what Jafar was still droning on about.

"...will be searching for the whereabouts of that elusive keyhole while you run about finding that lamp."

Sora really hated how the guy emphasized certain words as if he were constantly disgusted with anything lower than himself while at the same time very amused and totally in love with his own ideas. His lips kept forming snakelike smirks as he spoke, gesturing idly, his eyes focused in the direction of the marketplace.

"Your target Aladdin—are you paying attention?"

"Yes."

"...your target will be relatively simple to spot. Do you remember the description?"

Sora rolled his eyes upwards to recite. "Black hair—just like everyone else around here. Purple vest. Patchy off-white pants. Little purple hat thing. No shirt."

Jafar's lip curled. "More or less," he drawled, fingers slipping up his staff to grasp the head. Obviously he wasn't too impressed with Sora's summary of the hour-long description that Jafar had given him earlier. Well, maybe not an hour, but still.

Feeling a bit confident, Sora smiled. "So Aladdin usually targets the marketplace around noon when it's the most full, right?" he asked, touching upon the main points that he had gotten from earlier. "But the heartless attacks have thinned the crowd a lot, so it's been harder for him to get around. All I have to do is keep my eye out."

"Yes," Jafar said, drawing out the syllable like he often did. "And if you cannot get the lamp itself, at least find his home. You have..." He paused, glancing at the sky. "Almost a day. Surely even an impudent fool such as yourself can get this done."

Sora lifted his eyebrows. "And if I do get it done, what does that make you?" he asked in a slightly teasing tone. "If I'm the idiot, then who's the idiot for relying on the idiot?"

Jafar's lips thinned. "Get going, _boy._"

"What's so special about the lamp anyway?" Sora asked, crossing his arms. "You never explained that part."

Dramatically rolling his eyes, Jafar took a step towards him, and Sora tensed slightly, not having expected all of his cheekiness to get himself into that much trouble. As Jafar drew closer, Sora's eyes grew more narrow, untrusting, and when he saw Jafar lift the cobra staff towards him, he realized why he'd gotten such a bad feeling.

He remembered what Id had warned him about.

"Um—" he began, his cockiness fading quickly into worry. Would it work if he looked away? But something about it kept drawing his gaze back to it, despite his instinct screaming at him to close his eyes.

The ruby eyes of the serpent captivated him for that one moment, the crimson light of the jewels seeming to glow with some inner force, and for some reason he began to not care about defying Jafar. Actually... listening to Jafar might be pretty good. Killing Aladdin would be so easy, and that lamp would be his in no ti—

_Sora, snap out of it._

Id's voice flared within him, cutting through his—were they his?—thoughts. His mind abruptly straightened out as he stared at the cobra staff, realizing that, despite the warning, he had been caught by Jafar's trick anyway. Gah.

_Thanks... _he replied silently to Id, though he wasn't too keen on being in debt to the mysterious entity living in his head.

Jafar was watching him with an almost gleefully menacing look, and Sora found it kind of funny. Jafar hadn't realized that Sora wasn't being affected by the spell anymore.

Deciding to be a little mean, Sora kept that zoned out expression on his face and started speaking like a zombie.

"Yes... I will get the lamp and kill Aladdin."

_If he believes that, I will have no respect for him as a villain,_ Id sighed.

Oh, but Jafar did believe it.

Sora had a hard time keeping a straight face as Jafar pulled away, looking pleased with himself.

"Good boy. Not get along."

Holding back a snicker, Sora mechanically turned and headed for the marketplace, surprised he had gotten away with that. _What is he, an idiot? _he wondered, letting himself grin now that his back was turned to the creepy man.

_No,_ Id replied. _Just a man in love with his own cunning to the point where he isn't cunning any longer. _

_An idiot, in other words, _Sora supplied as he slipped into the crowd on the street, trying to blend in and ignore all of the food. He turned to glance at the stalls to his left, admiring all of the simple treasures just laying in organized rows all around him.

_That arrogance of yours will get you into trouble again, Sora, _was the slightly amused word of caution. _And do watch where you're going. You don't want to piss any of these people off._

_I don't care,_ Sora replied, smiling as he felt excitement run through him. _I feel great right now! As much as this place stinks, it's so bright and full of people and things to see, and—_

He turned forward again just in time to see himself slam right into someone.

"Wah!"

_Told you._

-o-o-

Riku had expected to spend the ship ride sulking the whole time, but, surprisingly, as soon as they had left Traverse Town, he found himself quite eager to set foot on another new world. Each one was a different experience with totally different natives and even heartless. Donald and Goofy had said that they had been to most of the ones nearby and knew what to expect, but Riku had only been on a few with Leon and Cloud. He still had a lot more to seal and save.

Though Riku should have expected it, Donald was the navigator of the group, and Goofy took the passenger seat and talked animatedly practically the whole trip, guffawing at his own stories. Most of them were about his home—Disney Castle or something—where he and Donald had come from. Riku learned a lot by just listening, though he didn't have much to say in exchange. Mushu did, but Mushu always did.

By the time they reached their destination, Riku had significantly cheered up, and even Donald seemed pretty upbeat as he guided the ship into as steady landing. Donald was better at it than Leon, he mused.

Outside the ship stretched a vast, scorching desert with rolling dunes and golden sand. A city or something was close by, the sandstone shapes of the buildings rising out of the desert as if they had always been there, and Riku could see a few camels trekking towards it along an invisible trail.

As soon as Riku had set foot on the sand, he felt homesick. The texture and heat of the desert was completely different from the salty coolness of the beach sand back on the islands, but it still struck home. He'd never thought he would miss that place once he had left, but he kept being proven wrong.

The sun hung directly overhead like hot lamp, the heat of the desert almost furnace-like as he stood there, taking in his surroundings. Summers on Destiny Islands got hot, but not like this. At least at home there would be a gentle, cool ocean breeze, and the humidity would make the air thick and sticky... But this place was dry, and even the slight brush of wind through his hair felt like burning hands on him.

"Phew, sure ain't China," Mushu commented from his shoulder, hands lifted to shield his eyes from the sun. "Must suck to be warm-blooded right now."

Riku had to admit that Mushu's cool, scaled body felt rather nice against the skin of his neck. He could already feel his hair sticking to his cheeks because of the sheen of perspiration that had just broken out over his body. Pretty soon, Mushu's little lizard body would be as warm as him after soaking in his heat and the press of the sun.

"Ahyuk, last time this place was crawling with heartless," Goofy commented thoughtfully as he too lifted a hand to peer into the distance. "Tiny ones with mean swords!"

"And we couldn't find the keyhole," Donald added, coming around the ship. He was carrying his wand. Staff. Whatever it was. He was a wizard or something. At least, Goofy had mentioned a story about Donald as a court magician, if he remembered correctly. "Because of the heartless, everyone was hiding last time. We'll check the marketplace first."

Riku glanced at him, lifting an eyebrow. "For what? I doubt the keyhole would be there."

The duck narrowed his eyes. "Information."

_And who put **you** in charge?_ Riku wondered, but he kept it to himself, knowing full well that Donald and Goofy did know more about this world than he did. "So are we just walking in there?" he asked.

"Donald has been practicing his magic and disguising us so we don't stand out so much," Goofy explained as he approached Riku. "We gotta blend in to protect the world border!"

"_Order_," Donald corrected, lifting his staff. "Meddling too much is against the rules. We're here to protect the world, not play superheroes."

Riku grinned at that, thinking back to how many times he had broken that rule, then. "Oh well."

Giving him a _look_, Donald waved his staff, and Riku watched as both Donald and Goofy's forms shimmered with magic. He wasn't sure what he was expecting when the glimmer faded away—human forms?—but no, they were still duck and dog, dressed in simple tunics and robes and turbans. It looked... odd.

"Why can't you just up an illusion to make you and Goofy look like humans?" he wondered.

He regretted it when Donald glared, looking insulted. Well, Riku hadn't been trying to be a superior race or anything, but he guessed that if Donald had asked _him_ why he couldn't be a giant cat or something instead of a human, he'd be a little offended too, even if the world called for the disguise.

Goofy looked between Donald and Riku and, in an attempt to diffuse the tension, he gave a laugh and reached up to hold his turban. "Ahyuk! A disguise is good! What about you, Riku?"

Blinking, Riku glanced down at his purple hoodie and modern duds. "Yeah, if it helps. I don't care," he said. "I just want to get this world over with." He didn't bother asking if those robes were hell to wear, thinking that at least they would shield his pale skin from the merciless sun.

Donald gave a consenting, incoherent grumble, and soon Riku had his own set of itchy robes and they were trekking through the desert together, Mushu burrowed within the wraps of his headpiece.

When they reached the city, the first thing Riku noticed was how many of the carved windows were closed off with cloths. During the heat of the day, Riku would have thought that people would have their homes open to let in air. The crowd was also a bit thin as they entered, and Riku wondered how this place would have looked if it hadn't been under the threat of the heartless.

"There's lots of people this time," Goofy noted.

"They all look on edge though," Riku muttered, studying the weather-worn, dark faces of the men around him. Despite how odd the trinity's disguises might have seemed at first, Riku realized how much more they would have stood out without them. Even Riku, with his pale hair and skin.

As they slipped through the thickening crowd, he detected the dark, lingering gazes from the throng, men taking notice of his exotic looks almost immediately. It made him feel a little uncomfortable, especially as he remembered what Id had told him about many having their eyes on him... But despite the stares, the bustle and din of the streets excited him, and he couldn't help looking everywhere at anything and everything just to take it all in.

Donald moved in front of him, leading their tiny group. "The marketplace is that way," he said as he easily maneuvered around passing people. He gestured down a street nearby. "The palace will be heavily guarded."

"Whoa, wait—a palace?" Riku asked, sounding interested. "I bet that's where the keyhole is."

"It's surrounded by a big wall," Goofy said helpfully. "We couldn't even get close last time."

"We're here to save the world. Something like that shouldn't stop us," Riku remarked. "We should just go there first."

Donald glanced back at him, expression stern. "And how would we get in?"

Riku shrugged, lifting a hand. "I could just tell them who I am."

"Pretty direct," Mushu commented from above.

The objection was immediate. "That's meddling!" Donald squawked.

"Hehe, but if it gets the job done, who cares?" Riku pointed out as he turned, heading towards the street Donald had indicated a moment ago. "To the marketplace!"

"Gawrsh, do you really think they'll just let us in if we do that?" Goofy wondered as he trailed after Riku.

But Donald didn't answer, grumbling under his breath as he followed them.

At first, Riku actually tried stopping a few people to ask some questions, but they all regarded him with either fearful or distrusting looks before brushing him off. He tried to search for more sociable people to ask, and as he slipped through the throng, he occasionally heard conversations about 'demons'—they must mean the heartless—and that there hadn't been any attacks in a while. Riku understood now why people were coming out and returning to their daily lives.

He wondered why exactly the heartless hadn't been overrunning this world anymore, but answers were hard to get. Riku found himself growing frustrated after about a dozen cold shoulders.

He stopped in the middle of the marketplace, glancing around, and was grateful that Donald and Goofy had been following him all this time. They paused at his side.

"Nothing," Donald announced.

"There has to be _something_," Riku insisted.

Peeking out from his turban, Mushu suggested, "Why not try being more _grr_ with them?"

"If I'm any more _grr_, they'll call security or something," Riku replied, not even sure how this kind of world dealt with social menaces. He shifted his attention to an area of the marketplace they hadn't tried yet. "Let's try over here..."

He had taken two steps when someone suddenly slammed right into him.

"Wah!"

Riku stumbled back a little, heart jerking—had he been that caught off guard?—but before he could turn and admonish the offender for almost knocking him onto his ass, Mushu barked from above:

"Hey, watch where you're going!"

But the slender figure was already ducking back into the crowd, eager to escape any punishment that Riku might have had for him.

For some reason, as Riku stared off into the shifting mass of people, hoping to see another glimpse of the person, something stirred inside of him. After a moment, Mushu shifted, drawing Riku's focus back to the present, and he realized that his heart was racing a little.

What had _that_ been all about?

Shaking his head a little, he reached up to pat the turban. "Hush before you get us into a fight."

Mushu gave a _Tsk_ but didn't argue.

Fortune smiled upon Riku right then, however, and it came to him in the form of a greasy-looking civilian with a clean tunic and vest and a smile too friendly to be honest. While everyone else easily passed by the strange trinity, Riku immediately noticed that man, his eyes catching the dark-eyed stare as he calmly made his way through the crowd towards Riku.

"Salaam and good day to you," came the relatively unsuspicious greeting. His smile did not fade even under Riku's scrutinizing stare. He had a rich, accented voice, though Riku honestly couldn't classify it.

"Ahyuk, and hiya to you too!" Goofy offered immediately.

The man glanced at Goofy, still smiling, showing a line of yellow teeth, and he gave a polite nod in acknowledgement before returning his attention to Riku, who he had deemed most important for some reason. "I could not help noticing your interest in information?" he said, and Riku found it interesting how he still ended his sentence as if it were a question. Just like a sales pitch.

Riku had a feeling he knew where this was going. "Yeah, we're new here," he said, ignoring a warning look from Donald. "We'd like to know about any major... happenings, if you could help."

"Ahh, good, good," the man said, smile spreading into a grin. "Allah smiles upon you today! Information comes with a price, but I feel so generous, so I let you make offer."

So this man was going to give him information if Riku paid him. Hmm.

Glancing at Donald, who nodded, Riku turned back to the man. "Alright," he agreed. He slipped a hand to where his hip pocket usually was, intending on getting some munny, only to remember he wasn't wearing that outfit at the moment. "Oh—"

Donald cleared his throat and held up a small, jingling pouch to him. Grateful, Riku took it, fishing out a single golden orb. As tiny as munny really was, it still looked and felt like gold, so he hoped it was enough to barter with.

Sure enough, as he handed one munny over, the man's eyes took on an eager, greedy gleam. He tucked the foreign currency into his tunic, and it wasn't Riku's imagination that made the man seem even more friendly than before. He reached out and touched Riku's arm, starting to guide him towards a more secluded area of the marketplace, and when he spoke, it was in an overly interested tone.

"I have heard that the princess has run away," he said, "but there are rumors—very strong—that it is possible that she has been _kidnapped_. But—" And here he paused, looking pointedly at Riku. "You did not hear it from me."

Figures.

"Is there anything else?" Riku asked, letting the man lead him away from the throng of people. He knew Donald and Goofy were right behind him.

This time, Mr. Information sounded purposely thoughtful. "Well... I might remember if..."

_If I give him more munny, that's what,_ Riku finished silently, already reaching for another tiny yellow sphere. "Here. What else is there about the princess?"

The man took the offer and his smile returned full force. "The sultan has been looking for a husband—a prince—for the princess before her birthday in a few days. Unfortunately for the royal family, he has not been successful. The sultan is getting more desperate to meet new princes."

They were near an alley now, and Riku listened intently, picking up the details.

"Now that the princess is missing," the man continued, "the sultan is offering large, large rewards in order for her safe return." His smile spread. "One of those rewards is her hand in marriage, to a prince or not," he said. "But... you did not hear it from me."

Riku had the next munny ready, and he pressed it into the guy's hand. "What else has been going on? Besides the...demons."

The man's eyes lit with a perceptive look. "I have heard rumors about a man of great authority who has gone to great lengths to locate pieces of an artifact—a scarab charm—to get into the legendary Cave of Wonders that houses a magical lamp, a magical lamp with a djinn, only attainable by one man." Another pause. "But you did not hear it from me."

"Djinn?" Riku asked.

"Ah, perhaps a more common expression—_jinni_?"

Djinn... jinni...

That sounded like genie. Whoa, just like in the fairytales!

Mind suddenly spinning with very interesting thoughts, he took a moment to collect himself, beginning to piece together a strange and fun plan. Before his informant could wander off, he pulled out two last munny and handed them over, making up his mind.

"Do you know any good names for nobles?"

The man took the payment, studying Riku with a very knowing look. Then, after scanning Riku's figure, his lips pulled into a humored smile. "For you... Baraka, 'white one,' al-Sariyah, 'of the clouds at night,'" he said, pronouncing the names with precision and reverence. "But you did not—"

"Yeah, yeah, I didn't hear it from you," Riku grinned. "Thanks a lot."

"You are most welcome."

Mulling over his plan, Riku hardly noticed when the man gave a respectful nod and wandered off, leaving Riku in his thoughts.

Baraka al-Sariyah... The name didn't sound too bad, he mused, running it over and over in his mind. Even if the man had been gypping him of information or had possibly given him a name that translated to something really dumb, Riku figured it was all worth it for only five munny. He didn't feel too sorry for the guy, though, if that munny wound up being worth zilch in this world.

Mushu peeked out of the turban, crossing his arms on Riku's forehead. "So what's goin' through this head of yours?"

"Yeah, what's the big idea?" Donald asked, slightly irate for Riku keeping to himself.

Even Goofy looked curious. "And the Buh.. Buh-rock—"

"Baraka al-Sariyah," Riku said, turning to face the others with a suddenly boyish manner. "Say Donald, just how good is your disguise magic?"

A suspicious frown immediately crossed the duck's face. "Why?"

Riku only grinned in reply.

-o-o-

"Hey, watch where you're going!"

Sora's heart skipped, panic rushing through him, and before he could get in trouble, he turned on his heel and fled, ducking into the mass of people and hoping that whoever he had bumped into wouldn't come chasing after him.

It'd figure that he'd gotten himself killed not even ten minutes into his first real adventure by himself on a new world.

But even after a minute and no sign of anyone following him, his heart still refused to calm down. It almost felt like that feeling he got whenever he just _knew_ he was forgetting something and couldn't remember what.

Brushing it off as just him being scared, he forced himself to focus on his task at hand. Id had thankfully retreated, leaving his mind without his overbearing presence, so Sora had a quiet moment to just think about what he was going to do about Aladdin.

His stomach gave a rumbling protest, demanding his attention, and Sora sighed, placing a hand to his tummy.

"Stop it. We've gotta work..."

He should have eaten more before he had left with Jafar, but for some reason he just hadn't had an appetite at the time. He regretted it now, of course, but... Again, he couldn't exactly fix the problem.

As hard as it was, he tried to ignore the gnawing hunger inside of him and attempted to focus again on his job.

It didn't take him long to decide to just try to find Aladdin first. That was easier said than done, however, and he wound up wandering the marketplace for an hour, searching for any sign of a boy of Aladdin's description. Thieves were meant to be invisible and fast, but Sora knew that it was possible that Aladdin might not even be out yet.

Or, worse—Aladdin could have already gone home for the day!

Sora really didn't want to find out what happened if he failed to do this task.

By the time noon had long been passed, Sora was frustrated and tired and starving and really just wanted to go back to the bastion and hide from Jafar. He was also very hot and miserable, that excitement from earlier long gone by now. He didn't like this world very much.

Deciding to take a small break to reevaluate his options, Sora released a long, heavy sigh as he slouched against a sandy wall off to the side of the main area of the marketplace. It was less crowded here, and the nearest stalls with merchants were only jewelry, not food, which gave him some comfort.

He closed his eyes, listening to the calls and drone of voices in the throng, hearing someone announce that he had pistachios for sell.

His stomach growled again. Clutching it, he pouted to himself.

"This sucks..."

An itchy bead of sweat crawled down his cheek, and he wiped at it. His whole turban felt heavy and awkward, and he wondered if maybe it was loose. Well, it couldn't be _that_ hard to replace, Sora figured, so he decided to try fixing it.

He pulled it off, immediately feeling better as air brushed at his damp hair. Shaking his head vigorously, Sora felt his spikes start to lift back into their usual shape. It felt weird having them matted down. He tucked his turban under his arm and ran a hand a few times through his hair, wishing he didn't have to wear this stupid disguise in the first place.

Resting against the wall, Sora lifted his face, blinking up at the blue sky beyond the sandy buildings and clothes lines. As he moved, he heard a subtle jingle of metal, and he reached up to discover that his necklace had fallen out of his tunic when he had shaken his head.

His last keepsake from home.

Smiling, he traced the charm with his hand, deciding he'd leave the necklace exposed for a little bit before he'd go back to work. He leaned against the wall, watching the bustle of the marketplace, letting the hubbub of the crowd relax him. He'd been stuck inside the bastion for so long that he had almost forgotten how nice it felt to be around so many people. It was times like these that he really missed home. The marketplace on the islands was kind of like this, but with spoils from the ocean, not riches from the desert.

Arms crossed over his chest, he lifted his gaze again as if he could see the stars beyond the blue sky.

Instead, he abruptly found himself blinking into the face of a monkey hardly an inch away from his.

"WAH!" he exclaimed, flinging himself away from the wall in surprise.

The monkey gave its own startled screech as it recoiled, and that was when Sora noticed that it had his necklace in its hand, and it was hanging from one arm on a clothesline just above him. Sora's heart gave a panicked leap as he felt around his neck, noticing that his necklace was indeed gone and—

The stupid monkey was getting away!

"HEY, GIVE THAT BACK!" he cried, sudden fear fueling him as he leapt up, trying to catch the monkey in a desperate attempt to get his necklace back. The furry menace gave a screeching laugh and easily swung onto the sandy wall, climbing much higher than Sora could reach.

_No!_ he silently screamed, feeling tears burn in his eyes. That necklace was the last thing he had from home! He couldn't let a dumb monkey take it from him!

Keeping his eyes on the creature, he launched himself up after it, scrambling over the sandy surface of the wall, using the clothesline and a wooden peg to pull his weight up. As soon as the thief saw him trying to follow, it gave a very humanlike tip of its hat, jingled his necklace to tease him, and then quickly ducked through an open window too small for Sora to fit through.

After a few seconds of struggling up the rest of the wall, Sora collapsed onto the ledge the monkey had been on a moment before. Already knowing he was way too late, he poked his head through the window, only to find a dark, empty house and no monkey.

There was no way he was going to be able to find the thing in a world this big, especially if it didn't want to be found.

Despair squeezed at his heart with a vice-like grip, making it hard to breathe as he tried not to burst into tears, knowing that his last memento from home was gone. He slumped against the wall, his back slowly sliding down it before he crumpled to the ledge, made boneless by misery.

He was such an idiot for keeping it out, for even bringing it here. Of course someone would have seen it, taken it from him... Just like that. He just kept losing everything that meant something to him.

"I'm so stupid..."

Holding his knees to his chest, he curled in on himself and buried his face in his arms, mourning his terrible luck. He remained that way, unmoving except for the tremble of his shoulders as he quietly wept.

_Clinkclink._

Sora's breath hitched, recognizing that sound. He looked up, blinking past tears.

His necklace was dangling right in front of him.

Eyes widening, Sora lifted his gaze, confused, and his eyes met the sympathetic gaze of a young man now standing in front of him. Sora hadn't even heard him climb up or anything. He glanced from his necklace to the stranger's face, wondering what had just happened.

"Abu has an eye for shiny things," the boy explained as he pushed his hand forward, again offering Sora the necklace. "Here."

Abu?

Sora's eyes traveled, noticing the monkey now sitting on the boy's shoulder, arms crossed and looking peeved. Monkey. Sora studied the stranger now, his mind beginning to piece things together. Black hair—just like everyone else around here. Purple vest. Patchy off-white pants. Little purple hat thing. No shirt.

Aladdin!

Unable to believe his sudden luck, Sora took his precious keepsake and clutched it to himself, staring up at Aladdin with sudden and overwhelming gratitude. "Um—"

"I'm sorry for that," Aladdin said, giving a sheepish laugh. "Once Abu sees something he likes, he'd do anything to get it. I told him not to, but he doesn't get it. I said that if your jewelry hadn't been so important to you, you would have already sold it to buy a better life... but he took it anyway."

Sora focused on the monkey, who still looked pissed and haughty, little arms crossed, its back straight and eyes closed. "Thanks for bringing it back," he said, returning his gaze to Aladdin, unable to help smiling despite the tear tracks on his cheeks.

Aladdin rubbed the back of his head, grinning a little awkwardly. "I saw how upset you got..."

"It does mean a lot to me," Sora said, slipping the necklace back around his neck, this time tucking it under his clothes better. When he looked again, Aladdin was offering him a hand. He took it, letting Aladdin help him back to his feet. "Um—thanks—"

Aladdin grinned again, hands on his hips. "So this is your first time in the marketplace?"

"Eh?" Sora blinked, eyes widening slightly. "Is it that obvious?" Oh! The turban. He had dropped it before climbing the wall. Oops...

"You do kind of stand out," Aladdin answered. A soft huff came from Abu, and Aladdin gave an easy laugh, shooting Abu an admonishing look. "Anyway, it's been more common lately. A lot of new people have been showing up on the streets."

New people. Sora realized he was talking about thieves.

"Kids especially," Aladdin continued, his grin fading into a sad smile. "Too many families were taken by the demons. A lot of us are barely surviving now because there's so many more of us."

Sora's heart sank at that, realizing what that meant. He and Jafar had just been talking about how it was most likely a lot harder for Aladdin to move around now that the crowds have thinned, and people are more on alert... It must be even harder if there were _more_ thieves, too.

"But—!" Aladdin said, gesturing to his grumpy monkey. "Abu's a great help when it comes to stealing one or two loaves of bread from stingy merchants."

Abu seemed to cheer up a little at the compliment, but when he saw Sora watching him, he gave a short screech and looked away again. Sora warily watched the monkey, deciding to watch his necklace a lot more carefully from now on.

At the mention of bread, though, he remembered all of the food stands out in the marketplace and how tempting they had been. Gah, he was so hungry. His stomach gave a growl of agreement, loud enough for Aladdin to hear. Embarrassed, Sora held his stomach and grinned despite himself. Aladdin returned the grin.

"I'm Aladdin," he said, pointing to himself with his thumb.

"Sora," he replied, his grin spreading now that he knew for sure that he had the right person in front of him.

"Hungry?" Aladdin asked with a teasing smile.

Sora nodded eagerly. "Very."

"Well, Sora," he smiled, lifting his head towards the busy street. "Let's work together."

-o-o-

"This isn't going to work."

"Gawrsh, Donald... I think it sounds fun!"

"They're not going to believe it," Donald insisted, grumbling as he adjusted his new outfit.

"Sure they will!" Mushu assured. "Just gotta be confident! When you're tryin' to make an impression, sixty percent of what's important is confidence, thirty is appearance, five is pitch, so only five is what's really said."

"Are those numbers accurate?" Riku wondered in an amused voice.

"Of course!"

A crock or not, Donald seemed to buy Mushu's statement, and he settled down, accepting his fate for Riku's plan. They all had their important roles for this one, and Donald's magic had performed well for their disguises.

"Even if we fail," Riku said calmly as he fixed his headdress, "there are always other ways into the palace."

"I think it's genius," Mushu offered.

The four of them were an unlikely team hiding out in an empty house as they prepared themselves. It was a bit of a reckless plan, but Riku was with Mushu on the confidence thing. As long as he made it seem believable, they'd be okay.

He lifted his chin, casting a glance at Goofy and Donald. Donald had mentioned that his magic chose the disguises and he had relatively little say in what things ultimately looked like, but Riku was pleased either way.

Though the actual design of Goofy's outfit hadn't changed, the material and wealth of it had. Instead of the ratty tunic and turban he had been sporting before, he wore something befit for a royal guard, and even his head was adorned with a rich poofy hat with a long, elegant plume and a jewel in the center of the forehead.

Donald wore an assortment of valuable silk and satin, his small figure bedecked with jewels and sashes, making him look like some sort of mystical creature. Mushu's new hiding place was Donald's hat, which didn't look too different from Goofy's, and the little dragon was eager to fulfill his role in the plan, an unseen actor or not.

Riku had described the basic concept of his own outfit to Donald, whose magic had done a great job recreating. His white pants looked voluminous with the way they fluffed out, but they were actually light and floaty. The hips were cut out, however, baring the pale skin of his thighs. A flowy sash wrapped around his waist, and a circle of jewels and bells went around it, dangling low off a hip. They jingled as he moved, as did his golden headdress, which was a braided design that draped across his forehead and trailed under his loose silver hair. Other accessories included three gold chokers and multiple bracelets and jeweled armlets. As usual, he liked his shoes the most, and this time they were thin-soled and had curly, pointy toes.

Aside from the pants, he only wore an open green vest with intricate white and gold swirls, so his bare chest, exposed thighs, and fundoshi-style underwear made him feel a bit naked, but he tried not to think about it. He felt rich and, surprisingly, invincible.

After checking himself out, wishing there was a mirror in this house, he gave a little spin and held out his arms.

"How do I look?"

"Like a girl," Donald said, laughing afterwards to himself.

Goofy was a little more tactful. "Ahyuk, I think you look like a prince!"

Riku smirked, placing his hands on his hips, bracelets clanking together. "Good! Where's the lamp?"

A look of remembrance crossed Goofy's face, and he held up a finger. "Do I get to carry it?" he asked.

"Nah, that would make it look like you have more power than me," Riku said, glancing around and spotting the tall blue bottle-shaped lamp. As pretty as it was, he had only spent two munny on it. He picked it up and stuffed the neck under his sash, pleased when it stayed. "Perfect."

"Is that eyeliner?" Mushu wondered as he studied Riku, grinning. "Haha, you could pass for a Chinese courtesan."

Riku gave him a sly smile. "And how would _you_ know what a Chinese courtesan wears, Mushu?"

Sure enough, the little dragon immediately opened his mouth, hesitated, and then closed his mouth, trying to play it off. "Ah—one of my ancestors?"

"Suuure," Riku teased. He looked to Donald and Goofy. "We ready to do this?"

"Yup, ahyuk!"

"No."

"Yeah!"

"Good enough," Riku mused. "From this moment forth, we're royalty."

At least, that was how it was supposed to have worked.

By the time they made it to the palace gates, they had drawn a considerable crowd just from their appearances alone. Riku could tell Donald was nervous by the way he shifted his weight from foot to foot and messed with one of his sashes, but Goofy seemed relatively carefree as the royal guards stood there staring at them, distrustful.

"Okay, this is it," Riku whispered. "Into positions."

Donald immediately straightened and crossed his wings, putting on an intimidating scowl, which actually worked despite how short he was. As Riku stood there trying to look all important, he watched as Goofy ambled up to the guards and politely tipped his hat, its long plume gently drooping.

"Uh-hyuk, how do you do?" he greeted in the most formal tone he could muster. "I have come to announce the arrival of my prince."

They had decided from the get-go that Goofy would take forever to learn how to say Riku's prince name correctly, so they had left that job to Riku himself. As the guards gave Goofy derisive looks and cast their gazes at Riku, Riku lifted his chin and narrowed his eyes.

"Prince...?" he heard a guard murmur to the other, amused.

"Or princess?" the other added, smirking at Riku in the slightly condescending, slightly perverted way.

This irked him. A lot.

"Thank you, my liege," he said loudly, letting a secretive smile curl at his lips as he spoke. His voice carried, and for the first time, he noticed that the murmur of the growing crowd behind him had hushed. At least he had their attention. "My name is Prince Baraka al-Sariyah of the east. I have heard of your plights and have come to assist you."

The first guard, broad-shouldered with facial hair, studied him skeptically. "You and what army, _Prince_?"

"You let numbers deceive you," Riku said easily, taking a step forward and slinging a hip out, resting a hand there. "Unlike the meager powers of your domain, _I_ do not need an army to find your princess and eradicate the demons that have infested this land."

Confidence really was the key, Riku thought proudly to himself as soft murmurs rose from the crowd again, curious as to his hidden powers. The guards looked to one another before the second one spoke in a rough voice.

"Prove it."

That was what they had been waiting for.

Flicking his hair back, bracelets clinking together, Riku lifted the blue bottle high—his 'magic lamp'—and spoke in a loud, bold tone. "Genie! Show these simpletons an example of your powers!"

Donald reacted beautifully and right on time, throwing his wings out and lifting them upward. From inside his hat, Mushu played as his menacing voice, booming out, "MORTALS! Behold!"

Riku was tempted to watch, but he turned his gaze forward, lifting his chin proudly as the sky overhead crackled with electricity. Donald and his thunder spells. A round of lightning suddenly struck the ground in front of the guards, far enough away so as to not harm anyone, but close enough to scare.

And scare, it did.

Both of them jumped at the sight of the simple spell, their eyes wide with wonder, and Riku knew right then that they had this act in the bag. He lowered the lamp, twirling it by its long neck with his fingers, and then slipped it back under his sash. Behind him, Donald folded his wings over his chest again, returning to his menacing stance.

"Our most humble apologies, Prince Baraka!" the first guard rushed to get out, motioning to one of the gatekeepers above.

"We shall arrange an audience with the sultan immediately!"

As the guards scrambled to get the gate open, calling out the official arrival of Prince Baraka al-Sariyah, Riku turned to smirk at Donald and Goofy to see their reactions. Goofy, of course, was grinning that they had done it. Donald looked stern, and at first Riku thought it was because he was still acting, but then Donald met his gaze and Riku saw a gleam of amusement there.

For some reason, that was all the encouragement that Riku needed. Turning away from his odd trinity, he turned back towards the gate and smiled to himself. They had worked well together after all.

-o-o-

By the time Aladdin and Sora had finished raiding the marketplace, Jafar's mission was one of the last things on Sora's mind. First and foremost, he was starving, and somehow he and Aladdin had survived without getting their hands cut off—though it was mostly thanks to Aladdin and Abu that they had gotten anything at all. Out in the marketplace, Aladdin had easily traversed awnings and had remained relatively unnoticed by the merchants, whereas Sora had let himself be the diversion and wouldn't have been able to snatch a pea if he had wanted to. Aladdin and his pet had managed to snatch themselves enough for a large meal (according to Aladdin): two loaves of bread, three apples, an entire melon, and a mostly full waterskin.

To Sora's empty stomach, it was pathetic, but he held himself back from telling Aladdin what _his_ idea of a large meal consisted of. He had long ago stopped trying to think about the huge breakfasts his mom used to prepare for him and how he had eaten five times a day everyday. He lived a new life now.

Aladdin's 'large meal' was a perfect example of how different people lived from world to world. And Aladdin was a thief and sometimes couldn't even eat like _this_, and that filled Sora with pity. He almost didn't want to take the offered food from his new friend, but he knew he was still supposed to be a thief himself in this world.

Trying not to let his mind complicate matters, he contented himself with his small portion of the goods and took a seat on one of the worn pillows in Aladdin's small, drafty home. It was a dirty place with torn rugs and broken pottery, but it was comfortable and had an impressive view of the city and the white and golden palace in the distance.

It wasn't too unlike what Sora and the other kids at home had tried to do with the play island, by turning an abandoned niche into a space of their own, where they could relax or play or daydream and let their imaginations run beyond the confines of the ocean. Aladdin had done that here, it seemed, and Sora sympathized with the thief's situation. They were a lot alike.

"Great view, huh?" Aladdin said as he collapsed into a lounging position next to Sora, casually graceful. The way he moved so relaxed and easy really reminded him of Riku. It had been a long time since Sora had actually opened up and been his usual self around someone, but Aladdin somehow easily brought that out in him. It was hard not to feel right at home with him.

"Yeah, it is," Sora grinned.

Aladdin laughed, holding up his loaf of bread. "And now, esteemed effendi, we feast!"

As Aladdin bit into the crust, Sora noticed Abu sitting at the edge of the crumbled wall that gave Aladdin's home the great view it had. The monkey was hurriedly eating one of the apples and staring at Sora in a suspicious manner. He'd been eyeing Sora since they had met, but there hadn't been a repeat of the crown necklace incident. Deciding to let Abu warm up to him in his own time, Sora took a bite of his half of the melon and turned his gaze towards the distant palace, feeling inexplicably drawn to it.

"So where you from?" Aladdin asked through a mouthful.

Feeling caught in a lie without even having to utter one, Sora made it a point not to look at Aladdin, pretending to be fascinated by the palace in the distance. "Uh, East."

Aladdin gave a thoughtful sound, and Sora knew he was watching him with interest. "Kind of vague. You're not a prince, are you?"

This time Sora couldn't help glancing at him. "Huh?"

Aladdin tried to be smooth about it, but when he shrugged and lowered his gaze to his bread, Sora could tell he was hiding something. "Well, you're not a thief," Aladdin said with confidence. "At least, you haven't been one for very long."

Geh, he had already been found out!

Hoping that Aladdin didn't somehow know his entire story, Sora gave his most convincing laugh (which it wasn't) and rubbed the back of his head. "Me, a prince. Where did you get that idea from?"

Aladdin gave him a knowing smile, but he let Sora change the subject, his expression turning sad. "The last person I picked up at the marketplace was a princess," he explained with a wistful sigh.

Eyes widening, Sora nodded towards the palace. "By princess, you mean the one who lives there?"

"The palace?" Aladdin asked, and something about his tone of voice struck Sora as familiar. He sounded almost upset.

Sora glanced at him in question. "Well?"

Aladdin was staring down at his bread, brows drawn together in a frustrated manner. "Yeah, but..."

Sora recognized that look. He'd been giving it for days now. "You really liked her, huh?" he asked.

A dreamy kind of smile began to cross Aladdin's face as he turned his bread over in his hands, lost in thought. "Yeah, she was something," he said. When he lifted his eyes to meet Sora's, they were filled with a kind of excitement that Sora used to see in Riku's eyes when they'd talk about visiting other worlds. The excitement of discovering something new. "She was smart and fun and... She had this _amazing_ smile, and these eyes that just—and that hair!" he said, all very quickly, gesturing with his bread. But that reminiscent look faded, and he stared back down at his bitten loaf of bread, sighing. "She was so perfect."

Sora really wanted to ask what had happened to her, but Aladdin suddenly focused on him again, curious, and Sora froze at the expectation of another nosy inquiry. It came.

"Have you ever felt that way about someone?" Aladdin asked.

Sora swallowed thickly, finding himself blushing faintly at the question. He knew the answer well. Too well. "This might seem a little weird," he said hesitantly, voice low and guarded, "but I had a best friend that I really admired. He could do everything I couldn't, and then everything I _could_ and did it ten times better."

"Oh," Aladdin uttered, blinking. He probably didn't realize what Sora really implied about the relationship he'd had with his best friend. "What happened to him?"

Frowning, Sora stared down at his half-eaten melon, remembering what he had seen that fateful night. The green light leading him through the corridors of the bastion. The large, intricate doors that had once belonged to royalty. His boyfriend pinned to the bed beneath someone he had stupidly trusted. And... Riku's flushed face reflecting a kind of desire that Sora hadn't gotten to experience with him yet.

"He... betrayed me," he answered quietly, feeling sick.

As much as Sora blamed Yami for everything, he still knew Riku had wanted it. There was no denying the emotion he had seen there. It hurt to think about, but... it hurt more to be mad at Riku, and he felt weak for being like that. He wanted to be strong and—yes, seek revenge like Id had suggested. But that it felt wrong, though, to think so vindictively.

"Sounds horrible," Aladdin commented sympathetically.

"I don't think I'll ever really forgive him," Sora admitted with a small smile, trying to break the serious atmosphere. "But I can't stay mad at him."

Aladdin returned the smile with a sheepish grin of his own, laughing a little as he said, "Yeah, that's how I am with—" But then he abruptly snapped out of his friendly demeanor, barking out, "**_ABU!_**"

Sora flinched at the outburst, following Aladdin's glare to find, to his surprise, that Abu had stealthily snuck over to Sora's small pile of food and was in mid-reach for his apple. Caught in the act, Abu screeched, and instead of snatching his hand away, he grabbed Sora's apple and began to make a quick escape.

"Hey!" Sora cried. He immediately lunged at the evil monkey, and, for a second, as Abu perched on the crumbling wall, a leap away from freedom, Sora thought that he was going to lose to the brat of a pet again—

But a flash of blue and gold zipped past him, intercepting Abu first.

"Carpet!" he heard Aladdin cry.

Sora wasn't sure he believed his eyes—it happened so fast—but a _rug_ suddenly enveloped the monkey thief, knocked him back into Aladdin's home, and firmly pinned him to the floor.

Sora gawked at the fancy rug—had it just moved on its own? hadn't it just been lying in the corner of the room just a second before?—but sure enough, there it now was, smothering a wildly screeching monkey, who was just a lump under the rug's expanse and made its intricate design dance the more he squirmed under its weight.

"Abu, you little thief!" Aladdin laughed, moving to retrieve Sora's dropped apple. He wiped it on his vest and offered it back to Sora, who was still gaping at the carpet that had attacked Abu. "Sorry about that. Here."

Instead of taking his apple, Sora pointed at the carpet, wide-eyed. "That thing is _alive_?"

As if realizing that a living carpet might be a bit uncommon, Aladdin rubbed the back of his head and laughed. "Oh. Yeah. You weren't supposed to see that." Then, as Abu gave a particularly loud wail, he added, "Thanks, Carpet, you can let him go now."

Like it completely understood Aladdin, the magic carpet lifted itself, tassels dangling like arms. Abu immediately leapt up and flew across the floor, hiding behind Aladdin and peeking from around his master's arm to glare at the carpet and Sora.

"Wow," Sora breathed, eyes bright with excitement as he studied the animated carpet. "Where did you get something as awesome as that?" The rug made a gesture with its tassels as if to say, "Who, me?" and Sora grinned at it, moving closer to inspect it.

"It's kind of a weird story," Aladdin admitted, taking another bite of his bread and offering the rest to Abu, who crossed his arms indignantly.

Sora glanced at them, seeking elaboration, but as he turned his head, a glint of brass caught his eye. There, next to some broken vases where the carpet had previously been resting, was a shiny brazen lamp.

_The_ lamp.

Sora's mission came flying back to him, hitting his conscience hard. Here he was, befriending the person he needed to steal from, the person who had kindly helped him get food, who had trusted him enough to take him home, who reminded him so much of Riku... Oh man, how was he ever going to bring himself to steal that stupid lamp without Aladdin, Abu, or the carpet noticing? Or without feeling too guilty or chickening out?

Shaking his head, Sora snapped out of his mental little monologue, noticing that Aladdin wasn't even paying attention to him at the moment. The thief had trailed off and was now staring towards the palace, grim-faced, worried.

"We've been waiting too long," Sora heard Aladdin murmur to himself.

He didn't have long to wonder what that meant, for there came a sudden loud poof of pink smoke and magic.

"Wah!" Sora cried in surprise, scuttling back a few feet to escape whatever danger might have just appeared in front of him. To his amazement, the smoke cleared and revealed a bulky blue man with a large chin, goatee, hooked nose, and a short ponytail of black hair. He was shirtless, and...

Well, he didn't have legs. From the waist of his 'pants' down, his body tapered into a wispy tail that looked almost like blue smoke. His arms were crossed, and, even though he seemed intimidating, his body gave a slight jig as he announced, "I have returned!"

Once again, Sora found himself gaping. "A big... blue guy..." he uttered in confusion, noticing how Aladdin was suddenly on his feet and looking eager, expectant, not scared at all. He obviously had been waiting for whoever this blue person was.

"What took you so long?" Aladdin asked a little desperately.

Sora just stared, letting them forget he was even there.

The blue man's demeanor went from proud to kind of embarrassed. "Gee, Al, so demanding," he quipped in a nasally voice, and Sora could tell it was a playful tone. This mask slipped away, though, and the man was suddenly, magically holding a long readout of what looked like printed paper. In a desert. On a totally unindustrialized world. "Uh, Houston, I ran into a few problems," he continued, now wearing spectacles and looking serious as he pretended to read the paper, which made a sizeable pile on the floor. "Looks like your honey-bun the princess has disappeared for good."

At this, Aladdin's face filled with angry disbelief. "_What_?"

This time when Sora glanced at the blue man, the paper and spectacles had disappeared, and he now had a thick thesaurs in his hands and was flipping through it. "Let's see, she's missing, been misplaced, misfiled, mislaid—oh dear, let's hope it's not that one—ah, removed, placed wrongly..."

Aladdin looked confused. "Are you saying you can't find her? I thought you said you could do anything except—whatever those provisos were—"

The blue man began listing things off his fingers, his thesaurus mysteriously gone. "Ah, numero uno: make someone fall in love. Numero dos: kill someone for you. And numero—"

"Can't bring anyone back from the dead, I know," Aladdin interrupted, sounding desperate. "What happened?"

Sora was beyond confused by now.

Shrugging, the stranger lifted his hands in a helpless gesture, looking apologetic. "She's disappeared completely."

Wait. They were talking about a princess? A missing princess, at that. Even if he wasn't sure who this blue person was, he was beginning to piece things together. Aladdin must have gotten this magical being to look for the princess that he had fallen in love with, but now the princess was missing. From the looks of it, the guy would have found her, too, but Sora had a hunch that she hadn't been found because she wasn't even on the world anymore.

After all, he'd overheard Jafar talking to Maleficent about princesses. Maybe the princess of this world was the one that Yami wouldn't give Maleficent.

The thought of Yami kidnapping and keeping these princesses hadn't really bothered him as much before, except for the mystery behind Belle and the beast, but now, after seeing how much Aladdin was obviously infatuated with one of missing princesses, it made Sora mad. Yami kept ruining all of these people's lives.

Aladdin looked crushed. "Unbelievable..."

Sora bit his lip, wondering if there was a way _he_ could help Aladdin. He knew Yami. It was a lead, at least.

But before he could speak up, the blue man floated towards Aladdin, patting him on the shoulder. "That's not all, either, pal," he said in a serious tone this time, and Aladdin gave him a half interested expression. He nodded towards the palace. "There's a new prince in town, and he's got a genie, too."

Wait—a _what_?

Aladdin's curiosity was genuine this time. "A genie like you? I thought they weren't that common."

And suddenly the pieces fell into place.

"You're a genie...!" Sora exclaimed.

-o-o-

It was obvious to Riku right from the start that the short, round, aged sultan was too friendly and more than a bit absent-minded. He took an immediate liking to Riku just from the notion that he had shown up with a genie, never mind that Riku only had one subject—Goofy—and hadn't even arrived on a prized horse or something.

"How very exciting," the sultan kept saying as he stood in front of Donald, reaching out occasionally to make sure the 'genie' was real by poking him. Donald had gotten into his role perfectly and, despite the annoyed aura he radiated from being prodded at, he kept his wings crossed and his chin high, pretending to be all powerful and resilient. Riku had to admit he was impressed Donald could keep it up.

"As I was saying, your... _highness_," Riku said, trying to return to the business at hand, as he had been for the past five minutes, "I have come from a far away land to help find your daughter. I hope we can work together to end these hostile conditions under which you find your kingdom."

"Oh yes!" the sultan readily agreed, his attention still on Donald. "With this fascinating creature, I am _sure_ there will be progress concerning the search for Jasmine!" He held up a finger as if something had just occurred to him. "Ah yes, which reminds me—" he said, turning away from Donald at last. "Jafar! Do come and see this!"

Riku followed the sultan's change of focus, not for the first time wondering who the dark, suspicious-looking man in the room was. The sultan had introduced him as the royal vizier and his most trusted advisor, but there was something downright shady about him. Riku knew instinctively that this guy was going to be trouble. He had already tried to cut in a few times to interrogate Riku, only to get interrupted by the sultan's enthusiasm for the 'genie.' Jafar also kept eyeing Donald in an interested way that made Riku really uncomfortable. It reminded him of how the witch in Hollow Bastion had looked at Sora, like there was potential for exploitation.

"Yes, how fascinating," Jafar drawled, his lip rising into a slight sneer as his narrow eyes examined Riku. "And where did you say you were from, Prince Barooka?"

"Baraka," Riku corrected for the third time, his tone remaining casual despite his wariness. "And I've traveled a long way—much farther than the lands you are familiar with, I am sure."

Jafar's lip curled even more. "Try me."

_You won't be saying that when I have my keyblade shoved up that beaky nose of yours, _Riku growled silently, outwardly giving Jafar a smile that he was sure looked sugary and fake.

The sultan interrupted again before he could answer properly, however. "Oh, Jafar," he said with a very interested air, "where is the new head of security? The one you placed in charge of peace in Agrabah—that distinguished gentleman—I want him to meet Prince Baraka al-Sariyah!"

Rolling his eyes at the mention, which the sultan didn't notice, Jafar replied dryly, "Running an errand. As usual."

"Awk! As usual," his parrot repeated from its perch on Jafar's pointed shoulder. Much like Maleficent's crow, Riku had noticed that it had a knowing attitude that was much too sentient for a normal bird, and Riku swore it kept leering at him when he wasn't looking.

"What a shame," the sultan commented, making a fist. "We must find him and introduce him." He turned to Riku, looking apologetic. "I am sorry you came all this way to find us so ill prepared, Prince Baraka. I assure you, we will arrange for your comfortable stay and prepare an audience with the head of the search party."

Riku gave a genteel nod, keeping up his act. "I am in no hurry, your highness. I _am_ rather eager to explore your beautiful palace, however."

"Ah, of course!" the sultan said, brightening, clapping his hands together. Riku didn't miss how Jafar's gaze sharpened with distrust, though. "It won't be a problem at all. We shall fetch you when we are ready!"

"Sire," Jafar cut in smoothly, "might I have a word with you. Privately." It wasn't a question.

Glancing from Jafar to Riku, the sultan looked a little flustered, but he managed a polite, "Excuse us, Prince Baraka," before turning towards Jafar, leaving Riku and his tiny retinue to investigate the palace.

Riku lingered a moment, watching Jafar lead the sultan away.

"If we're lucky, we'll find Jasmine in no time," the sultan said eagerly.

"I don't trust him, sire," Jafar hissed.

Though their voices were fading, Riku still heard the sultan's response. "Nonsense! One thing I pride myself on, Jafar, is that I'm an excellent judge of character!"

The parrot's distant "Awk!" signified their definite departure.

"Excellent judge of character, huh?" Riku laughed, unable to help a smirk at the irony. Dropping his well-bred prince act, he turned towards Donald and Goofy. "That was a bit too easy," he admitted, planting a hand on his hip.

Donald immediately relaxed from his genie posture and gave an exaggerated roll of his eyes. "Whatever, as long as we find the keyhole."

"Gawrsh, this place looks kind of big, though!" Goofy commented, placing a finger to his mouth. "Where do we start?"

"Anywhere," Riku replied, already moving towards a large hallway. The wealth of this place was impressive, the walls adorned with elegantly carved panels, and rich curtains framing the large rooms that Riku had caught sight of down the corridor. Incense was prominent, too, and beneath that was the muskier scent of herbs. Despite how welcoming the palace seemed, he wanted to get this over and done with. "Let's just start looking. I feel like a girl in this."

Peeking out from under Donald's hat, Mushu gave a sharp laugh. "Chinese courtesan, I _told_ you," he teased, propping his chin up with one arm. "Man, I say we raid the kitchens and get some grub. I'm starved."

Riku should have been expecting a repeat of the courtesan joke, but instead of rising to Mushu's bait, he ignored the urge to be an ass in return, knowing that the little dragon probably wouldn't understand what a raised middle finger meant.

Not even waiting for the other members of his makeshift 'trinity' to follow, he proceeded down the hall, calling back, "If we go to the kitchen at all, we're leaving you as a side dish."

-o-o-

"You're a genie...!"

The _lamp_. The blue guy was a genie! From a lamp! The lamp that Jafar wanted! Didn't they grant wishes? If they were that powerful, no wonder Jafar would want one!

Sora recalled the nights when Riku would stay over at his house and his mom would read to them about fairytales of all kinds. Amongst all the fables about mermaids, magical beanstalks, dragons, knights and princesses and fairies and goblins, Sora recalled one about a magical lamp. "Just like in Mom's old stories..." he added quietly, sadly, and as he trailed off, he realized that everyone was staring at him. Embarrassed, he gave a small grin. "I mean..."

"That's right!" the genie said, cutting in as he moved towards him, taking his hand in both of his and vigorously shaking it. "The one and only genie of the lamp!" He paused there, stroking his beard. "Well, not _the_ one and only, but I _was_ the one and only that I knew of in these parts until pretty boy showed up in town."

"Are you sure it was another genie?" Aladdin asked insistently. As if he were paranoid, he went to pick up the lamp from its resting place, making sure to tuck it safely under his waist sash. Sora found it interesting that Aladdin didn't seem worried that _Sora_ was going to take the lamp, but like it might get up and walk away on its own.

"Hard to say," Genie admitted, lifting his hands. "It wasn't like I had a chance to pull him aside and do the super secret genie handshake. Not that we have one. We should. Hmm..."

But before the genie could trail off muttering to himself about handshakes, Aladdin brought his attention back on track. "Do you know anything at all about this prince with a genie?" he asked, and Sora was glad that Aladdin kept prying, because Sora wanted to know too.

"Not much. He plans on finding the princess to claim the reward from the sultan. He marched right up to the palace, made a spectacle of himself and his genie, and was let in," he explained, and then his voice took on a bit of a snooty fashion aficionado tone. "Though it wasn't _that_ impressive of a spectacle. If _I _had arranged it, you'd be riding in style and having everyone bow at your feet and dozens of servants fanning—"

"What reward?" Sora wondered, letting the genie ramble on in the background.

Aladdin sighed, dropping onto a tattered floor pillow. "The princess's hand in marriage," he said sullenly. "If only I was a prince... or could find Jasmine..."

The genie abruptly appeared in front of Aladdin, wearing a monocle and a lavender beret, and he still spoke with a supercilious _artiste _lisp as he held out a measuring tape in front of the boy, studying him. "Why, _monsieur_ Allah-_din_, I can make you into the most fan_TAB_ulous prince around!"

Aladdin gave a small laugh at that and shook his head, still looking downbeat. "We'll save that for when we _find_ her, Genie."

Something had just occurred to Sora, though, at the genie's suggestion. "If the other prince has a genie, who's to say he didn't use it to become a prince, too?" he pointed out.

Aladdin lifted his eyes, looking hopeful. "You're right."

"If he even has a genie," Genie commented, placing his hands on his hips. "We don't grow on trees, you know."

"That does sound suspicious," Sora agreed, also thinking about his so-called mission. If the news of another genie had reached this far, Jafar might already know about it, which put those people at risk, too, especially with that new prince acting as flashy as Genie had said. "Either way," Sora said with resolution, "it's worth checking out, right?"

Both Aladdin and Genie looked to him for an explanation. Even Abu, who was perched on Aladdin's shoulder, granted him his attention.

Unfazed, Sora went on. "Like... If it's a fake prince with a real genie, he'd be worth meeting, since you two are after the same thing," he said. "That doesn't necessarily make you rivals." Kind of like Yami and himself, he reflected. "And if it does make you rivals, then it'd be better to know what you're going up against, yeah?" At this, Aladdin thoughtfully glanced at the genie, and Sora continued. "And if it's a real prince with a fake genie, at least you'd know for sure..."

Genie crossed his arms and smiled. "The kid has a point," he admitted.

Sora grinned, proud of himself. _And if it's a real genie... I can stop Jafar from getting that one, too, _he thought, knowing that there was no way he could let someone as sinister as that take control of something as potentially powerful as a genie. _Either way, this gives me time to think of a plan to help him out... like freeing the princesses. _

He already knew that he wasn't going to be successfully stealing a lamp from anybody. By betraying Jafar, he was practically turning his back on Maleficent, too. Instead of just putting one foot in the hole, he might as well just jump into it. When he got back to the bastion, he was planning on resuming his search for the princesses. For Aladdin. For the beast in the dungeons. And for his own conscience, too.

_How am I going to do that without Maleficent knowing, though...? _he wondered with a frown. Raking a hand through his hair, he sighed. _Riku was always better at this preemptive stuff than I was! _

That thought chased a sad realization that, if Riku had been here, he probably would already have an awesome plan mapped out in his mind.

"What's with the loooong face, kiddo?" the genie asked, hovering upside down right in front of him.

Sora blinked out of his thoughts, smiling faintly at the blue man. "Nothing," he said. "Just wishing that I could be better at planning stuff."

On cue, the genie slung an arm around him. "That's not something you need to wish for!" he insisted, and then gestured to himself in a dainty manner, his voice taking on a rich woman's drawl as he batted his suddenly long eyelashes. "Trust me, _darling_, I should know." A large hand squeezed his shoulder. "You're doing a great job."

These people didn't even know who he was, yet they were so eager to trust him, include him in on this adventure, and value his opinion. He smiled, already lightening up. "Thanks," he said, sincere. "Just want to help as much as I can." He glanced at the other boy. "You deserve to be happy, Aladdin."

Aladdin actually looked a little embarrassed. Softly laughing, he rubbed the back of his neck and smiled. "Call me Al."

Satisfied, the genie pulled both Sora and Aladdin into his arms. "Aww, group hug!" he announced, and then, as if it were sacrilegious, he abruptly released them, gasping. "Names! You, boy—" He pointed at Sora accusingly. "Are we gonna plan this together or not?"

Sora almost thought he was in trouble before he realized the genie was just joking with him again. He gave a spirited nod, smiling up at him. "Yeah! I can help," he assured. _I want to help._

"Good!" The genie playfully jabbed him in the stomach and leaned in close, holding a hand up to whisper. "Then you might want to tell me your name."

"It's Sora," he said, glancing from the genie to Aladdin. He rubbed at the sore spot from the genie's finger, unable to help grinning. "Just Sora."

-o-o-

The keyhole was playing hard to get, and Riku was getting frustrated.

On all the worlds so far, he'd found the damn thing at the end of some kind of confrontation always in a mysterious or significant place at the heart of the world. By all means, he'd had his confrontation with the sultan and had gained access to the palace, which sure as hell seemed like the heart of this world. If it wasn't here, he didn't know where else to look.

Or maybe that was the problem?

Releasing a heavy sigh, Riku threw up his hands and groaned, "Where the hell _is_ it?" He did his best to ignore how his gold bracelets clanked together, taking away from the solemnity of his moment of exasperation. Lowering his hands, he crossed his arms and turned to face Donald and Goofy and Mushu, who had come to a stop behind him. "Any ideas?" he asked impatiently.

Goofy looked genuinely concerned about his moodiness, as if the circles they were going in totally didn't affect _his_ good nature. "Uh-hyuk, maybe it's not here," he suggested.

Riku chewed on his lip, tapping a curly-toed slipper against the polished palace floor. "Well if it's not here, I don't know where else to look," he said.

Rolling his eyes, Donald gave one of his harrumphs but didn't say anything. Mushu just shrugged from his position on the duck's head.

So much for _their_ help. Riku gave an annoyed sigh and turned away from them, heading back towards the main wing of the palace. "So much for this stupid plan. We'll just have to tell the sultan that his daughter might as well be dead," he said in a casual, carefree tone. "You'd think that you two would be a little more helpful, since it _was_ your mission to follow the key."

It was a bratty thing to say, and he knew it, but he didn't care. He was already tired of them trailing behind him, waiting for his input on their situation. He missed Leon's awkward advice, Cloud's quiet suggestions, and their silent strength keeping his spine up when he thought he might feel lost about something. Heck, he even missed Yami's creepy humor and staring.

Most of all, though, he missed Sora's bright enthusiasm as they had faced obstacles together.

Then again...

Maybe that was all just in his head. Sora had felt left behind most of the time, hadn't he? And Yami had just been using them. Cloud was a loner and probably wouldn't have fought along side Riku if Leon hadn't been there, too. And Leon—well, Leon had just wanted a part of the action. He had said so himself.

Riku really felt alone in all of this.

Behind him, he heard Goofy's not-quite-stealthy whisper of, "Gawrsh, Donald, Riku acts like he doesn't want to be here with us."

Donald's snappy response hit home. "Of course he doesn't."

The truth stung a little more than he had thought it would. Riku _was_ being inconsiderate, selfish, impatient...

Those weren't qualities of a hero. He could at least make more of an attempt to _encourage_ the others to be helpful. He probably did come off as standoffish or higher than them.

Clearing his throat, Riku straightened, glancing over his shoulder. "You guys coming or not? Even if the heartless aren't infesting this world, people are still dying elsewhere," he pointed out. "And... it's okay if you want to tell me to slow down and stop being a prick."

Donald harrumphed again, skeptical.

Refraining from sending a biting remark at the duck, Riku continued down the hall, trying not to let their doubt bother him. So much for trying to be friendlier to them. If he was going to be met with _that_ every time he tried to be humble, he was just going to forget it.

Well, there was always Goofy, who genuinely liked him. Mushu, too. It was just Donald, then, who had a problem with him.

"At least I got us into the palace," Riku said, knowing that Donald couldn't use that against him.

"Uh-hyuk, and at least we know the keyhole isn't here," Goofy added optimistically.

"True," Riku agreed, slowing his pace to walk beside the tall dog, looking pointedly at him and not at Donald. "So what do you propose we do next, Goofy?"

"Gawrsh... I don't know. Donald?"

_Figures. _Riku would have laughed if he hadn't been as miffed as he was. He changed the topic instead. "Personally, I think we should go find that Jafar guy, because—"

But he cut himself off, hearing the echoes of voices sound from the direction they were headed in. He paused, putting an arm out to stop Goofy from walking forward too. Donald stopped as well after a few steps, glancing questioningly back at him.

Riku met Donald's gaze and slowly brought a finger to his lips.

They waited a moment in silence, listening to the voices grow louder as they approached. He recognized the dry, low tone as Jafar, but the snarky, sarcastic voice was unfamiliar. It'd figure that they'd run into Jafar right as he had been about to mention the shady man. But who was the second person?

Movement caught his eye, and Riku glanced up to see Mushu gesturing to the trailing draperies nearby. An ideal hiding place. Riku nodded in agreement and, after tugging on Goofy's sleeve to get his attention, he motioned with his head towards the long curtains. Within moments, the trinity and Mushu were safely concealed, and Riku could hear Jafar and his guest drawing closer.

"Patience, Iago, patience," Jafar was saying in his calm drawl. "As suspicious as our fortunes are, if Prince Barooka's genie is genuine, it is more than adequate."

"And then we can drop Maleficent and her brat of a servant boy!" the second voice agreed.

Riku's breath caught at the name. _Maleficent._ So they knew each other?

And her servant boy? Did that mean... Sora? Or was it Yami?

_Is Sora helping Maleficent? _he wondered, his thoughts suddenly running wild. A part of him still knew, though, that Sora had that stubborn righteousness about him, and he'd know what was right when the time came. Possessed by Id and the darkness or not, Sora was good.

"Yeees..." Jafar trailed off, sounding pleased. His voice was very close, in the same hall and moving at a casual pace. "All that is needed is to confiscate one of the lamps. With it, we can enter the Cave of Wonders and find that elusive keyhole."

Everything was piecing together very quickly in Riku's mind, who was hardly even thinking about how lucky he was for Jafar to talk so freely about this kind of stuff. He was still half surprised that he had even been right about Jafar in the first place, let alone _that_ right. He'd seen similarities between Jafar and Maleficent, but he hadn't known how on target that actually was.

The second voice was laughing, and Jafar gave a dry laugh in return. The two of them chuckled back and forth until it became rather vile cackling, and as soon as they had passed by Riku's hiding place, he silently peeked out from behind the drapery to watch their backs.

There was only Jafar and his parrot though.

At his movement, Goofy and Donald also came out from behind the curtains, and Riku exchanged glances with them, knowing that they had figured out what he had. The keyhole _wasn't_ here. Somehow Jafar knew it was in a cave, and a genie was needed to get into that cave. No wonder he had been eyeing Donald, the "genie."

But then... Jafar had said _one_ of the lamps, which implied he might know the whereabouts of another lamp or genie. If Jafar was working with Maleficent in the long run, it was Riku's duty to hinder any dark plans on this world that might let Maleficent proceed with whatever the hell she was doing with the heartless and Id and those Ansem reports. That meant finding that other lamp before Jafar did.

Before he could even discuss this turn of events with the others, however, a friendly voice called out.

"Ah, Prince Baraka!"

Riku tensed at the sultan's loud voice, a flash of panic moving through him as he realized that Jafar had most likely heard him. Instead of turning around to face the sultan, whose footsteps were eager and hurried, Riku shared looks with Donald and Goofy. Mushu had already taken his hiding spot under Donald's hat in case he had to play the genie's voice again. Good, so at least they were in position, even if Jafar was going to come marching right back around that corner to interrogate them.

"I want you to meet our new head of security, appointed shortly after my daughter's disappearance," the sultan continued in a bright manner, even though Riku still hadn't turned to greet him. "Hopefully you two can work together to find her quickly."

Riku could care less about meeting any new head of security for this world, and though he felt bad about lying about finding the sultan's daughter, his main concern was finding that damn keyhole and getting out of here.

Still, he drew in a long breath, ready to put up his courteous prince act. He slowly turned around, smile already lighting his face. "Ah, sultan, I'd be pleased to meet—"

But as his gaze landed on the sultan and his guest, Riku froze in mid-sentence. His friendly mask slipped away into shock.

His eyes widened.

His blood ran cold.

Yami looked just as surprised to see him, too.

Those amber eyes were widened, and as they stared at each other for that fleeting moment, their gazes sharing a hundred different shades of confusion and betrayal and concern, Riku couldn't help the name from slipping out.

"_Yami_?"

The sultan's brows raised, but he still looked pleased. "Oh, you two have already met?" he asked.

But the damage had already been done. The squawk of a parrot announced Jafar's arrival, and Riku knew that Jafar had just heard his slip up and would find it suspicious. He also knew what Yami would do because he had no choice.

Riku took a step back, and just like that, Yami's emotion vanished, replaced by a cold, calculating expression.

"Vizier, I do believe we have a few eavesdroppers," Yami said in that familiar, deep but distant voice. A tiny smirk curled at his lips, cruel and not reaching his eyes. "Who would have known that the new prince in town would actually turn out to be the keyblade master and his... _pets_."

And though the sultan did not catch onto the implications, it was enough for Jafar to understand. His eyes widened in surprise before sharply narrowing again, focusing on Riku in a completely new manner of suspicion.

"These men are imposters," Yami explained calmly, not moving his gaze from Riku's.

"Out to steal your throne, no doubt," Jafar added hastily.

The sultan glanced from his trusted advisors to Riku, looking slightly helpless and confused. "But he has a genie!" he said, but Donald wasn't even trying to pretend to be imposing anymore. He recognized the danger they were now in and had moved closer to Riku's side in case of a fight.

"That is no genie," Yami said firmly.

That was all Jafar needed to make up his mind, it seemed. Without even glancing away from Riku, he opened his mouth to loudly call out for the guards. As Jafar's voice reverberated down the corridor, Riku shot Yami a scathing glare, their gazes locking even as well-dressed guards with thick-bladed scimitars began to file in and surround the trinity.

Yami only had his empty smirk to offer.

"Oh dear," came the sultan's worried comment from beyond the line of guards. "Is all this really necessary?"

Riku's response was the summoning of his keyblade. It appeared in a shimmer of light, its soft voices flowing into him and comforting him as he took an offensive stance, not ready to go down without a fight. Beside him, out of the corners of his eyes, he saw Donald and Goofy's weapons suddenly in their hands as well, and even Mushu was taking a brave position atop the duck's head.

"I'll take care of this," Jafar started with a smug look, stepping forward.

Yami's arm shot out, stopping him, but he didn't glance at Jafar, his gaze still locked onto Riku's. "Stand down, vizier," he said coldly, brows drawing together with resolve. "This is my job."

Riku tightened his grip on Oblivion, shifting a foot forward, ready to spring into an attack. "Like _hell_," he hissed, gritting his teeth, anger searing through him.

Yami took a calm step forward, his gaze turning sharp but meaningful as he studied Riku. Donald and Goofy lifted their weapons, faces grim, and Riku tensed, a fraction away from lashing out. The keyblade's song thrummed around and within him, stronger than ever, whispering dark warnings of masters and danger, and Riku clenched his jaw, trying not to feel the sting of betrayal.

Right as Yami's hand flew out, fingers spread, Riku sprang into action. Boots striking the floor with long, purposeful strides, he flew towards Yami, releasing a cry somewhere between angry and desperate, keyblade raised high, angled to strike—

"Sleep," came the soft command, Yami's lips barely moving to utter it.

—and a sudden chill slammed into Riku, stealing his breath. He stumbled as an orange and blue glow passed through him, shadowing his vision, the magic weighing his mind and limbs. Oblivion slipped heavily from his hands, disappearing into dark glittering light, and his momentum sent him crashing to the floor, his numbing body hardly feeling the sting of the fall. He slid over the cold, smooth tile, faintly feeling the press of it against his bare skin as he settled on his side at Yami's feet, unable to move.

Before the final hands of sleep closed around him, he was aware of the panicked flight of his pounding heart, of the hollow clink of his bracelets as they came to rest, and of the sad way Yami watched him just as his eyes slowly, unwillingly, slipped shut.

-o-o-

* * *

And here ends part one of this chapter. :D The next part gets really exciting! As for KH2, I will not be able to play it until April, so please refrain yourself from asking questions about future SS stuff that will spoil me. **NOTE: **I do not plan on rewriting Seifer's role in SS. He will remain part of the Hollow Bastion characters from Leon's past. I will think of something for the Seifer in Twilight Town. The same goes for some of the other new characters introduced in KH2.

**ALSO:**It's very possible that this chapter will say that you've already reviewed it. If that's the case, I would really, really, really, really, really appreciate it if you reviewed me anyway (or sent me a PM or email), but signed out and anonymous. Feedback is especially important to me for this story. :3 Thanks.


	34. Ch 20: When Ambivalence Reigns part two

_Author Notes:_

That was the longest I've gone without updating, and I'm SO SO SO SO **SO **sorry! I had a small crisis with my writing style, but I feel better now. Huge thanks for the awesome feedback on the last chapter, and to those who helped me get past that dreadful block. (Especially thanks to FruchiSeka, Vash's Girl, and Meruhesae for letting me bug them repeatedly!)

**NOTE: **I'm well aware of major inconsistencies with this fanfic based on KH2's revelations. I will be adjusting a few things to deal with this, but I will not, repeat, **will not** be changing the major things **unless **I can pull them off believably. I'll only be _adding_ the things I can that won't mess up what I already have. I have some great ideas on how to tie in KH2 stuff, but this AU is primarily based on KH1 theories, so if I'm not confident I can pull it off, I'm not going to "change" anything. I'd love to rewrite the story completely to deal with KH2, but it's far too late in the fic for that now. :D

I've debated a lot over this, and I know a lot of readers will probably disagree with making additions this far into the story, but I made my decision. Taking these risks is better than forever regretting the alternative—not trying. So I'm going to try. Thanks for your support!

_**

* * *

**_

_**Chapter Twenty: **When Ambivalence Reigns _– part two

-o-o-

Sora kept thinking about this sticky situation of his. As Aladdin and Genie discussed ideas, he wondered how he was going to pull off helping his new friends without Jafar and Maleficent finding out. It was one thing to want to foil Jafar's plans without making himself a 'good guy' so that Maleficent wouldn't get mad at him, but it was another thing entirely to figure out how to do it.

Yet once again, he somehow had no doubt that Riku would have had a brilliant plan by now. _But Riku's not here, _he told himself. _So it's up to me to save this place. _And in a way, it felt good to do things on his own.

Jafar was looking for the keyhole, wasn't he? After the problems with Traverse Town, Mulan's world, and that one dying world where they met Yami, Sora knew from experience that the keyhole was crucial in determining a world's fate. Maybe that was where he should be concentrating.

Genie's loud voice drew him out of his thoughts, and he rejoined the main conversation to find that Genie was just finishing a pirate impression to explain the concept of commandeering vessels, though Sora had no idea why they were even on that subject. The fact that Genie knew what pirates were did catch his attention though.

"Wow, Genie, you must have been around the world a lot," he commented with raised brows, carefully not mentioning _worlds_ to avoid weird questions.

"And in as little as eighty days!" came the reply, his pirate attire vanishing into pilot goggles and a chic scarf around his neck. "Or ten seconds if you _really _want a ride," he added while wagging his eyebrows.

Sora took that as a good opportunity to breach the subject. "Well, then that must mean you're always traveling and finding weird things, right?"

The question had been innocent enough, but for some reason, Genie's playful mood turned wistful. "Oh, how I'd love to travel again," he said in a romantic tone, clasping his hands and batting his eyelashes. "But alas—" He held up a hand, cradling a plastic white skull. "Poor Yorik. I knew him, Horatio." Then he tossed the skull and clutched his heart, dramatically hanging his head. "No. No! I, I am lucky to see the light of day every century or two..."

Every _century_ or two?

Sora's eyes widened. "Oh..." Well. That really sucked...

Even Aladdin had turned grim. "That's horrible, Genie. Is it the lamp?"

"It's all part and parcel of the whole genie gig," he replied, and Sora wasn't surprised when he returned to his magical antics. "Phenomenal cosmic powers—" he said in a deep, menacing voice, and he began to grow larger, magically towering through the ceiling and into the sky, flexing his arms like a body builder. But then he suddenly shrank, disappearing into the brass lamp that did look significantly smaller after that display of power. "Iiiiiitty-bitty living space," he added in a tiny voice. Then, just like that, he was back in his usual form, gesturing normally. "It's always three wishes, then back to my portable prison."

This time guilt washed over Aladdin's face. "That _is_ horrible," he emphasized, looking up at Genie with a fraction of hope. "Like... Like a slave! There's no way to get free?"

The genie sighed. "Only if my _master_ wishes me free," he said, uncharacteristically glum. His expression did brighten, though, his gaze lifting with longing to the ceiling as if seeing past the ruined stonework at something worth dreaming about. "That would be the greatest gift in _all_ the worlds."

Sora bit his lip, glancing at Aladdin again, who seemed to have picked up on the same train of though. The thief was staring down at the lamp thoughtfully. "Well..." Aladdin's lips thinned as he came to a decision, and he looked up at Genie and lifted the lamp with a confident smile. "I'll wish you free!" he said. "After we get Jasmine back, I'll use my last wish to free you." He made it sound so easy, so selfless, and Sora couldn't help breaking into a smile of his own.

Genie was genuinely touched. "You'd do that?" he asked, all masks gone, his playfulness replaced with sincerity. "For me?"

Aladdin grinned. "Yeah, it's a promise!"

Before the genie could get too excited, Sora spoke up, surprised that he was surprised to find such kindness in a hard world like this. No wonder Aladdin had been so special, the 'diamond in the rough' that Jafar and Maleficent had been talking about. "I don't think many people would be that selfless," he said honestly, wondering if he could do the same in a situation like that. He'd like to think so. "You're a really good guy, Alad..." He stopped himself, grinning in an embarrassed manner, and rubbed the back of his head. "I mean, Al."

Aladdin returned the exact same look, also rubbing the back of his head. "Nah," he said with a sheepish laugh. "I just know how it feels to be so trapped."

Right there, Sora felt something twinge in his heart, Aladdin's statement feeling all too familiar all of a sudden. It reminded him of Riku and how Riku had never liked the feeling of being trapped, either. That's what had led to their adventure in the first place.

"Yeah," Sora said slowly with a reminiscent smile. "Me too." And at the thought of Riku, he remembered his idea. Curious, he turned back towards the genie, who was wearing a party hat as if he had been having a solo celebration about Aladdin's promise. "Genie, you've been around in this world a long time, right?"

On cue, Genie snapped to attention, his party hat disappeared, and he took on a grouchy old man tone and appearance and wagged a cane at him. "If yer callin' me over the hill..." he started in warning.

Sora grinned at that, waving his hands. "No, I was just wondering if you'd know about something..."

The genie brightened immediately, cracking his knuckles obnoxiously loud. "Hit me!" he said. Sora was half expecting a large fist to come out of no where and actually hit him, but nothing happened, and Sora realized that it was probably the genie's intention to keep his audience constantly on its toes. Well, whatever the case, it worked.

Here went nothing.

"Do you know where the world's keyhole is?" he asked. "_The_ keyhole."

"Keyhole, eh?" The genie's brow furrowed as he went deep into thought, elbow on the 'knee' of his wispy tail, chin resting on his fist in a classic brooding position. "I could swear I've heard about that somewhere before... Now, where was it? It's only been two hundred years..."

Sora couldn't let Jafar get to the keyhole or get a hold of this genie. The problem, of course, was knowing where and how Jafar was going to act... He didn't know who Jafar was on this world, though, or if he even belonged here. Then again, Maleficent had kept calling him _vizier_, and that sounded high and important.

As the genie fell into a string of thoughtful noises, letting Sora know he was busy for now, Sora turned his attention to Aladdin with another of his questions. "Aladdin, what's a vizier? Is that some sort of sorcerer?"

Blinking, Aladdin looked up from talking to Abu, who scrambled up his master's arm and hid behind his head to glare at Sora. It seemed he hadn't quite forgiven Sora yet for the apple incident from earlier. Carpet was resting slumped against the wall, lazily twirling a tassel, and even though he had been the one to catch the monkey before he could make an escape, Abu's grudge wasn't toward the carpet but toward Sora instead. Abu screeched at him, and Sora stuck his tongue out in return.

Aladdin scowled at Abu's attitude before regarding Sora. "A vizier?" he asked with a confused look. "No, that's not a sorcerer. It's a high ranking officer. I've heard that Agrabah's vizier also works as the sultan's advisor. He lives in the palace."

_Sultan's advisor. Lives in the palace._

Jafar was already in the palace? That meant he was probably close to the new prince and his genie, and, real genie or not, those people were in danger! Things were a lot worse than he had anticipated, never mind his _own_ situation. Even if he was caught helping Aladdin, it was worth _trying _to make things right. What if Jafar already had the other genie? What if—

No, wait. If Jafar did have the genie and it was a real genie, he'd already be on his way to the keyhole, and this world would be dying and overrun with heartless like the others. If that's what Jafar wanted.

Then again... there was the _other_ option. Didn't bad guys like to take credit for their dirty work? He could use that, somehow... But he'd need a lot of help.

"Uh, Sora... Something wrong? You keep making faces."

Sora realized Aladdin was giving him an odd look, and he abruptly felt like a spotlight was on him. Wait, there _was _a spotlight—Genie had morphed into a freakishly blue helicopter and was shining one on him.

Despite the ease of their natures and how simple his plan had seemed two seconds ago, Sora now found his stomach twisting nervously. He knew he had to tell them the truth. He needed their full trust if he wanted to do this.

Voice somewhat unsteady, he began, "I have a confession to make..."

It was time to do the right thing.

-o-o-

The spicy scent of incense was overwhelming.

That was the first thing Riku was aware of when he began to stir from his deep slumber. As his mind began to clear from its dark haze, he noticed he was resting on a lumpy but extremely comfortable surface—pillows?—but his pounding headache kept him from opening his eyes just yet.

Groaning, he lifted a hand to rub his forehead, and he heard the distinct clank of heavy metal against metal. It was then that he recognized the weight around his wrists and ankles. Shackles.

_Shit_...

So he had been caught. What had happened? Where was he now?

He remembered Jafar. Jafar talking to someone. Then the sultan had shown up and blown his cover and then—

_These men are imposters. _

Amber eyes.

_Stand down, vizier. This is my job._

An empty smile.

_Sleep._

"Yami," he growled, curling his fingers into the plush surface beneath him. Sudden, intense anger and betrayal filled him, fueling his body, hastening his wake up. Oh yes, he remembered Yami there. Riku slipped his eyes open, clenched his jaw, and glared ahead at his bound wrists.

He didn't even want to think about why the hell Yami would be on this world. That had been the second time he had fallen to a stupid _sleep_ spell of all things. What kind of hero was he if he kept leaving himself open to that kind of attack? It was humiliating.

"I'll fucking _kill _him."

Riku didn't intend on being made into a fool again. But first he had to get free. He sat up, his chains slipping off of him with a loud rattle. Ignoring the headache hammering at the side of his skull, he squinted through the misty red lighting of the room to survey his prison.

His lumpy bed did indeed turn out to be an impressive arrangement of floor pillows, and it seemed like his chains wouldn't take him much farther than them. Around the medium-sized room he was in, he noticed certain objects of wealth that indicated he was definitely in no prison cell—but why not?—and if anything, the flame-style wall trim, silk pillows, scattered books, exotic statues, and stylized lamps all pointed towards this being the personal chambers of someone very, very important. High ranking. Royalty? But he didn't think it was the princess or sultan's room.

To his disappointment, Donald and Goofy were missing, and he couldn't see past the indigo draperies separating this room from the next, so he couldn't tell if they were close by or if there were any guards standing watch.

Well, even if he was being watched, they obviously wanted him alive if he was in here like some sort of trophy pet. He figured he could cause a little trouble and get away with it.

Riku struggled to his feet, tugging hard on his chains to test their strength. They were bolted to the wall and looked durable, but he was desperate and it wouldn't hurt to try brute strength against them. After wrapping the chains twice around each of his hands, he planted a foot on the wall, pulled against the chains, and hefted himself up so that both of his feet were off the ground and he could put his full weight into pushing against the wall. Not caring that his hands were being crushed by the pressure of the chains, he yanked with all his might.

"Stu-pid—"

_Tug_.

"—chains—"

**Tug.**

"—break—"

_**Tug. **_

"—already!"

_**TUG. **_

"_Argh!_"

But the bolts didn't even budge, and just as he was gritting his teeth and arching his back and releasing another frustrated growl, he heard the sound of a soft applause. The noise startled him enough to drop back onto his feet, and he already had his keyblade in his bound hands as he whirled around to discover who had been clapping at his failed efforts.

There Yami was, standing just inside the room, an amused little expression on his face as he watched Riku. Leave it to _him_ to turn something like this into another amusing quirk for him to humiliate Riku with. Well, Riku wasn't going to fall for the teasing this time. Yami's hands paused when he saw that he had Riku's attention, and Riku immediately raised Oblivion into an attacking position, tense and ready to stand his ground.

Yami's lips curved a little more, finding humor even in that. Then again, even though Riku didn't want to think about it, he probably did look a little ridiculous trying to wield a weapon with his hands shackled like this while also wearing an outfit fit for a princess. Of course the bastard was going to laugh at him.

Riku bristled, his fingers tightening around the keyblade's grip. "I can still fight, even like this," he hissed.

A light sigh escaped Yami as he took a step forward, and Riku tensed at the slow movement, green eyes narrowing dangerously at the other boy. And when Yami moved forward again, just within Riku's range, Riku sprung forward without warning, his keyblade cutting downward in a clean, perfect swipe.

It hit air.

Riku had a split second to notice his miss and that Yami had disappeared, right before he felt a powerful tug from behind at his chains. He stumbled backwards on the uneven surface, fury flashing through him at the mere thought of losing to Yami again and so _easily_. He released an outraged cry as he twisted his body around, keyblade first, and felt the blade finally connect with flesh. It all happened so fast, too fast, and he barely registered that his legs were too tangled to escape before he was suddenly shoved against the wall, the chains noisily rattling, and he found himself staring nose-to-nose with Yami, strong hands pinning his bound wrists and keyblade above his head.

Riku immediately kicked out, but somehow Yami moved close enough and fast enough to smother the force of the attack before it could even become a real kick. Livid that nothing was working in his favor, Riku starting to push his weight against the other boy, effectively putting a few inches between them, but a knee abruptly forced its way between his legs, pressing right up under his groin, an unmistakable warning: _Move, and you will **hurt**._

Biting his lip hard, Riku fought back the instinct to tense up at the dangerous thrill that moved through him. He met Yami's stern look with a heated glare, but obediently fell still.

Yami didn't relax even a fraction, but his expression softened somewhat. "Do you know whose room you are in?"

"No, and I don't care!" Riku snapped, ignoring the overwhelming urge to writhe at the pressure against him. _Don't move, it'll only encourage him. Shit. **Shit**_

"It is Jafar's," Yami answered coolly. His face drew back a few centimeters, giving Riku room to breathe comfortably. "By all means, he should have sent you to the dungeons with your companions..." Here he paused, lifting an eyebrow in a suggestive manner. "I wonder if he has other intentions for you."

_So Donald and Goofy are in the dungeons_, Riku thought, and then picked up on the innuendo about Jafar. His stomach turning over, he groaned out his response. "That's _sick_."

"He does have a soft spot for pretty things," Yami mused.

This time Riku did tense, letting out an aggravated growl, ready to strike out again despite the warning if this teasing continued.

Unfazed by Riku's threat, Yami gently laughed. "More than likely he is planning on using you to enter the Cave of Wonders," he explained. "That is where the keyhole is. If he cannot get a genie's lamp to give him access to the cave, your keyblade should be able to unlock it. Otherwise, it is unenterable except by the chosen one."

So Jafar was keeping him close by because he wanted to make use of the keyblade? Well, Riku couldn't complain about _that_ objective, not after the nauseating one Yami had had him believing for a second. "Lovely," he commented.

"Jafar wants to take over this world using heartless and the power of darkness," Yami continued casually, as if divulging this information was totally by the rules. Wasn't he the enemy? Why was he sharing this? "Because he has the keyblade master held captive, he also has leeway in other worlds and with Maleficent."

Riku frowned, not liking the fact that all of these people kept planning to use him like some dumb tool. Did he really seem that weak? That exploitable? "...Does he honestly think he can keep me locked up?" he asked.

At this, Yami's amused look returned. "Riku, I do believe that the key you own is too unmanageable in that position to be helpful with your restraints. And, judging by how desperate you seemed when I walked in, you do not have much of an escape plan."

"I was working on it," Riku grumbled, his irritation quickly rising again. "Why are you giving me all this information? You told me we were enemies."

"We are," Yami said easily.

"Well, why do you keep helping me if you're on the wrong side?" Riku asked in a tight voice. "Why not just fight with us?"

"It is not that simple, Riku," was the calm answer. "And I do not consider myself on the wrong side. Not any more."

"Not any more?"

Yami's lips pulled into a smile at that, and he loosened his grip on Riku a little, his tone eloquent. "Today's good could be tomorrow's evil. Right and wrong are not what separate us from our enemies, Riku."

And as those words registered, Riku froze, déjà vu biting him in the ass. He knew exactly where he had heard that before. _Leon had said something just like that!_ he thought, his mind suddenly racing with wild ideas, and he ended up blurting out his next question. "Were you eavesdropping that night too?"

But instead of the smile that Riku expected to see, Yami looked confused. "What night?" he asked.

Riku's brows drew together angrily. "Cut the act," he snapped. "I know you've been following us around and listening in on our conversations. I saw you that night in Mulan's house. And—just now—you stole Leon's words! From that one night in the coliseum!"

Yami studied Riku for a long moment, amber eyes dark, bewildered, and Riku began to wonder if maybe he was wrong, if maybe it had been a crazy coincidence. But then something dawned on Yami, and a look of understanding passed through his gaze. "Ah... I see," he murmured, slowly blinking out of his thoughts. He focused sharply on Riku, expression guarded once again, and Riku knew then that Yami wasn't going to come near a straight answer with that one. "Well, Riku... I wish it were that simple."

What had _that_ all been about? What the hell was going on? What was he still hiding?

"I don't even get why we're enemies," Riku tried next. Maybe if he played ally, he'd get some answers. "I mean—you're not out to kill me—this is proof right now—"

"There are those out to use you, keyblade master," Yami smoothly cut in.

"Use me?" he asked.

"Yes. That is the purpose of heroes," Yami said. His voice lowered almost thoughtfully. "They do not have the same freedoms that others have. They are tools."

Heroes? Tools? Without freedom? What the hell was he going on about? Riku was a person, and, keyblade master or not, he had choices. _No one_ was going to use him without his permission ever again, not after what he had done to Sora. "And what about you?" he found himself asking in a bitter tone.

"Yes," Yami replied easily, "I am using you."

"Is that why you had Id attack Traverse Town?"

"That was his decision. I merely wanted the report."

"Why?" came Riku's immediate question. "What interest do you have in those stupid reports that you're willing to risk innocent lives for them?"

Yami gave another smile at his impatience, and he gently eased away from the other boy, releasing him. Confused with Yami's actions, Riku found himself more concerned about pursuing answers than about attacking Yami again. As Yami started to back away, Riku followed him, his keyblade disappearing in a flash of light as he reached out to grab the other boy's wrist, holding it firmly.

"_Why_?" he demanded this time, his eyes like ice.

Softly sighing again, Yami began pulling his wrist away from Riku's grip in a calm manner. "You will find out in due time," he said.

"_Wait_," Riku commanded, fingers tightening, his tone growing terse. He wasn't going to let him go just yet, not when he was at least getting some good responses for once. But this next question—he knew it was a risk, probably wrong, but he had to ask. "Are you—Ansem's son?"

Yami slowly lifted a white eyebrow, his smile spreading. Then, his voice laced with quiet laughter, he drew closer to Riku, nose brushing against Riku's and making the boy tense, ready to flee. "Not in the way you are thinking," he murmured.

Lips barely skimmed against his own right before Riku jerked back, releasing Yami's wrist as if it were scalding, and he held an arm to his mouth with a defensive, defiant glare.

Yami reached a hand forward, hooking his fingers on the silky sash of Riku's outfit, tugging him forward again. Riku was prepared to knee the bastard in the balls, but curiosity held him back, wanting to know what the other man was up to. Yami offered a small smile to Riku's credit before his warm hand skimmed down Riku's hip, a slow caress, and slipped just under the sash of his pants before slowly pulling away, leaving Riku glaring defiantly at him.

Stepping back, Yami lifted a hand to brush back his uneven bangs, and solemnly met his gaze.

"See for yourself, Riku."

And at that moment, with Yami's hair pulled away from his eyes, Riku saw how much he _did_ resemble Ansem, but... It felt wrong. He was missing something.

Yami lowered his hand, his bangs fell back into place, and Riku looked away, shaking his head to clear it. When he lifted his gaze again, Yami was already gone, just like that, as silent as a shadow. It wasn't until Riku rubbed at his tingling lips that he realized there was a subtle weight above the hip Yami had caressed.

When Riku checked underneath his sash, he found a small iron key, and it fit perfectly into his shackles.

-o-o-

Traveling by means other than the darkness was refreshing, and, thanks to the genie's magic, it was also instantaneous. Sora had been hoping for a ride on the magic carpet, but Aladdin had pointed out that they would have been seen entering the palace that way. Not cool. So now Aladdin was down two wishes—one wasted on trying to find Jasmine when she wasn't even on this world anymore, and one used to initiate the haphazard plan Sora and Aladdin had come up with—right after Sora's surprising confession about being sent to assassinate Aladdin and steal his lamp.

Aladdin had been startled (Abu had been furious), but the fact that Sora had been honest about it had made Aladdin rethink the situation. For all Aladdin knew, Sora could have been lying to him about all of that too, but there seemed to be some sort of innate _good_ within both of them that they each recognized. Sora trusted Aladdin, and Aladdin, it seemed, still trusted Sora, and even more now. Aladdin had accepted the things Sora had told him with surprising ease and had agreed that, yes, Agrabah's fate was more important than attempting to find Jasmine again. Sora had offered his services to help find her when this was over, and that had been that.

As soon as the second wish had been made, the genie cheerfully wished them luck and disappeared into his lamp, leaving them to handle this themselves. The last wish was reserved for his freedom, after all. Now they stood in a long corridor in the palace somewhere, surrounded by light blue walls with elegantly designed red and gold trim. This place had seemed enormous from the outside when Sora had been wandering the streets, but judging from the size of this hallway, he could tell it was a lot more impressive on the inside. Hopefully it wasn't as much of a maze as Hollow Bastion was.

Aladdin lifted the lamp. "Abu, take care of it," he warned, "and remember the plan!"

Abu took the lamp and leapt from his master's shoulder onto the magic carpet, pausing to glance back at them before he and the carpet darted into the air and disappeared down a nearby hallway. Even if the little monkey had not lightened up around Sora, he had agreed to go along with the plan after Aladdin had asked him, and that was enough for Sora.

He exchanged glances with Aladdin, and they both nodded, eager to get this done.

"Let's go," he said.

It was impossible to tell how much time they had. Getting into the palace had probably been the easiest part, but Sora had confidence that the rest would go smoothly as long as Jafar reacted the way Sora anticipated. He was hoping that Aladdin was a lucky guy because Sora sure as heck hadn't been too lucky lately, and they were going to need a lot of it.

As they ducked against the nearest wall to get out of sight, Aladdin handed him the one prop they had brought. Rope. Sora silently pulled the thief's hands behind his back and managed to tie them in a sloppy but secure way. "There," he said. "Is that okay?"

Aladdin tugged at his binds. "Yeah," he confirmed, sounding awfully cheery despite his position. "The plan is the palace gardens, right?"

"Right. Let's hope this works..." Sora said, holding back a nervous laugh. He took Aladdin by the shoulder and marched him down the hall, hoping to run into someone soon because he had no earthly idea where they were going.

_This will be interesting_, Id offered. He'd been awake for some time now, but he hadn't said anything, just quietly watching, and Sora had suspected that he was silently laughing at them. His amusement was about as genuine as a bratty older brother watching his younger siblings doing something they weren't supposed to and knowing they were going to get caught.

Annoyed, Sora snapped back a quick, _Go away unless you're gonna help_, before he shoved his presence aside and returned his attention to Aladdin, who was growing tenser the deeper they went into the palace. They were, after all, weaponless and in enemy territory, even if Jafar didn't _know_ Sora was playing double agent.

"You there! Stop!"

Sora froze at the voice and slowly turned. It'd been the interruption they had been waiting for. A gullible guard. Sora lifted his eyes, a hand clutching Aladdin's binds, and gave the bulky guard a cool look as the man ran up to them with his sword drawn. He was more than twice Sora's size with a torso built like a gorilla and no visible neck, and he had wide eyes with small pupils, biceps larger than Sora's head, and a thin, short boxed beard. When he bared his teeth upon seeing Aladdin there, Sora saw that he was missing a few.

"_You_!" he barked, and Sora wasn't sure if that was glee or anger in his tone.

Aladdin turned his head enough to get a good look at the guard, his expression immediately turning distressed. "Oh man, it had to be _you_," he groaned, hanging his head. Then, under his breath to where only Sora could hear him, he muttered, "Razoul has been after me for years."

And Razoul looked confused to see Aladdin in the hands of a scrawny kid dressed like another thief. He narrowed his eyes at Sora as if not sure what to make of him at first, and maybe Razoul had a default reaction for things he didn't understand, because he turned his sword on the boys before questioning them.

"How did a pair of filthy street rats end up in the palace?"

Sora knew that was his cue. He jerked Aladdin close to himself, glaring at the tall guard. "Stop waving that thing around before you hurt yourself!" he said in his most commanding voice, drawn from years of role playing back home with Riku and Tidus and Wakka. Then, as an afterthought, he added, "Fool!"

For just a second, the guard looked affronted, but then he got just plain angry. "And _who_ do you think _you_ are—" he started to growl, edging closer.

Sora straightened his back and glared harder, though part of him was panicking that this might not work after all. Maybe he was a little rusty. "I answer only to _Jafar_. Tell him that I have delivered the—" He paused to shove Aladdin forward and then turned his nose up into the air. "Street rat. Now hurry up before I'm offended by your stupidity."

"Jafar?" the guard demanded as he grabbed Aladdin's arm, and he sounded only partly disbelieving.

Sora knew then that he probably had this in the bag. _Gotta stay confident._ "That's right, _Jafar_," he said, adding in a smirk for show. But when the tip of the sword was suddenly at his neck, his smugness disappeared, and he gulped, eyes traveling up the blade to meet the guard's sneer. So much for having this in the bag.

"Fine. But you're coming with me."

To the side, Aladdin gave Sora a sheepish look. This wasn't exactly according to plan, but if he got to talk to Jafar, it just might work out after all. Despite the sword hovering close to his throat, Sora managed a condescending huff, pointedly looking away from the blade so he wouldn't chicken out. "Fine. It'll give me the chance to tell him what dumb guards he has!"

Razoul growled again, "Why _you_..." but the sound of Aladdin's stifled laughter drew his attention. The guard whirled around, but Aladdin had already put on a straight face. Sora flashed his friend a brief grin before Razoul could return his attention back to him and catch him out of character. With Aladdin at ease like this, Sora found himself relaxing and regaining a bit of his confidence.

"Demons!"

"_Ahhh_!"

What wasn't to their plan, however, were the screams that reverberated down the hall a second later, followed by the sound of heavy running. The three of them turned to look as two panicked guards flew down the adjacent corridor and disappeared from sight again. Two scimitar-wielding creatures followed closely behind them. They may have been wearing blue vests, poofy pants, and turbans to fit better into the world, but Sora recognized them for what they were. But why were heartless suddenly showing up?

Aladdin exchanged a grim look with Sora, and Sora wondered if this was a bad time to bring up the itsy-bitsy fact that he could control the heartless and that Aladdin didn't have anything to worry about.

Razoul jabbed him in the back, though, before he could really consider it. "Get moving, scum."

Wait a sec, did the guy not see the _demons_ chasing after his buddies?

Sora shot him a disbelieving look and gestured down the hall. "Uh, the demons? Aren't you needed?"

"The sky could be falling for all I'd care," the man growled. "I'd still take you in for sentencing."

Obviously the guy had a death wish.

But Sora felt like being the nice guy, so even though Razoul continually shoved at Aladdin's and his back to get them to walk faster, Sora silently told the heartless to back off. He _could_ have let them mess with the guard a bit, but he didn't want to scare the guy off before he could take them to Jafar. They didn't see a single heartless on their journey across the palace.

Razoul guided them into a large, spacious room with a large floor pillow and low table with various odd objects on it—a few books, a couple of lamp-looking things, and some kind of pipe with a really long neck. This place was significantly darker and mistier than the corridor they had just been in, with crimson and purple walls and a heavy drapery blocking most of the light from the hall. They had found Jafar. Well, had been led to him. The vizier looked calm as could be, one of his long, thin hands curled around the rope of a hanging lamp, and Sora wondered if it was just his imagination that the wall in front of Jafar seemed to be, uh, closing. (He wouldn't hold it past Jafar to be behind the sudden heartless invasion, either.) His fat parrot was perched on his shoulder, and Sora thought he heard it clear its throat when it noticed that Jafar wasn't alone anymore. Something was fishy about that stupid bird. Could parrots even clear their throats?

"If this is about the _demons_," Jafar drawled without turning, "I already know they are in the palace."

Sora was ready to speak up, but Razoul had his sword under his chin again, and he pursed his lips angrily, keeping silent.

"Intruders, my lord, and _this_ one said he was under your command," Razoul said smoothly, ending with a sneer in Sora's direction.

Jafar gracefully swung around, his slanted eyes widening slightly when he saw who Razoul had brought him, and he immediately formed a snakelike smile. "Ah, perfect timing," he said, gliding forward, his cobra staff clicking against the polished floor. "The boy was working for me, yes." His eyes narrowed at Sora expectantly. "Well?" he asked.

This was it. Hopefully Aladdin would remember the plan.

Sora nodded at his friend and said quite simply, "He sold the lamp." Jafar immediately cut in with a disbelieving snort, but Sora went on, unfazed. "I brought him here as proof, and I was gonna go back and find the merchant he sold it to."

"Can someone tell me why I was arrested over a stupid lamp?" Aladdin asked, sounding realistically confused, an angry look on his face. "And shouldn't we be, uh, _running_ because of the _demons_?"

Razoul gripped his arm hard and shoved him forward. "Shut up, _you_."

Jafar eyed them for a long moment, his lip curling, but the acting must have been convincing enough, or Jafar just didn't deem them worth his time, because he lifted a hand and waved the tips of his fingers at them. "Fine. Take the street rat away. Torture him and see if he'll relay anything more useful."

It must have been what Razoul was waiting for because his face suddenly broke into a wide grin, showing off his missing teeth again. "With _pleasure_," he replied, his sword pointing into Aladdin's side as he gave a cruel chuckle. "Move it, trash."

Sora watched as Aladdin stumbled towards the exit, snapping back a, "Hey, don't I get a chance to defend myself?"

"Trials are for _people,_ not scum," Razoul growled back, and then they were gone, leaving Sora with Jafar.

"As for you..." Jafar began, his voice trailing off with a displeased undertone. He was looking down his nose at Sora. "How did you manage to apprehend the criminal without a weapon? Maleficent did not..." He gave flippant gesture. "..._specify_ your talents."

Finding this kind of funny, Sora grinned a little. "Then let's keep it that way. A magician never reveals his secrets."

Did the parrot just roll its eyes at that? Even Jafar's lip curled a little more, his fingers sliding down to the neck of his cobra staff as if he wanted to use it to hypnotize Sora again, but the shuffle of feet at the doorway drew their attention. It was another guard, this one also gorilla-like.

"Sir!"

"What is it?" Jafar said impatiently. "If it's about the demons—"

"No, sir! Prince Baraka has escaped!"

The change in Jafar's expression was immediate, his lips pulling back to show narrow teeth. "_What_?" he snapped. If anything, he looked more pissed about that than he had about Aladdin not having the lamp. "Fools! Who was watching him?" he demanded, already swooping towards the door. "Never mind, _I _will find him! You—stand watch and make sure the boy does not set one foot outside this room. Understand? Or it will be your _head_."

Sora let out a low whistle at the threat as Jafar swept out of the room. The guard, intent on keeping his head, blocked the doorway with his entire body, his arms crossed to make him look even more imposing, not that that was hard. Sora let him be for a moment, his concerns focused more on why Jafar had left in such a hurry.

Prince Baraka, huh? Kind of a stupid name. He must have been the one who had entered the palace with a genie. Jafar had seemed pretty worked up over his escape, so maybe he _had_ had a real genie? But if that was true, why hadn't they just taken the genie away from him? Why did they still need the prince?

Deciding that that was another thing he needed to figure out while still here, he turned his attention back to his own situation. He needed to get out of here and meet up with Aladdin.

The guard was watching him with an unconcerned look, which made Sora feel a bit defensive. Just because he looked scrawny didn't mean he couldn't stick up for himself!

Time to play around with these guys.

_What are you up to?_ Id asked, trying to poke around in his thoughts.

_You'll see,_ Sora replied.

Thinking back to his lessons with Maleficent, Sora called upon the cold weight inside of him—Id's power, he had come to realize, because they had the same feeling—and he slowly lifted his hand, conjuring up an image of what he wanted to call out and create with the darkness. Though his eyes slipped closed in concentration, he could _feel_ the guard growing uneasy as he undoubtedly watched Sora.

"What are you doing?" the man roughly demanded, and Sora could hear him moving towards him.

Sora thrust his hand forward, and there, softly at first, he heard them—the soft whispers of heartless around him. Their presence was familiar now, recognizable, and he sensed them multiply as they rose out of the ground. He opened his eyes, watching the regular shadows twist and dance as they waited for their master's commands.

The guard was already backing up, stuttering out, "D-D-Demons!"

_Well, well, well,_ was Id's subtle compliment.

Sora felt like smiling. He nodded his head towards the guard. "Go and play, but don't eat anyone," he said, and the shadows lurched forward as if to attack. That was all it took for the guard to let out a girly screech, stumble backwards in shock, and then take off running, the shadows scampering after him with excited squeals that only Sora could hear. They were kind of cute, despite being monsters.

_You're having a lot of fun_, Id mused.

"Sorta," Sora admitted, deciding that Id could stay for now. He put his hands on his hips and grinned at the empty room, feeling proud of himself. "But at least I'm free now, huh?"

-o-o-

Riku knew it wasn't a coincidence that as soon as he had left his expensive prison, the heartless had started to show up. He wondered if Yami had called them here or if it had been the summoning of his keyblade that had done it. Oh well. If anything, the heartless made for a great distraction and had sent the guards into a panic, so they were less prone to stopping _him_ when they had 'demons' chasing them. Heartless, Riku could handle. Human guards with swords? Nuisance. He'd have to knock them unconscious, whereas he could just swipe through heartless without worry.

Now, where the heck was he going anyway? This hallway looked familiar, and he didn't think it led to the dungeons, which was where he was supposed to be going. He had to get to Donald and Goofy before the heartless did.

Riku paused to check the nearest room, taking note of the warm sunlight that poured into the space from the opposite side where large brown and gold double doors hung open. The sun was setting outside, casting an orange glow on the sand-colored walls and cinnamon brown stone floor, which reflected Riku's image almost perfectly back up at him. Man, he did look like a girl. Scowling at his reflection, he slipped past the indigo curtains and entered the room. The many gold statues and silk pillows gleamed and glittered as he passed them, scanning their fine quality and wondering how much munny even one of them would cost. There was even a low table with a large, detailed model of the palace and the surrounding streets of Agrabah. Talk about wealth.

Coming to a stop in front of the doors, he glanced out into the plaza beyond. A gigantic circular pool took up most of it, including a bowl-like fountain shaped kind of like a lotus, except it had stone peacocks protruding from it. The water wasn't running. A tall, lattice-covered structure sat just beyond the fountain—maybe a birdcage? And this was the first place in Agrabah that had trees, a lot of trees, even hedges and plots of grass and all of it looked damn healthy, some of the trees so tall that they almost peeked over the top of the high walls separating the palace from the rest of Agrabah. From this angle, inside of the palace, the walls looked a lot less shielding and a lot more... confining. Kind of like the ocean back home.

Shaking his head, Riku cleared his thoughts and glanced toward some of the buildings branching off the main part of the palace. The grounds looked like they stretched between the main building and the surrounding structures, so maybe one of the esplanades would take him to the dungeons. It was worth a shot.

He was just starting down the nearest path when a loud, animalistic screech caught his attention, and he set off into a sprint to find out what it was, figuring it could be heartless. He came across what seemed to be a large guest house, complete with large, rounded columns creating a colonnade for the walkway he was on, which split a fancy, shallow pool into halves. A few remaining flamingos stood stationary in the water. The long stone path he was on led from this building into a different section of the main part of the palace where a breezeway was.

Frowning, he moved up the walkway, wondering if the noise had come from the supposed guest house.

Another screech startled him, and something suddenly zipped past, a brown and purple blur, and Riku spun around, taking a good look as the object circled him once and then headed straight for the breezeway. He blinked in surprise.

Had that been a flying rug carrying a monkey?

And it was being chased...by tiny, floating red heartless...that were spitting fire from under their little yellow hats. Okay, then. Things were definitely getting weirder.

The heartless started to follow the rug-monkey in the new direction, but when Riku called Oblivion to his hand, the heartless immediately changed their course, honing in on the keyblade. Riku vaulted over the walkway and landed in the shallow pool, flamingos taking flight as he charged through the water towards the approaching heartless.

The red creatures let out little squeaks right before shooting fire at him, but he swiped at the flames with his keyblade, the magic dissolving into smoke and ash as he passed through it unharmed. Riku leapt from the edge of the pool with Oblivion held high, cutting easily through two of the heartless and scattering the rest, and landed in a crouched position, the remaining creatures dancing in the air around him. As he rose, they edged closer as if testing him.

When he glanced up, he saw the flying rug doing circles in the air, trying to shake off another heartless that had gotten on its tail, this one a yellow brother of the reds he was dealing with. A crackle of light shot after the rug, a thunder spell, and Riku realized all of these little heartless probably dealt with a specific magical element. If he wanted to catch up with that flying rug and its monkey while it was still mobile and not burnt to a crisp, he'd better get a move on.

Just as one of the reds threw back its hat to summon a spell, the others starting to mimic, Riku snapped back into action and sprung from the ground, clearing his mind and letting his actions guide him. His foot connected with the first heartless, pushing off it right before his keyblade came from below and cut through the creature. His momentum sent him into a flip, soaring backwards over three balls of flame that had been aimed at his back, and he twisted around as he began to fall, Oblivion sweeping through two more red bodies. He landed on his feet, immediately whirling around to face the last heartless, which swiveled its hat, its tiny black feet twitching in the air.

Riku held back a laugh. If not for their pyrokinetics, he'd find these little guys kind of cute. Before it could zip away from him, he lunged forward, twisting at a slight angle to come at the heartless from his side, jerking his keyblade through its bell-shaped body in a clean arc. It was still dispersing into shadow and fragments of light as he ran off to help the rug.

If there was a perfect definition for the sound of _panic_, it was the screech of a flying monkey being put through electric shock therapy. Riku would rather not be chasing a yellow heartless chasing a random monkey riding a random flying carpet when he was supposed to be saving the other two parts of his trinity, but he had to admit that the impact of his keyblade with the offending heartless was damn satisfying. It took two hits before it disappeared like its weaker brethren.

The flying rug swooped past him as if to thank him, and Riku noticed that the poor monkey was clinging to the fringed edge of its ride for its dear life, looking terrified.

"I don't suppose you know where the dungeons are?" Riku asked. Hey, it was worth a try, and it wasn't like _he_ was getting anywhere on his own.

Much to his surprise, the rug lifted its tassels in recognition and then dipped the lower part of its body as if to nod, as if it _understood_ him. The monkey let out another screech as the rug raced through the air, did a loop-the-loop, and dove toward Riku, sweeping him literally off his feet and onto its back.

"W-Whoa!"

He had a split second to scramble for balance and a one-handed grip as the carpet went gliding up into the air like a guided missile and the monkey let out another scream. For the first time, Riku noticed that the little guy was carrying something shiny and brass, but before Riku could get a good look, the monkey ducked into his open vest, its warm, furry body trembling against his bare chest. Letting Oblivion disappear, he clamped down on the rug's fringe, his eyes wide as he watched the gardens rush by below him, shades of green and brown abruptly turning into the sandy walls and golden onion domes of the buildings as the rug shot up at an almost perfect vertical angle.

Both Riku and the monkey let out a scream this time, his heart dropping into his stomach as a wave of pure exhilaration swept through him, giving him the rush of a lifetime, better than any roller coaster or a ride on Pegasus. As the rug climbed higher, skimming up the side of the tallest tower, his scream segued into uncontained laughter and then an encouraging, excited holler for more, and the rug obeyed by spiraling into a pirouette, making the world spin around him as the wind rushed past, rustling his hair and clothes with the force of a squall back home. Then they were turning, gliding horizontally, zipping over a high balcony between large columns and into the spacious air of the throne room, weaving through fat orange heartless as they appeared out of swirls of darkness—but the creatures were too slow for the flying rug, which rocketed through the left curtained passage, heading down an area of the palace that Riku hadn't even explored yet.

Everything happened so fast, passing in a blur, that Riku didn't even have time to fear any of the possible ways this roller coaster ride could have gone wrong. He just fell into a grin and closed his eyes, elated and relishing the feeling, his fingers tightening on the rug with each abrupt twist and turn it made as it carried him deeper into the palace.

The ride was over much too soon, to his disappointment. The monkey's surprised screech drew him out of his adrenaline-induced daze, and he snapped his eyes open to find himself in a darker part of the palace, a wooden door with a barred window right in front of him, along with about a dozen heartless. From beyond the door, he could hear Donald's familiar squawk and Goofy's short guffaw. At least they were still alive.

"Guys, I'm here!" he called out, but the rug didn't slow down to let him off. A sharp whistle echoed from down the opposite passageway, and the rug, Riku and the monkey included, went darting towards the sound as if beckoned. "No—wait—go back!" he yelled, but the rug ignored him and kept going.

It made a sharp turn and came to an abrupt stop, sending Riku flying off its back.

He let out a loud yelp as he flew through the air and crashed right into someone. The impact was hard enough to send them both to the ground, Riku on top of the stranger, and when his mind stopped spinning enough for him to crack his eyes open, a tanned face and a pair of dark eyes were staring back at him. It was another boy, and he looked as shocked as he was, albeit more embarrassed.

"Uh, hi," the tanned boy said, offering a sheepish grin. The blush that crossed his cheeks did not go unnoticed by Riku, who realized he was lying half sprawled on the boy in a semi straddle, and there were callused hands on the bare skin of his hips, probably what had kept him from falling completely on the other guy and knocking their heads together. As if _this_ position wasn't any more compromising.

"Uh, hi back," he replied, and the other boy's eyes suddenly widened in disbelief.

"Y-You're a guy?" he asked, sounding genuinely confused, and he abruptly removed his hands from Riku's hips.

Wait—what? Of course he was a guy! Oh lord. He didn't have time for another crack about his disguise being girly. He got to his feet and held out a hand for the other boy, managing not to give him a sour look at the innocent remark. The stranger looked friendly enough, and maybe he could help Riku.

"The name's Riku," he said.

"Aladdin," the boy replied and took his hand, trying not to look awkward as he got pulled to his feet. He gave Riku's chest a quick glance as if to make sure he really was a guy. "Uh—sorry about—"

"I was the one who landed on you," Riku pointed out, dismissive. And speaking of which, where _was_ the flying—

"Carpet!" Right. That. "Abu!" Aladdin added, and Riku watched as Aladdin scooped up the rug and the trembling monkey into his arms and laughed in relief, squeezing them in a brief hug before letting them go. "I was worried! Do you have the lamp?"

The monkey—presumably Abu—let out an angry screech and then started going off in an incoherent tirade, gesturing and making faces and acting out the scene of it being chased by heartless and Riku saving them and all of them winding up here, with some exaggerations. Abu ended by shaking a fist at Aladdin, who gave a carefree laugh as if this kind of thing was completely normal.

"Aw, come on, Abu, it was part of the plan."

Abu planted his hands on his hips and gave a sound of disagreement, his tail curling.

"You're safe now, aren't you?" Aladdin pointed out, and this, it seemed, Abu couldn't argue with. Or he just didn't want to bother. He and the carpet made a show out of revealing the brass lamp that Abu had been carrying earlier, and Aladdin's expression relaxed even more. What was the deal with the lamp? But then Aladdin finally returned his attention to Riku, who was wondering who the heck this guy was and why he had a flying rug. "So it looks like you helped my friends out," Aladdin said, giving him a grateful look. "Thanks. Abu doesn't trust that many people, and Carpet doesn't help just anyone..."

"No problem," he replied, waving a hand. His bracelets clinked together, and he noticed Aladdin's eyes drawn to his outfit again, no doubt studying the expensive accessories. Sensing questions and having no time to answer them, Riku turned back towards the dungeons. "But I really have to help _my _friends now."

Another screech from the monkey and a panicked point down the hall stated otherwise. A small team of blue heartless stood there blocking the path, carrying swords.

"Or not," Aladdin added for him, sounding worried. "Should have taken Razoul's sword before he ran off..." Abu made a disgruntled noise, and Aladdin's voice took on an easy tone. "What? My hands were tied at the time. And would still be if I wasn't good at getting out of 'em."

"I can fight," Riku said calmly, stretching a hand out and calling Oblivion back to him. It appeared with its usual shimmer of dark light and metallic, cherry-like smell. He saw Aladdin and Abu gape at it like a pair of treasure-hungry fools right before he dove into the heartless, intending on making this a quick battle.

Unfortunately, he had underestimated the weak-looking heartless. As he swiped at them, their swords easily blocked his attacks, the blades large enough to deflect him every time, whether he was aiming at their heads, torsos, or legs, and their quick counterattacks put him on the defensive—something he wasn't used to with heartless. They slowly but easily surrounded him, yet he wasn't worried. He just knew he'd have to get more creative about killing this kind, and not for the last time he wished he knew some handy magic.

The keyblade sang its warnings, preparing him for their attacks, but he knew they were just cornering him so they could finish him off at once. Not about to let them get away with their ambush, he crouched, ready to leap forward and use one of them for a springboard to get away.

"Genie, get rid of these guys! And that's a wish!"

Now _that_, Riku hadn't been expecting. From beyond the ring of heartless around him, he saw a plume of pink smoke and a large blue man emerge out of nothing.

"_Ooone _demon spring cleanin' comin' right up!"

And before Riku knew it, the heartless were—well—_gone_. Just like that, and they had turned into little puffs of black clouds, vanished. Like magic.

The blue man had one of his large hands in the shape of a gun, and when he playfully blew at the tip of his index finger, real smoke curled away. "Genie, Clean Sweeper In-Finite-_Oom_," he announced proudly, "and that ain't a beta version, buddy."

Riku, still crouched and still holding Oblivion in a defensive stance, slowly blinked at the sudden miracle, wondering what the hell was going on. Did he just call himself a _genie_? As in, a _real_ genie?

But for some reason, Aladdin was staring dejectedly down at the brass lamp clutched in his hands. When the genie noticed his master's mood, something seemed to dawn on him, and his laughing face suddenly fell into something dark and grim, betrayed.

"I promised, Genie," Aladdin said sadly, his voice careful, remorseful, and thick with other emotions. "I promised you, and..." His voice broke, and he didn't finish. He lifted puppy eyes in apology, even though Riku got the impression that Aladdin had just done something that no apology could ever amount for, and Aladdin knew that too well.

The genie held up a hand, trying and failing to sound impassive. "It's okay, Al," he said. "After all, three wishes come and go like farts in the wind. They're nothing to me." He gave a slow shrug, gaze averted, his mouth forming a sad line. "I mean, I'm the magician, not part of the audience. I don't get any wishes of my own."

"I'm sorry," Aladdin tried anyway, swallowing hard. "Look, I'll—"

"You'll what?" Genie asked, but it wasn't derisive. Just accepting. "I move on to the next master now, Al. You were a great friend, but I guess I just have to wait a few more millennia before the next schmuck who rubs my lamp asks me what _I _want and is actually willing to give it."

Then, before Aladdin could put in another word edgewise, the genie was spinning around, thinning, turning into pink and blue smoke, and he was sucked right into the lamp in Aladdin's hands, who looked even more guilt-ridden than before.

Okay, a giant blue guy, magic, lamps, wishes. Definitely a real genie. And that had to be the lamp that Yami had mentioned Jafar wanting. If Jafar had this, he could get into that cave and get to the keyhole and that would not be a good thing. Nope.

Riku had the urge to snatch the lamp away from Aladdin, but with him staring down at it like that, it felt wrong. Even if he asked for it for safekeeping, he'd feel bad. Maybe if Aladdin got to trust him more, he'd give it up willingly?

"Um..."

At the sound of Riku's voice, Aladdin lifted his gaze to regard him, and it was obvious he was trying hard to put up a good mask to hide what he was really feeling.

Riku offered a small smile. "Thanks for, uh, saving me." Even though he could have saved himself and probably avoided this angst-fest in the first place, but he didn't want to make Aladdin feel even worse.

Aladdin did brighten a little, as if realizing the fact he'd saved someone's life was maybe worth whatever disappointment he had cost the genie. "That was close. You just kind of leapt in there and I reacted without thinking... Um..." Aladdin paused and reached a hand up, rubbing the back of his head. The gesture was entirely Sora-like, and a wave of nostalgia hit Riku, making him look away. "Who are you anyway?" Aladdin finally asked. "Some sort of..."

Getting the gut feeling that he was going to say something like _harem girl_, Riku cut in smoothly, hiding his awkwardness. "I came to save this world from the heartless, actually."

Aladdin's face grew blank. "Heartless?"

"The creatures running around the palace," Riku explained. Donald would probably have his head for meddling or whatever.

Wait.

Donald and Goofy!

"_Shit_."

Riku was charging off down the hall before Aladdin could question him any further. More heartless materialized as he approached the dungeon door, this time just one of the sword-wielding kind and a fat orange one, and Riku aimed for the larger threat first, growling as his keyblade struck hard—

"Get out of the _way_!"

—and bounced right off of its round belly, the recoil sending Riku straight onto his butt.

"What the—!"

But he didn't have time to worry about his tail bone because the large heartless was drawing its arms back as if to leap on him, and he was _not_ sticking around to see if he'd survive being crushed by the orange blimp.

He scrambled out of the way, throwing himself into a roll just as the heartless lunged at the spot he'd been in. There came a loud _thud_, the sound of splintering wood, and surprised yelps, and Riku looked to find that the stupid thing had crashed right through the dungeon door. Well, at least that was one less obstacle for him to deal with.

A sword came swinging right for his head just then, and he was thrown back into the battle, his keyblade lifting in a flash, connecting with the remaining heartless's blade. He kicked at its unprotected stomach, shoving it back, and he leapt to his feet to finish the heartless off before it could catch its balance and deflect his attack. As it evanesced into darkness like the others, he ran past it, ducking into the open dungeon doorway to save Donald and Goofy.

He froze there in the doorway, Oblivion clutched in his hand, and blinked at what he saw.

The fat heartless was sprawled out on its stomach on the ground, and Donald was sitting on its large rump, his wings crossed and his beak turned up in the air in a huffy manner. Goofy was just standing there, and he gave a pleased laugh and waved when he saw Riku there. Both of them were unharmed, and also still in costume.

"Uhyuk, hiya Riku!"

...why exactly had Riku been worried about these guys?

He relaxed, giving Donald a perplexed look. "How did you knock it out?"

"Don't ask," Donald grumbled.

Mushu popped up from behind the large plume of Goofy's hat. "Yo, what took you so long?" he demanded laughingly. "I got these guys out of their shackles in like five minutes and you're just _now_ waltzing in here? It's almost _night_ for crying out loud!"

"I got held up, okay?" Riku snapped, stepping forward and driving his keyblade into the heartless's back. It vanished, and Donald yawped as he fell to the ground. Satisfied, Riku let Oblivion disappear, and he nodded towards the doorway. "Let's just get out of here before more show up."

As if on cue, there was a sudden shift in the air current, and Riku spun around, prepared to fight again—but he was glad to see it was only Aladdin on his magic carpet hovering just outside the door. Abu was perched on his shoulder, carrying the lamp. Riku had a quick thought that it would probably be a good idea to confiscate that lamp before Jafar realized this guy had it.

"Hey, hop on!" Aladdin called, offering his hand.

Without hesitation, Riku moved toward the carpet, but he ignored Aladdin's hand and pulled himself up. "Come on, guys!" Then, as an afterthought, "I hope there's enough room on here..."

Goofy didn't even question Aladdin's sudden appearance or how he and Riku knew each other. He slung an arm around Donald and decided to introduce himself to the stranger. "I'm Goofy, and he's Donald! Gawrsh, Donald, say hello!"

Donald had lightened up a little by now, at least enough to be friendly. "Hiiii."

"Hi," Aladdin returned hesitantly, blinking at the two of them, no doubt curious as to their appearances and how they knew Riku. Heck, he was probably still wondering who _Riku_ was. "Are you guys, uh..."

"Ah-hyuk, I'm the prince's royal guard!" Goofy said proudly, pointing at his chest.

"Goofy, we aren't pretending anymore," Mushu said flatly, patting his head, to which Goofy muttered a disappointed, "Oh."

Mushu took that opportunity to stand atop Goofy's hat, squishing it down, and to draw attention to himself. "And _I'm_ the Great Mushu!" he announced. Goofy and Donald were approaching the carpet, so no doubt Aladdin got a good look at the small dragon as they drew close. "Nice to meet you, man. Er, what'd you say your name was? Hey, who are you anyway?"

"I'm Aladdin," he replied, his dark eyes a little wide as he studied them.

"Nice ta meet ya, Aladdin!" Goofy said as he settled onto the carpet, Donald beside him.

Riku saw that there was even some space left over to fit another person, even though it would have been a tight squeeze. At least this worked out for now.

Aladdin laughed at his new friends, accepting them for their oddness despite the questions no doubt waiting at the tip of his tongue. "Well, Donald, Goofy, Mushu—hold on!" he said, eagerness evident in his tone, and he ducked down, clutching the rug with both hands. "Okay, Carpet, let's go! You know the plan!"

And off they went, from zero to _fast_ within a split second, zipping right through the air as if gravity didn't exist. They went back the way Riku had come, and Abu once again started clinging for dear life, and even Donald and Goofy gave surprised cries at the speed and maneuverability of the magic carpet. With Donald clinging to him, and Goofy clinging to Donald and his poofy hat, Riku found himself clinging to Aladdin, not finding anything else to hold onto. When he glanced up, he noticed that Aladdin was looking at him over his shoulder, an expression on his face that told Riku that he was being studied closely again.

Aladdin finally spoke as the carpet darted back through the throne room, high over the heartless below, and his tone was filled with realization, not curiosity like Riku had been expecting. "You're the ones Genie told me about," he said calmly, showing a small grin over his shoulder. But then the carpet took a plunge past the balcony and went hurtling straight towards the ground below. "The prince with another genie!"

"Yeah, but that was just Donald here!" Mushu laughed. "Not a genie!"

Goofy chimed in with, "He's just a court magician, ah-hyuk!" right before pulling his hat over his eyes and letting out a scream as the carpet gained speed the closer it drew to the ground, which was rushing up at them far too fast for Riku to be comfortable with. Donald and Abu joined Goofy's screaming, Mushu not far behind, and Riku had to bite his lip to stifle his own voice, his eyes wide as he watched the garden's grass come into focus, meaning it was too close—_too close_—

_**Too close!**_

His fingers dug into Aladdin's vest as the carpet pulled out of its dive at the last second, spinning like a sideways ballerina, revolving the world around them and making all of them but Aladdin and Riku groan at the sensation of their stomachs turning over.

The carpet slowed then as it dipped between the trees of the garden, cruising through the air with ease, letting its passengers relax. Riku released a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding and slowly loosened his grip on Aladdin. He could feel Aladdin's sides shaking with silent laughter. Then again, had he owned a magic carpet, too, Riku'd have fun messing with guests.

"So, a court magician, huh?" Aladdin asked, picking up their conversation where it had been cut off. "So then you _are_ royalty?"

"Actually, he's a—" Mushu started to reply, but Riku heard Donald's angry squawk and the sound of Mushu's voice being muffled.

"We're not supposed ta meddle," Goofy explained for Donald.

Riku rolled his eyes. "I already told him I was here to save his world from the heartless," he said flatly. "Anyway, we came to the palace to look for the keyhole."

"Keyhole?" Aladdin asked, his voice dropping into a thoughtful tone as if recognizing something about that word.

Riku was about to cut in and explain what it was, when Aladdin's next words made his heart skip.

"Sora asked Genie about that."

His fingers tightened hard in Aladdin's vest as a cold, nervous chill twisted in his gut. When he breathed again, it was shaky, his heart racing in a kind of panic that was as excited as it was scared.

"Hey, wait a sec," Mushu said a moment later, sounding confused. "Sora...?"

"Gawrsh, that's..."

"Where is he now?" Riku asked quickly, his voice sharp and demanding.

"Here somewhere," Aladdin replied, starting to glance over his shoulder to give Riku a questioning look. "We had a plan to—Hey, what are you doing!"

Riku was already pulling away from them and moving towards the edge of the carpet, who felt his eagerness to dismount and started to slow and glide close to the grass. "I have to find him!" he cried. And when he found Sora, he'd pull him aside, never mind the heartless or the keyhole or his duty or _anything_—he'd pull him aside and apologize and pour his heart out and ask for some shred of forgiveness. That's what he'd do. He had to find Sora before he disappeared again!

His feet hit the grass at a run, the carpet rising back into the air before swooping in to follow him for a length, but he ignored it, and he ignored its passengers and their pleas for him to climb back on, that they'd find Sora faster that way.

Riku swallowed past the flood of emotion swelling inside of him. "Go on without me! Get to the cave before Jafar finds you and gets the lamp!"

And with that, he was ducking through the hedges and trees, coming out onto the esplanade, spotting the large fountain and a familiar building up ahead. Without waiting for the carpet to catch up, he darted across the plaza, vaulted over the stairs, and disappeared through the double doors. As he rushed through the room and down the hall, he heard Donald's voice chasing his back.

"Wait _up_, you big palooka!"

That was the first thing Sora heard as he burst out of a breezeway and into the gardens. And he knew that voice! His head snapped left and right, looking for the source of it, and there, starting to circle above the trees, was Aladdin and his carpet, only he had two extra passengers.

Donald and Goofy! But what were _they_ doing here? He hadn't seen them since the coliseum, before... Well, before the whole Hollow Bastion incidents.

"GUYS!" he cried out, tearing down the path at an excited pace, his face lighting up. "Donald! Goofy! Aladdin!"

Wow, what were the odds that Aladdin would have found _them_ here, on this world, of all places!

The three heads and Abu—and was that _Mushu_, too?—turned to spot him. As he rushed towards them, the carpet came swooping low, slowing down to cruise alongside him.

"There you are!" Aladdin breathed in relief, eyeing him with worry. "We just—"

"Sora!" both Donald and Goofy cried, surprised, clambering off the carpet. Sora let out a cry as they crashed into him, enveloping him in hugs, holding him tight and laughing. Even Mushu scrambled up, nuzzling against his neck with a happy chuckle.

Sora stood frozen for those few seconds, digesting their reactions, wondering why they seemed so relieved to see him, and for some reason it made him want to cry. Because he was happy they cared. He slipped his arms around them and hugged them back, giving a laugh that was somewhat hoarse with emotion.

"Where have you been!" Donald demanded.

"And what was with that Id fella?" Goofy asked.

"When you didn't show up with Riku, we were all worried!" Mushu even said, sounding admonishing.

"And you just missed him!" Donald added moodily.

Wait. Missed who?

Sora's eyes widened with comprehension, and he pulled away from them to gape. "Riku—is he—is he _here_? Where is he!" he cried, glancing around. He couldn't have overlooked _Riku_ just like that, could he?

"The idiot ran off!" Mushu huffed.

"We came here disguised as royalty," Goofy explained.

Oh, so he was okay. Riku had been the fake prince? It all kind of made sense now. Of course they'd sneak into the castle to look for a way to save the world...

Sora let out a sigh of relief, placing a hand over his heart, which felt like it was suddenly going to burst with all of the emotions tearing at it. Riku was here somewhere. Maybe he was looking for him, too. Riku was probably fighting for this world.

Sora had to help, too.

"We were just about to go after him," Aladdin offered, still circling them slowly on the carpet.

"There's no time for that, though!" Sora said, turning to him and following him with his eyes. "If there's no prince here to save after all, and no second genie to worry about, then we have to get _your _genie as far away as possible!"

Aladdin's face fell, though, at the mention of the genie, and was that guilt there in his eyes?

"Sora," he said in a regretful tone, the carpet folding downward to let Aladdin step off. His eyes were downcast. "I used up my last wish. You need to take the lamp and use it for me!" And as Sora watched, Aladdin took the lamp from Abu and held it out for him to take, his dark eyes lifting to his, pleading. "I trust you." And he said it so sincerely that Sora didn't have a doubt he meant it.

As Sora took it with a trembling hand, he realized that this meant his mission was technically complete. He'd gotten the lamp. He could have even gone back to the bastion if he wanted.

But he already knew what he was going to do. He'd decided to stay and help, and now that _Riku_ was here, he had all the more reason to stick around. Sora wouldn't be weaker than Riku anymore.

Nodding, he gave Aladdin a resolute look. "You can count on me."

_Rawk!_

A flash of fluttering red and blue suddenly whooshed by, and the weight of the lamp in his hands disappeared. Sora automatically spun around, giving an affronted cry at the petty thief.

"_Hey_!"

Jafar's chubby parrot was already half way across the fountain square though, heading for Jafar's still form. Even with the setting sun casting the gardens in shadows, Jafar's dark figure still seemed like such a stark contrast against the white stone of the plaza. His chin was held aloft, his eyes narrowed, and he had his fingers curled around his staff as usual. He did calmly stretch his other hand out for the lamp, which his bird deposited perfectly into his grasp. Even though Jafar didn't give any indication of enjoying his victory, Sora had no doubt he was dancing on the inside.

"Why Sora," he drawled, "after your impeccable disappearance earlier, I had begun to think you had betrayed us."

Sora honestly couldn't tell if that was sarcasm or not, nor did he know how to react. He was scared to glance at Aladdin and see his reaction, especially after Sora's bold statement of "You can count on me" leading immediately into disaster. Donald and Goofy had moved to his side, their weapons already in their hands, and despite how glad he was that they were willing to fight beside him, he was worried that they were giving him away. As if he hadn't already been given away.

_Playing it ambiguous is always a good strategy, _Id suggested.

_I don't need your help, _he replied, lifting his chin and acting composed. He was trying not to mentally beat himself up over letting his guard down to a _parrot_ of all things.

When Sora didn't respond to his tease, Jafar gave him a vainglorious look and stroked the side of the lamp with his fingers.

Out came Genie, this time without his usual parade, just a simple _pop_ and he was there, looking glum, not even bothering to glance up. "Look, Al, there's nothing you can do, so why don't you just hand me over to—"

"_I _am your new master now," Jafar hissed, drawing Genie's attention to him, "you blue buffoon, and you will do as _I _say!"

Genie's jaw dropped at Jafar's appearance, his finger raising as if he wanted to say something sarcastic. "Iiiiii... don't think this was in the script," he commented, mocking seriousness. He reached behind his back and pulled out a stack of papers, flipping through them as he stroked his beard with a third hand, humming, murmuring to himself. "The part of Al will be played by a tall, dark, and sinister ugly man—"

Jafar's staff abruptly came tearing through Genie's papers, who gave a playful yelp and backed away with his hands up, pretending to get into a martial arts stance. Jafar wasn't in the mood to play, though.

"Enough of your foolish theatrics!" he snapped, lifting his staff in a stance of power. "Genie, I want to make my first wish!"

"I was afraid of that," Genie murmured sardonically before faking an interest, batting his eyelashes. "Right-o, new master. What'll it be?"

"Genie, _no_!" Aladdin cried, and for a moment, Sora thought that he would go tearing across the plaza just to snatch the lamp back, but even though Jafar had not displayed any significant power, they could _feel _the danger radiating off him, and they knew it was wise to stay put and watch what they were about to go up against. Rushing in there like fools would lead to defeat.

"Sorry, Al, new boss," the genie said sadly. "The one who has the lamp calls the shots, you know that."

"Genie, for my first wish, grant me the power to control all heartless!" Jafar crowed, his lips pulling into a maniacal grin.

Sora gaped, turning to Aladdin with a surprised expression. "He can grant something like that?"

"Apparently," Mushu muttered darkly from Sora's hair.

Aladdin gave a grim nod, his eyes trained on Jafar and the genie. "He can grant anything except love, killing someone, or bringing someone back from the dead. And he won't give more wishes. But everything else..." he trailed off.

"Everything else is game," Sora finished for him, returning his attention to the genie, lifting his voice. "Why would you want something stupid like _that_?"

Genie had been pointing his finger at Jafar, just about to grant him his wish, when both he and Jafar glanced at Sora.

Jafar's lips pulled into a disdainful sneer. "Stupid boy! If I control the heartless, I control the fate of _all _worlds, and not even that _witch_ will be able to stop me!" he cried, falling into sinister laughter that sent a chill running up Sora's spine. This guy had lost it.

Though Sora couldn't hear it, he saw Genie's shoulders rise and fall with a soft sigh, and a thin jet of pink magic shot from his finger, hitting Jafar. The pink magic spread into a green fire, consuming Jafar for one fleeting moment as his demented laughter turned high pitched, banshee-like, and when the fire died away, it became a subtle aura of viridian, curling around him and snaking off like the all-too-familiar tendrils of darkness Sora knew.

Eyes wild, Jafar lifted his arms, staff rising, and let out a sharp, bellowing cackle, and that was when Sora knew the genie's magic had worked. He could _feel_ the heartless' presence before he saw them.

A dozen marked heartless began materializing around them as normal shadows climbed out of the ground around to join them, making a strange mix of foes for the equally mismatched heroes wondering just how they were going to fight their way out of this one. Sora had his powers, yes, but he didn't want to use them. Aladdin was weaponless. Sora wasn't sure how strong Donald and Goofy were, let alone Mushu. Abu and Carpet were there to worry about, too...

But he didn't want to leave this to Riku, either, wherever _he_ was.

The heartless took an interest in the group of people standing before Jafar, the blue ones hurrying forward without warning to attack, the shadows creeping around as if waiting for an opening. The creatures surrounded them, bypassing Sora to get at Aladdin and the others, and he heard their determined cries, knowing they wouldn't go down without a fight. That was when Sora felt this overwhelming _rage _at the wrongness of it all. Jafar didn't have the _right_ to such power, he didn't have the _right_ to mess with people's lives like this, and if no one else had the strength to stop him, Sora wasn't just going to stand around and let his friends get hurt.

"_STOP!_"

The heartless froze, hesitating in their actions, wavering, waiting, wondering what their master wanted. Sora balled his hands into fists and glared at Jafar, not caring if it looked like he was pouting or not.

If Jafar hadn't known Sora's powers before, he did now. As Jafar tried to push his control of the heartless forward, Sora shoved back, keeping them from attacking.

Jafar's eyes thinned to angry slits. "Genie," he said coldly. "What is the use of such a malevolent power when even an insignificant _brat_ can wield it. Perhaps I should better demonstrate what its potential is."

The genie twiddled his thumbs, whistling nervously, obviously anticipating the next question with fear. Sora clenched his jaw, dread eating at him as he watched, also suspecting what Jafar was going to ask for next.

"Genie—!" Aladdin cried again from behind Sora.

"My second wish!" Jafar announced, throwing his arms into the air again. "I demand that—"

"Come _back _here, you little bastards!" a frustrated voice abruptly cut through the air.

All heads turned as one as three small heartless went hurriedly floating into the plaza, their yellow bodies dancing nervously, being chased by a very irate and a very familiar figure.

Riku.

Sora's breath caught, his eyes widening as he saw Riku, suddenly feeling as if he were watching through someone else's eyes, the way he noticed every single detail about Riku in that one moment—from the way his silver hair drifted past his shoulders as he ran, to the way those pants he wore showed off a very distinct line of bare skin along his thigh, to the way his attention suddenly averted from the heartless and his face lit with realization as he noticed what situation he had just run into, and to the way his green eyes sharpened and turned straight towards Sora, locking gazes, only then to widen and fill with an indescribable emotion.

Then Sora breathed, and Jafar's voice broke the spell between them.

"Ah, the keyblade master arrives. Now he can witness what he cannot prevent!" he laughed, returning to his vicious glee. "Genie, my second wish! I demand that you show me the keyhole!"

"_NO!_" Sora cried, and without thinking, he launched forward across the plaza. The heartless parted like water around him, letting him through, and somewhere behind him he heard Riku call out to him to stop, but he didn't.

Genie pointedly glanced at Sora, one of his eyes slowly coming down in a wink that Jafar did not see. "One-way ticket to the Cave of Wonders, coming right up," he said, his voice carrying to Sora with meaning, even if he couldn't understand it just yet. Sora just knew he had to do something, even stupid, and he stumbled right as he reached Jafar, who began to ask what he thought he was doing—

And then they were gone.

Riku skidded to a stop right where Sora had disappeared, his eyes scanning the area with disbelief. Winded, heart racing, Riku shook his head, murmuring, "No, no, he was right here," he breathed, "He can't be gone again!" It had happened too fast, way too fast, and he wasn't even sure what was happening anymore. Why had Sora been here? Had he been standing against Jafar? Clutching Oblivion, he gritted his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut, taking a calming breath.

At least one thing was clear. Riku's mission was to the keyhole, and that's where Sora had been taken. This time he didn't have to choose between his heart or his duty.

"Let's go!"

Aladdin's voice cut through his thoughts, and Riku glanced back at him. Now that Sora and Jafar were gone, the heartless had started to react again, deciding that the remaining people with strong hearts would make delectable meals. Having acquired a sword from one of the heartless, Aladdin came swooping up on the carpet, Abu on his shoulder, Goofy and Donald behind him. Mushu was missing. He must have gone with Sora.

Carpet circled Riku once before Aladdin shot Riku a teasing smile. "Are you coming or not? _We're_ headed to Cave of Wonders."

Riku gave him a hopeful look. "You know where it is?"

"Yup. That's where I got the lamp!"

Well, hell!

Riku broke into a grin and held out his hand, deciding that help may not be such a bad thing after all. Aladdin pulled him up onto the carpet with ease, and Riku curled his hands into Aladdin's vest to hold on.

"Glad you could join us, Riku!" he heard Goofy's short laugh from behind him.

And off they went, racing out towards the setting sun and the vast sea of desert beyond the walls of Agrabah.

-o-o-

Sora did not appreciate being deposited right onto his butt. He let out a surprised yelp at the impact, his hands immediately flailing out to catch his balance, his palms slapping sandy stone. Lifting his gaze, confused, he surveyed his surroundings, realizing they were no longer in the palace gardens, but now in a humid cave somewhere. A decorative archway opened to his back, and across the cave was what seemed to be the entrance into this place, but the genie had provided them the easy, instantaneous way in. Carved platforms sat both here and at the entrance, and these, along with the rippling blue rock floor of the center of the cave, led Sora to believe this place was some sort of holy or ritualistic ground. That archway behind him had been built with a purpose.

The purpose of which became very evident as the genie waved his hand and, after a shimmering curtain of light descended through the arch, a glowing keyhole was revealed on the blank wall beyond. _The_ keyhole.

Jafar eyed Sora with distaste before deciding to ignore him, his attention drawn to what he had wished for. His parrot, however, kept his eye on Sora, definitely not underestimating his potential to meddle with Jafar's plans.

Why had Sora been brought along when Genie could have easily left him behind? Jafar had wished for Genie to reveal the keyhole—but what did that have to do with Sora? The genie had winked at him... He must have bent the rules in hopes of Sora being able to stop Jafar somehow.

Getting to his feet, Sora watched the vizier, feeling a burning resentment for the man. Fight heartless against heartless? No, he didn't want to try that. Jafar had his staff, too. Sora wasn't sure what he was capable of, but he was pretty sure the guy wasn't totally helpless.

"Man, this is looking bad," Mushu commented, startling Sora out of his thoughts, who had been so absorbed in the situation that he had completely forgotten the weight on his shoulder.

"Wah!"

"Hi to you, too," Mushu said dryly, tugging on a lock of his hair. "Look, we gotta stop him somehow."

Jafar was approaching the keyhole, looking positively malicious. The parrot took flight from Jafar's shoulder, clutching the lamp in its talons, and disappeared off into the cave.

"I know, I know," Sora whispered, glancing at the genie, who was hovering nervously just outside the archway, glancing from Sora to Jafar to Sora again. "But it's not like I can just attack him with heartless. He can control them _too_."

"This is it," Jafar announced, his tone curling with sadistic delight. "Hahaha, this is it, Iago! Behold!"

The fingers of Jafar's free hand fanned out before suddenly thrusting forward, straight into the keyhole, which shimmered and rippled outward. Then, slow at first, the green aura around Jafar returned, flaring up, twisting and curling, snaking along his arm and into the keyhole. Heartless began to spring out of the air and from the ground, disappearing into the precious heart of the world.

Almost immediately, Sora felt a sickness clench in his gut, his heart turning cold.

This was wrong.

He recognized this feeling. He'd felt this on Snow White's world, this poisonous, _dark_ feeling, dark at its true essence, as it was meant to be used. The world was starting to die.

Was this what Sora was destined to do, too? Was that why he had been given these stupid powers?

No.

By the _light_, **_no_**, he didn't want this kind of power at all!

Emotion welling up inside of him, he clenched his fists and started forward, his fear leaving him as he approached the crazed vizier, who had fallen into a tirade of mad laughter. "Jafar, _stop!_"

The man's laugh cut short, and he calmly turned his gaze without moving his head, regarding Sora as if he would an insect. Then, without speaking, he grinned and waved his staff.

Sora felt something tighten in his throat, and when he opened his mouth to shout at Jafar, nothing came out. Not a sound. _Oh_, what Sora wouldn't give for a weapon, like Einlanzer, or even that keyblade Yami had given him. He'd carve Jafar a new butthole!

Close by, the sound of someone clearing his throat caught his attention, and Sora glanced at the genie to find him trying to subtly gesture at Jafar. Once he saw he had Sora's attention, the genie drew a shape in the air with his hands, a small shape. Kind of like a...

Lamp!

He who had the lamp called the shots!

Sora honed in on the parrot's red form circling the cave. He knew that the genie probably couldn't help Sora get rid of the stupid bird, since it belonged to his new master, but Sora wasn't bound by any rules of the lamp.

After a failed attempt to call out to Mushu, remembering his voice was cut off, Sora tapped him on the head and gestured hurriedly at the parrot.

Mushu straightened himself and rubbed his hands together, grinning with malicious pleasure up at the bird. "Gotcha, pal!" he said. "Launch me!"

Sora plucked the dragon from his shoulder, wound his arm back, and threw him with all of his strength. With the practice of throwing coconuts for island war all those years, Sora's aim was almost perfect, and Mushu flew through the air with his claws outstretched.

"Look, Ma, no wings!" he cackled. "Heeeeere, birdie, birdie! We're having sweet and sour chicken to-_night_!"

"What the—!" the parrot cried, starting to flap faster once it saw Mushu was headed straight for it.

But it was too late. Mushu collided with the bird, and Sora watched as dragon and parrot duked it out, talons to talons, scales against feathers, teeth against beak, a mid-air battle for possession of the lamp. It ended quickly with the bird swatting Mushu off of it with a wing, but as Mushu fell, he didn't go without a last hit. His skinny body coiled, and he shot a small flame right at the parrot, who cried out and dropped the lamp in its panic to put out its burning feathers.

"AH, IT'S HOT, IT'S HOT, JAFAR, IT'S **HOT**!" it screamed, right before flying straight into the cave wall and crumpling to the floor, a mess of singed red feathers.

Mushu bounced against the stone ground, laughing at his victory—"Take _that_! The Great Mushu prevails again!"—only to have the lamp land right on his head a moment later. He collapsed backwards with a groan.

But the lamp rested harmlessly on the floor, waiting to be retrieved.

Without hesitation, Sora leapt off the stone platform and charged straight for it, letting all fear and worry escape him, hearing only the pounding of his heart as he sprinted across the cave towards the glinting prize.

-o-o-

The night sky cast everything in a shade of indigo, but even then, the rolling dunes of the desert all looked the same to Riku, who wondered how Aladdin knew where they were going. Since they had left Agrabah, darkness had crept over the land. Literally. The sea of black chasing them was growing, spreading, polluting. Heartless were multiplying in droves behind them, countless voices translated to Riku from his keyblade. They sprung from the dunes like weeds of death, spreading out over the sand below as ants would, corroding and decaying even the sand.

And through all of their hungry whispers, there was one constant voice under it all, a low, mournful song of pain caressing Riku's ears. It was the world itself, and it was dying, and the keyblade returned its song with a croon as though to soothe it. If the world was dying, Jafar had reached the keyhole after all.

Riku couldn't let this place end up like Snow White's world.

"We're almost there!" Aladdin called, his voice escaping into the howling wind. Riku's one-handed grip grew tighter on his vest. "It's just up ahead!"

A massive, dark shape loomed out of the dunes in front of them, round and thrashing and creating a thunderous sound not unlike a roar, and as the carpet sped across the sands, Riku saw the figure come into focus. It was a giant tiger's head, its maw open and releasing what was indeed an angry roar, and the source of its anger was the swarm of squirming heartless surrounding it.

The Cave of Wonders. Unenterable except by the chosen one, Yami had said. But if he had the keyblade, he could unlock it.

"Gawrsh, it looks mad..." Goofy commented. He sounded worried. "Think it'll let us in?"

"Why don't you go down there and ask it for us?" Donald suggested, giving an amused snigger.

"It'll let us in," both Aladdin and Riku announced at the same time, followed by a "Huh?" as they glanced at each other.

"How do _you_ know?" Riku asked.

"It let me in last time," Aladdin explained. "That's how I got the lamp and this carpet. And you?"

"The keyblade—my weapon—should be able to let us in."

"Well, then it works out, ahyuk!" Goofy laughed, to which Donald released a skeptical harrumph.

Riku held Oblivion's grip more firmly as he drew the blade up, steadying himself as he aimed the tip of the key at the tiger's head. "Carpet. Dive towards its mouth. If this doesn't work, pull up and let us off at a safe distance, and maybe we can try beating it senseless to see if it'll let us in."

"If _what_ doesn't work?" Aladdin asked, throwing a glance over his shoulder again, taking in the sight of Oblivion's poised blade.

"Unlocking it, of course," Riku replied with a subtle smirk. He met his gaze briefly as if to ask, _Have a problem with that?_

Aladdin lifted his brows. "All right." Then, ducking down, he tensed, calling out, "Okay, Carpet, you heard the man! Everyone, hang on!"

The carpet obeyed, ascending high above the cave's entrance. Riku's clothes did nothing to protect him from the chill of the thin night air, a small shiver tickling along his spine, though that could have been from the hint of fear he felt when he thought about how much it would suck if he fell from this height. He couldn't afford to have those kinds of thoughts right now, though.

Riku carefully shifted into a kneeling position and balanced himself against Aladdin's back, releasing his vest to grasp the keyblade with both hands. As the carpet slowed and prepared for its dive, Riku's stability faltered a little, and he suddenly felt hands against his arms and shoulders, keeping him steady.

"Careful," Donald warned.

"Wouldn't want the keyblade master to go falling off, now, you know!" Goofy added.

Letting their grips secure his place on the rug, he relaxed, allowing himself a small smile. "Thanks," he said.

"Here we go!" Aladdin cried, and Riku suddenly felt the floor drop from below him, the rug falling almost straight down, sending its passengers leaning back to keep their balance. Air screaming past his ears, almost drowning out even Abu's screeching, Riku squinted down at the dark entrance rushing up at them, his grip on the keyblade steady, the point hardly wavering despite the turbulence of the dive.

He breathed in and held it. Closing his eyes, he went deep inside of himself, listening to the keyblade's power humming around him, thrumming in time with his rising pulse, as if begging to be used. He reached out to its call, its warmth curling around him and through him like a deep, sensual caress, unwinding his defenses like fingers in soft hair. Everything had gone silent except for the sound of his racing heart. He exhaled.

Slipping his eyes open, he saw the writhing, dark mass of the tiger's head, and it was nothing to him.

_Sora's in there, _was his fleeting thought. And that was all that mattered. The keyblade understood.

An intense glow emanated from Oblivion, illuminating his surrounding world like a flash of lightning, the eerie calm before the storm, before the light burst outward in an immense shockwave of shimmering, scintillating fragments, completely obliterating the nearest heartless and purifying the darkening, corroding sand, right before a powerful jet of focused light struck the tiger's forehead.

A thunderous roar rolled over him as the light cleared and his senses returned, the wind and the tiger and the heartless and his friends all screaming at once, and maybe he was, too. As the keyblade's warmth slid from his heart, its job done for now, a wave of dizziness slammed into him, enough to disorient him even more, but the hands supporting him tightened, and he knew he was safe.

The tiger's head settled almost immediately, still and statuesque, and not even the heartless could stop the carpet from sweeping right through its maw and into the depths of the Cave of Wonders.

-o-o-

Sora folded his legs and fell into a slide, gliding across the slick stone with his hand outstretched, his fingers catching the brass lamp as he swept by, and with it secure in his hand, he stumbled back to his feet and spun around.

But Jafar was already gone, no longer at the keyhole.

Panicked, Sora did the only thing he could think of. He held up the lamp and started to call out to Genie.

"FOOL!"

An invisible force smashed into him, hurling him onto the ground, and he cried out as he slid backwards across the stone without losing momentum. He crashed into the far wall, the impact sending a sharp pain up his back, his vision exploding with stars.

"You think you can stop _me_?" Jafar demanded, suddenly so close to him—how had he gotten there so fast?—his cold, bony hand striking Sora's cheek before snatching the lamp away from the boy's strong grip. "You are a _rat_, and a poor one at that."

Sora groaned, sinking to the floor, holding his head and squinting up at Jafar through the pain, who was gliding back to the keyhole.

"This world shall die with all of you pathetic halfwits in it, and I will live on, ruling over worlds worthier of my gain!"

Gritting his teeth, Sora climbed back to his feet, pushing a hand against the wall for support as he collected himself and waited for the world to stop spinning around him. Jafar was going off into another explosion of evil laughter as he reached the keyhole, turning to face Sora, his manic grin spreading.

"And you shall watch as I take full control of the powers of the universe!"

What? What else could the psycho want that would make him even more powerful?

"Genie! My final wish!"

Oh no—! What was Sora supposed to do? He could hardly stand!

"Here we go..." Genie sighed softly.

"I want to become an all-powerful genie!" Jafar cried, throwing his arms out and tilting his head back. "Hahahaha!"

"One fiery apocalypse, served with swarms of little black creatures and no hope for mankind. Just what I always wanted," Genie murmured darkly. "I didn't know they had that on the menu."

Gasping, Sora stumbled away from the wall, face filling with disbelief as he watched the genie sadly point at Jafar and grant his wish. Like before, the pink magic spread like flames, swirling and swirling around Jafar's skeletal figure, starting to transform him.

"Ooooh, he's lost it, he's cracked," came a comment from nearby. It was the parrot.

"I shoulda stayed with Mulan," Mushu cut in with a dramatic sniffle, wiping a fake tear. He and the parrot were standing together at Sora's feet, swathed in Jafar's suddenly towering shadow. "Now I'll never see her and her hubby together or any of her lil babies grow up and call me Uncle Mushu. Forget the job as a guardian I'll never get back. I could've made do with gong duty!"

Sora's eyes lifted up, and up, and up, widening as he watched Jafar's body twist and grow. The once-vizier's clothes vanished into smoke, leaving his broadening chest bare, his legs twisting into a swirl of mist like Genie's, his eyes slanted and yellow, hat gone and revealing a smooth, bald head save for a black tail in the back. As he continued to grow, his laugh deepened, becoming diabolic, his form soon outgrowing the cavern itself.

"Out of the way!" Sora cried, reacting quickly and snatching the dragon from the floor.

Adrenaline rushed through him, fueling his nerves and mind and numbing his pain for now, and he dove for the nearest stone platform, grasping onto the edge with one hand as the floor gave way to make room for Jafar's continued transformation. The parrot had taken flight with ease, and it circled Sora once before spotting something and diving through the collapsed floor after Jafar. Fingers straining, Sora bit his lip and tried to pull himself up, his other arm cradling Mushu.

"Sora, this is crazy-people stuff!" he shouted.

"I'm slipping!" he choked out, feeling his fingers weakening.

Mushu's claws dug into Sora's arm, and he started to pull away from his grasp. "I got ya, now let go and climb!"

Sora started to without hesitation, his other arm reaching up to grasp the edge, but the cavern shook violently just then, throwing off his balance. His fingers finally lost their grip, swiping blindly to grasp onto a handhold, and met air.

"We're gonna DIE!" Mushu shrieked.

And as Sora let loose a terrified scream, realizing he was just about to plummet hundreds of feet to a very quick and painful death, he caught sight of something white amongst the monotony of the cavern, and his wrist was suddenly snagged by something cold, dark, and elastic, intercepting his fall. He jerked to an abrupt stop in midair, his arm straining but held securely.

Sora's gaze focused, traveling upward to the tendril of darkness wrapped firmly around his wrist and to the tanned face and yellow eyes and curtain of white hair of the man who had just saved him. Yami's expression gave nothing away as Sora gaped up at him, watery eyes filled with astonishment.

"Maleficent has some use for me after all," Yami said calmly and pulled back, flicking his wrist up. The ribbon of darkness that held Sora easily hefted him over the edge of the platform, setting him gently on his feet.

"H-How—?" Sora started to stammer, not quite in control of his body yet, and he reached out to clamp onto Yami's arm to steady himself, his knees shaking. He'd almost fallen that far. His mind could barely process that he'd been about to die.

"How what?" Yami asked with a small smile, lowering his hand. The darkness retracted from Sora's wrist, and Yami didn't seem to be bothered by Sora's closeness. "How did I get here? How did I know that the vizier was going to become a nonsensical traitor that needs disposing of?"

"Man, call him what he is!" Mushu said hysterically, now on Sora's shoulder and waving his hands. "Raving lunatic!"

"Raving lunatic," Yami agreed, his eyes shifting from Sora to the evil genie still guffawing down below. "What a fool..."

Finally catching his breath and getting his mind back in focus, Sora released Yami. "The world is dying," he said, making his worry obvious in his tone. He wasn't sure what he was expecting Yami to say about that, but the result shouldn't have surprised him.

"That it is, but it should not be our concern," he replied. His lips slowly formed a frown. He still hadn't looked away from Jafar yet. "Even after the spectacle she made of my uselessness, she still sent me to take care of things. To dispose of the worthless traitor."

"_How_?" Sora asked, trying to imagine Yami hacking away at the giant red genie with his winglike weapon and _winning_. It wasn't working.

But Yami calmly glanced back at him, his frown pulling into a subtle smirk. "Genies have hearts as well," he said in a smooth voice, raising his hand towards Jafar. Sora didn't have to look to feel the heartless creeping into existence nearby, heeding Yami's silent call, and the immensity of their numbers and strength was something Sora hadn't been expecting from Yami. With the big fuss he'd made about the darkness trying to eat away at his heart, why was he still trying to wield such a dangerous power?

"_No_," Sora stated firmly, swiping his hand through the air. He didn't like this at all. Even if Yami had just saved his neck, Sora wasn't about to let him do whatever he wanted. With relative ease, Sora sent out a silent command for the heartless to stay back, and they did, banished before they could really appear.

Yami wasn't angry like he expected him to be, but he did watch Sora with an air of curiosity.

"You don't need to use that kind of power," Sora said. He gestured with his head down towards Jafar. "You'll be just like _him_ if you do."

And there, for just an instant, Sora saw guilt in Yami's eyes as he hesitated. Sora looked away, trying to find another way to defeat Jafar, and fast. The gigantic genie was destroying the ground of the cave, sending rock and flame into the air, and the violent impact of his fists pounding away kept the cave shaking. Pretty soon, it'd probably start to collapse.

A hint of fluttering red caught his attention, and he squinted, realizing that the parrot was flying around down there, and it was struggling along as if weighed down by something extremely heavy.

"The parrot," Sora murmured.

Mushu leaned forward and also squinted to look. "He's carrying... _two_ lamps."

"Two," Sora repeated thoughtfully, Genie's words beginning to come back to him. "I have an idea!" he exclaimed, pointing forward. "See that bird? If we get at least _one_ of those lamps..."

Yami flashed him a brief but amused smile before he suddenly grabbed Sora and pulled him close. Sora didn't know what he was doing at first, but when he felt the familiar cold wash of darkness, and the world around him shimmered and grew black, he understood. A portal. The world reappeared around him a moment later, except this time he and Yami (and Mushu) were on a safe, untouched spot of the floor of the cavern, and Jafar was towering high above them, the lower half of his body submerged in molten lava as if it were just water.

They didn't escape Jafar's notice, and when he saw that Yami was there as well, his laughter grew louder.

"Ah—the _other_ brat arrives! Now I can dispose of all of you at once!"

His voice boomed through the vast cavern, making the very rock they stood on tremble. Without warning, Yami took off running, light and agile as he leapt over jagged rock and streams of lava. Yami was heading straight for the parrot, but if Jafar noticed what they were trying, things would get bad!

"Target practice!" Jafar bellowed.

Sora had to do something!

"Mushu, hang on!" he called. He grabbed the nearest palm-sized rock he could find, and he hurled it at Jafar as hard and high as he could, yelling out to him. "Over _here_, you oversized tomato!"

The rock bounced harmlessly off Jafar's hip, but it was enough to catch his attention. His head swiveled around, those slanted eyes narrowing at him as he let out an annoyed growl. Sora fanned his hands out by his ears and made a face at the evil genie, blowing a raspberry.

This time the growl was furious, and Sora knew he had been successful at pissing him off. Jafar's house-sized hands dove straight into the lava and lifted a large, dripping, flaming globe of DEATH, and heaved it above his head.

As Jafar's laughter slowed into a rumbling, sinister chuckle, Sora suddenly felt very tiny under the shadow of the huge ball of fire.

"Oops."

"Uh, Sora," Mushu uttered, deadpan while tugging weakly at his eartail. "Now would be a good time to run."

Jafar started to arch his arms back, and Sora's flight instincts finally kicked in. He let out a panic-stricken wail and promptly turned tail and ran, stumbling over loose rock in his hurry to get away. He literally felt the air shake and heard the terrible _whoosh_ of the massive, fiery ball as it came hurling right towards him, the hiss of steam and the crack of flames almost deafening as it drew closer with nerve-racking velocity, the intense heat searing, suffocating. Heart in his throat, he flew over the terrain, feet catching on sharp rock, threatening to send him crashing into the ground, but he kept his footing, pure fear keeping him from turning to look behind him to see his eminent demise because he was _not_ running fast enough and was _not _going to get out of the way in time and oh no _oh no **oh no**! _It was _on him and he was going to—_

"_Sora!_"

—die!

He squeezed his eyes shut and shrieked as the colossal impact sent him flying through the air, a tremendous shockwave rattling the cavern, flames licking his ankles as he was carried away—and away—and—wait. He wasn't landing?

Wind rustled his hair as he lifted his face, feeling warm arms tighten around his waist. A protective embrace. The intricate design of a rug lay beneath his hands, and he realized he had just been swept up and rescued by Aladdin's magic carpet. His breath caught in his throat, and he snapped his gaze up, meeting his savior's eyes with shock. They were green.

And beyond Riku's face, he could see Aladdin steering the carpet with his hands around its front tassels, Abu squeezed between their bodies and paralyzed with fear. Sora returned his eyes to Riku's, his lips parting to say something, _anything_, his heart hammering from his nearest panic attack, but he only managed a choked sound.

"W-We're not dead?" Mushu asked in wonder, popping up from underneath his tunic. "By the ancestors, we're not DEAD!"

But Sora hardly heard him, focused entirely on Riku, whose unwavering gaze softened at his own watering eyes, and he watched Riku's face fill with an incredibly sincere look, like he wanted to spill out a hundred sentences at once, too. It was right then that Sora knew how sorry Riku was.

"INCOMING!"

Aladdin's voice rang out right before another giant ball of flame went sailing towards the ground, this time too close to maneuver around, and the carpet went into a steep dive, zooming under it, heat chasing their backs. The quake that followed this one was too much for the carpet, and it went end over up, spilling its passengers onto the loose rocks, Donald and Goofy flying over Riku and Sora's heads, landing a few feet away. The momentum sent the boys rolling over the ground, still clutching one another, and there was a disorienting moment as they finally came to a stop, dazed and bruised but not too terribly injured.

"You okay?" Riku breathed into his ear.

Sora shivered, a pleasant feeling amongst the chaos, and he nodded, getting to his feet and helping Riku up. As soon as they were both standing, Riku was tugging them to safety, his eyes trained on the still collapsing floor from the cavern above, which had begun to bombard them with rubble. As if they didn't have enough to worry about!

"Left!" Mushu cried. "No wait—RIGHT! RIGHT!"

Sora threw them to the right just as a boulder came crashing down, but it wasn't enough to escape the shower of smaller rocks that followed. Sora threw his arms over Riku's head, who had simultaneously summoned his keyblade and used his free arm to pull Sora closer, ducking their heads down, but the impact never came.

A great swirl of air surrounded them, fluttering their clothes and hair, smelling of deep pine—magic—and blocked the smaller rocks, Donald's triumphant cry soon following after. Goofy was there in a flash, his shield held steadfastly over his head, knocking back the heavier pieces of debris.

"Take that!" Donald shouted, followed by Goofy's short, familiar laugh.

"That's right!" Mushu cried, scrambling on top of Sora's head to shake a fist at Jafar. "Try that again, I dare ya!"

"_Mushu!_" both Sora and Riku chimed, admonishing, and they briefly glanced at one another before returning their attention to Jafar, whose attention was still on them, and was growing increasingly frustrated.

He drew his hands back into the lava, releasing an earthshaking bellow, and launched a new flaming chunk of magma up at the remaining wedge of ceiling over them, shattering it. The mess of molten rock and rain came pouring down around them, too widespread to avoid, too lethal to take in stride, and for a moment none of them moved, just watching it as it fell, but instinct took over and they all ducked, shielding their heads.

A brush of coldness passed over them like a night breeze, and Sora peeked up through his hands to watch as countless ribbons of darkness snapped across the cavern, rapidly weaving into a makeshift net, capturing the falling debris and stretching, the hammock of darkness sagging under the weight. A few small rocks slipped through, sprinkling on their heads, and it was enough for the others to look up as well, confused as to the weakened collision.

Just a small shape amongst the steep, serrated patches of the cavern's incline, Yami had found his way up midway. He had his hand stretched out in their direction, and it was obvious who had just woven the dark web.

"Move!"

And even with the distance between their positions, they heard him clearly. His magic could only hold out for so long.

This time Sora grabbed Riku, and he yanked him in Yami's direction, his breath burning in his throat as he raced across the uneven ground, hoping neither of them tripped.

"GUYS!"

Aladdin's voice.

Both boys turned their heads, recognizing the cry for help. Somehow, Aladdin had escaped most of the falling rubble, but Carpet had been caught beneath a large boulder that looked too heavy to move, even with a joint effort.

"Aladdin!" Sora cried.

"He saved me!" Aladdin called, voice breaking with worry. "Pushed me out of the way! I can't leave him here! I can't!"

Donald and Goofy were already leaping over obstacles, branching off from Riku and Sora to help Aladdin, but Sora knew without a doubt that they wouldn't be able to get Carpet free without some kind of miracle.

Sora continued in Yami's direction, running like the wind, for once glad that Riku was as fast as him, for they raced together, side by side, sharp stones slicing and stabbing feet, but the pain was second to the thrill of outrunning danger with the one person he wouldn't trade for anything.

"What do you think you little rats are doing!" Jafar demanded, his voice sending small tremors throughout the cavern again, raining down more ruins. His hands were diving into the lava again, preparing another massive attack. "How many times must I kill you!"

There, high above them, beating jadedly at the air, was the parrot, and there, hefting himself up onto a higher ledge, was Yami, just in the line of sight, and Sora knew it was time.

"YAMI! Do it!"

Almost immediately, dark vines shot out of the ground, spiraling upward before slowing, arching over the parrot, before they suddenly snapped together and caught the bird between them, and jerked it towards the ground, its little body thrashing against its binds, wings flapping wildly.

"JAFAR! They got me, Jafar! _HELP!_"

Sora and Riku reached the parrot just as it was about to crash into the rocks, and Sora made a dive for its loot, snatching both lamps from it. He fell into a roll, coming to a stop with the treasures clutched to his chest, and he struggled to his feet, breathless. Two strong hands held him steady, and Sora was able to lift the black lamp that he knew had to be the free prize that Jafar had won with his last wish.

"Sora, what are you—" Riku began to ask, but Sora cut him off, thrusting his hands into the air to display the lamp. Jafar's head had turned towards the sound of his parrot's voice, and those empty yellow eyes widened with fear when he realized what Sora was proudly holding up.

"Power comes with a price, Jafar!" Sora yelled. "Into your prison!"

A surge of wind and flame spiraled outward from the lamp, and Sora watched with bated breath as Jafar's oversized form began to twirl and shrink, a scream of absolute fury thundering throughout the cavern, shaking the foundation, but Sora kept still, eyes locked onto the red genie. Behind him, he felt Riku's presence, watching without intervening, knowing this wasn't his show, and Sora felt a swell of pride inside of him knowing that he could play hero, too, that for once things were going his way.

As the cyclone named Jafar began to draw closer, Yami's dark binds snapped free and the parrot leapt to the air, tasting freedom one last time with a panicked cry, right before Jafar's outstretched hand snagged his blue tail feathers and jerked the bird right along with him, getting sucked into their itty-bitty new living space with a satisfying _pop_.

Sora released a long, relieved sigh, feeling the dark lamp vibrate in his hands with angry power, and he could have sworn he heard a few irate mutterings from within it. Other than that and the occasional rumble of loose rocks, silence reigned within the wrecked cavern.

A warm hand rested on his shoulder, and Sora turned to face Riku, his fingers tightening around the lamp briefly before he stretched his hands out, offering the evil item to Riku.

"Here."

He saw Riku's gaze hesitantly lower to the lamp, but he nodded and took it. Sora retrieved Genie's lamp from where it had landed during his haste to confine Jafar, and they both stood there awkwardly in the silence, hearts still racing.

"You did great," Riku said, his tone careful but honest.

"Thanks," Sora replied as he rewarded himself with a quick glance at the rest of Riku. "You look..."

A number of emotions passed through Riku's expression just then, and Sora tried to read all of them, wondering what they meant.

"Like a girl!" Donald called.

"An important prince, ahyuk!"

"I still say Chinese courtesan," Mushu sighed from Sora's shoulder, chin propped in a hand.

_Screech!_

"I don't know, I thought he was a harem girl at first," Aladdin admitted.

Riku's brow furrowed at their comments, his eyes flicking in their direction where Carpet was still trapped, before he glanced at Sora again. "...stupid?" he offered in a murmur.

And Sora couldn't help smiling a little at Riku's reaction because it was _so _unlike him to act like this in front of other people. He was used to Riku's proud demeanor, even if it was for show. So Sora didn't bother resisting the urge to tease him.

"No, actually, I was thinking you looked really hot," he said, managing to sound completely casual. "But... you did lose a lot of weight," he added in a thoughtful tone. Which was true. It kind of worried him. Maybe Riku had had it almost as rough as he had...

But the hint of red that painted Riku's cheeks was well worth the statement, and he was glad he had said it when he did because the cavern began to rumble again. The shaking was soft at first, but as they stood there, lifting their gazes to see what the situation was now, it became evident that this small quake was just the beginning of something a lot worse.

"The keyhole!" Riku shouted. "The world is still dying! I need to get to the keyhole!"

Sora nodded quickly and did the first thing he could think of. He rubbed Genie's lamp, summoning him back out to join the party, and maybe Genie had been listening or watching somehow the whole time, because he didn't start off with his usual magic show, opting instead to hover in front of Sora with a worried look.

"Well, new master, what'll it be? And I'd advise to make it snappy 'cuz I do _not_ want to stick around to see this old house's renovations."

Grinning despite the situation, Sora indeed made it snappy. "First wish—free Carpet!" he said.

"Cinch."

And it was. Genie gave a sharp snap of his fingers, and the boulder weighing the magic carpet down disappeared. As soon as it was free, Carpet shot up into the air and did a happy twirl before circling back down.

Aladdin was quick to mount it, and he gestured hurriedly for the others. "Come on before it gives!"

As Goofy and Donald clambered onto it, both Riku and Sora hesitated and glanced across the cavern as if searching for someone, but there was no dark figure there any longer, no trace that he had been there at all. Then, with the walls shaking with tremendous strain and rocks beginning to slide down the sharp inclines of this deep cavern, Abu screeched at them to hurry up, and Riku sprinted forward, Sora at his heels.

"Come on, come on!" Aladdin cried, his eyes flitting upward to watch rubble shower down around them.

"We have to go _now_!" came from Mushu, who had his small hands tightly clenched in Sora's hair. "Now now _now!_"

But even though they could have all fit on the carpet, there wasn't enough time, not with the place collapsing around them!

"Genie! Second wish—get all of us to the keyhole before we die!" Sora screamed, just as a boulder the size of _him _crashed down in front of him, another one almost hitting Riku. "NOW!"

And when he blinked, they had already been teleported, and he flailed out in surprise with a cry, falling forward with his momentum against Riku, who had managed to get his balance first. Riku stumbled a bit but kept his footing, shooting Sora a tiny smile, and he moved to stand in front of the keyhole, one hand grasping Jafar's lamp, his other hand already grasping his keyblade.

The cavern was still caving in around them, but at least here in the archway, the stone platform was mostly stable, and Aladdin and the others were still on the carpet, ready to take off when ready.

A comforting light stretched from the keyblade to the archway, the keyhole shimmering, the aura of a doorway outlining itself against the blank wall, emanating brightly for a moment before there was a final, definitive click of a lock being put into place.

Almost immediately, Sora felt the poisonous feeling of the dying world diminish, instead leaving a hollow, sad trace of a broken home. This place had suffered too much damage prior to the sealing of the keyhole. No doubt life here would never be the same. Sora even doubted that many people were left alive. He wondered if the others had thought the same thing or not, but they were busy watching Riku expectantly, who had just let his keyblade disappear again.

Riku's shoulders sagged a little, and almost as if in agreement, the cavern gave a final quake before settling for now, probably waiting for the perfect moment to collapse for good.

It was over. At least for this world.

Sora wondered what exactly lay in store for him back at Hollow Bastion where Maleficent was waiting. Yami was already gone again, but he had been sent to take care of Jafar. Did that mean that Sora wouldn't get in trouble for working against Jafar after all?

"SO!"

Sora jumped a little as Genie's big blue face popped up right in front of him, and that was when he noticed he was still carrying his lamp. He glanced around to see that now everyone was looking at _him_, including Riku. Oh. Right.

"Um..."

"You have one more wish!" Genie announced, holding out a single finger that happened to be in the shape of the actual Roman numeral. "What'll it be? Fame? Fortune? Restoring this place to its grandeur? Or how about a nice ice cream sundae, because I make one _mean_ banana split."

Sora blinked down at the lamp, not watching the Genie's magical antics. His mind was busy comprehending what was being suggested. He had a wish. For himself. He could wish for _anything_ he wanted.

"My... wish..." he murmured, and his eyes rose to meet Riku's, whose expression was guarded, but at least his eyes were open and so readable in that one moment. They were sharing the same thoughts.

Sora suddenly missed home, Destiny Islands, with the sound of the waves and the crying gulls and the way the sun poured through his bedroom window in the morning. He couldn't help remembering the conversation he'd had with Beast back in the dungeons and what he had said at the time, that he had wished there was some way he could change everything back to normal, to undo everything bad that had been done. And at that moment, he did wish that, he wished he was back home, curled up in bed talking with Riku like the old times, that Kairi was alive and so was his mom and all his friends, that maybe Kairi was even _here_ with them, or that he and Riku had never left home, or that the heartless had never attacked. He wished he had never trusted Yami or let Riku walk out of the room that night he'd had a bad feeling.

He could put an end to all of this mess.

He could...

He could even get Jasmine back for Aladdin, so at least someone could be happy with the person they loved. He could wish for the end of the heartless. He could follow Genie's suggestion and wish to restore this world, or all worlds.

_His _world.

What he would give for that...

But Sora bit his lip, faltering, studying the individual grooves of the decorations around the top of the lamp, and how sleek and polished it looked after all it had gone through.

Then, clenching his jaw, he made up his mind.

He couldn't wish for anything he wanted, because no matter what he chose, he'd regret not choosing something else. He'd wonder forever what could have been done differently. This was a terrible power, and he wouldn't want to wish it on anyone.

"Genie," he said softly, but his tone was resolute. "I wish for your freedom."

That way, _no one_ could have this selfish power.

And as the others gasped and something magically wonderful started to happen to Genie, Sora tore his eyes away, dropped the useless lamp, and told himself not to regret his choice.

His eyes lifted briefly to meet Riku's hurt gaze, and he offered only a small, apologetic smile before he summoned a portal of darkness just like Yami had done earlier. He slipped into it, before anyone could stop him, welcoming its cold familiarity, and for some reason, it felt good.

* * *

-o-o-

:dies: What a BEAST of a chapter. That was incredibly _fun_ to write, and damn difficult to plan! I hope it didn't disappoint. If it's not too much trouble, I would be thrilled to hear some of your responses to the action scenes in this chapter. I feel like I worry too much about my writing style lately, so any tips would be welcome. Even a "I liked this part!" helps a bunch!

This part of the story is really fun and challenging to write, and it makes me giddy every time I think about the stuff that's coming up!

**NOTE: **If you review, please do NOT post any spoilers from this chapter **OR** KH2. There will be people reading the reviews who haven't had a chance to read the chapter or play the game yet. Please be courteous. If you want to make a spoilerish comment, private message me or send me an email. Thanks!


	35. Ch 21: Chain of Memories part one

_Author Notes:_

Happy **fourth** birthday, Stygian Solace. I'm starting to worry about how long this is taking... ;0; Thank you, all you wonderful readers, for sticking around, and giving your encouragement.

Early October, I posted the **Yami/Riku **lemon on my site. It got pretty good feedback, so check it out.

Oh, and now that KH2 is out everywhere, I get to start tying in the new knowledge! Yay for expanding plot and finally getting to answer some questions about the prestory and stuff! Yes, this chapter title is misleading, hurr hurr, but it fits _later_. XD

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-one: **Chain of Memories _– part one

-o-o-

When Sora returned to the bastion, all he really wanted to do was collapse on his bed and sleep, anti-Rikus there or not. He hadn't anticipated that, after using the darkness to teleport, he'd wind up somewhere unfamiliar. Mushu was no longer on his shoulder, either. Rubbing feeling into his arms, Sora tried to help his body recover from the chill of darkness as he glanced around the empty hallway, wondering where he was.

Judging from the narrow corridor, fine violet and gray-green floor, purple-trimmed walls, and the orange pipes lining the ceiling, he was indeed in the bastion somewhere, but he didn't know this area. He was used to the grays and purples of the main hall and the greens and golds of the library. The color scheme here was soft salmon, a color not too common in the rest of the bastion, and the door in front of him was a shade of sienna with coral etchings.

It was also open a crack.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Sora inched down the hallway.

"Now?"

He froze when he heard the unfamiliar voice. It wasn't even whispered, otherwise Sora might have thought he'd imagined it. It was smooth and deep, somewhat airy in its calmness. No, his mind hadn't made that up.

"He is not ready yet."

Another voice, this one dark and resonant, bass-like, and Sora couldn't help likening it to an old oak desk, rigid but worn, littered with pages of knowledge. It was somewhat reminiscent of Yami's.

"I wanna test him."

A third, and it was playful, nasally and flirty. Dangerous, too, like a lit candle left unattended.

"Forget it, we will wait for the other boy," came from the second man, Oak Desk.

As Sora began to creep closer, silent as air, the first voice spoke up in agreement, still smooth, a baritone. "That's right, that darkness is already moving."

"Think it'll interfere? You know who it is," a new man said. This one had a drawl that reminded Sora of one of the carefree surfers back on Destiny Islands, and he half expected an added "dude" to the end of the statement.

"Let the child take care of it," Oak Desk replied. "We have other things to worry about."

Sora was just working up his courage to take a peek through the crack in the door, wanting to see what these people looked like, when he felt a cold breeze at his back, gusting right over his head.

_Bamf!_

Sora leapt away from the door, his heart giving a startled jerk in his chest as he saw a black cloud of _something_ hit the door just above his head—darkness? a spell?—and he whirled around, spotting Yami at the end of the hallway. The culprit! What the heck was his problem? He shot the other boy—man—a mean look before glancing at the door again. He moved forward and pushed it open, glancing into the room beyond, which was now silent.

Well, thanks to Yami, whoever had been talking was gone now.

Before exploring the new area, Sora regarded Yami with an irritated pout. "What was that for?"

Yami calmly approached him, and though he seemed composed, there was something in his gaze that told Sora that Yami was well aware of who had been behind the door, but he didn't want to tell. He paused in front of Sora, brushed his long hair behind his shoulders, and said nothing.

Sora hesitated in the threshold, wanting to explore the next room. "Are there other people here...?" he asked. There were parts of the bastion he hadn't visited yet, but he hadn't thought there'd be anyone else. As far as he knew, it was just him and Yami, Maleficent, and Beast in the dungeons. And some princesses somewhere, but he really doubted that those scheming men he'd heard could be considered _princesses_.

"Only rats," Yami replied quietly, meeting his eyes. "The kind who scavenge with ill intentions. Please do not go following them."

Despite Yami's "please," Sora knew it was a command, not a request. These secrets kept building up, and the amount of stuff Sora was being kept in the dark about was getting ridiculous. He wanted answers, not more enigmatic responses. He wondered when he was going to start being trusted enough to understand what was really going on around here.

"Why haven't I heard them before?" he asked Yami, who was eyeing the open door as if all he wanted to do was go in.

"I have been warding them off, and successfully until now," he replied patiently. He reached out, gently using an arm to brush Sora aside so he could get by.

"Who are they?" Sora asked as Yami passed him. "What do they want?"

"_They _are your enemy," Yami answered without hesitation, glancing at him again. "And they want what Maleficent wants, but worse."

Sora followed after him, continuing with his questions. "Princesses?"

"...not quite," Yami murmured, pausing just inside the room. His amber eyes stared ahead for a moment, almost unseeing, before he slowly blinked and began to look around. It was almost like something besides Sora kept distracting him.

Wondering what the big deal was, Sora studied the room in detail. It was small and circular, lined with dark bookshelves in three areas. A large, moon-shaped, pale blue and lavender desk stood just off center, closer to the back of the room, and the chair behind it spoke of regality, its slender back rising in three sharp points. Several open books lay harmlessly open on the surface of the desk. Judging from the layer of dust that seemed to cover everything except a few places on the floor, no one had actually been in here for a while except those people from a few minutes ago. Everything was well kept, though, including the books and tomes on the shelves. This place had been someone's study.

However, Sora also noticed a few things that creeped him out. Several cylindrical glass tanks, small and thin, stood to the sides of the room close to the door. They were empty now, but he had a feeling that once upon a time, they probably held things he didn't want to think about. On the back portion of the wall, and to the left and right of the door, were four large blue diagrams, scientific studies of various things—darkness, hearts and hearts of worlds, and connections between worlds. This had been a _scientist's_ study.

The thing that drew Sora's attention the longest, however, was not the tanks, nor the diagrams. It was the large, golden-framed portrait that took up most of the northeastern section of the wall. It looked eerily similar to the portrait of Ansem he had uncovered in another one of the studies—the study he had thought to be Ansem's. Now he was wondering if maybe _this _one had been Ansem's, unless he had multiple rooms... The portrait was different from the Ansem of the other one, though, because it had no name plate, and he was dressed down more, in a white coat this time. Less royal. But the similarities were there between the portraits—Ansem seemed slightly older than Yami, and there was no emotion here. Just for show. And this one, at least, had been hung up, not hidden away under a stack of discarded notes.

Sora glanced at Yami, who was standing awkwardly by one of the diagrams, purposely avoiding contact with the portrait. Frowning, Sora returned his gaze back at the portrait, studying the differences between the men. Ansem's hair seemed shorter in the portrait, and it was more slicked back. More of Yami's bangs liked to hang in his face than this guy's, who also had pointier ears than Yami, and a more masculine jaw. Sora also noticed his eyes were brown. Then again, who had _amber_ eyes like Yami's?

Casting another glance at the other man, Sora watched as Yami traced a hand over the glass of one of the empty tanks.

"Where are we?" Sora asked, purposely abrupt.

He took certain delight in the way Yami flinched as if caught red-handed. He lowered his arm and moved to one of the bookshelves, not glancing at Sora, before he replied. "Near the postern."

"The post—what?"

"Back of the castle," Yami explained. "This... used to be Ansem's study."

"How do you know?" Sora asked. "And whose was that other study with the portrait and all those papers?"

Yami hesitated for a long moment, his fingers tracing over the dusty spines of tomes. "...I assume that was Ansem's as well. Though the man had apprentices. He does not mention them in too many of his reports, but maybe..."

He trailed off, leaving Sora hanging.

"Apprentices," Sora hedged. "What happened to them, if Ansem went nuts?"

"Not sure," Yami murmured, finally turning away from the shelf. He had a book in his hand and was opening it. "This room was locked a week ago. That worries me."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Yami lifted his gaze, offering Sora a vaguely amused smile. "You ask so many questions," he said.

Sora pursed his lips into a pout. "And you don't answer enough."

"Perhaps," Yami replied quietly, putting the book back. "We should go. Maleficent is expecting us."

Wanting to object, Sora paused, knowing it wasn't a good idea to test that woman's patience, especially after he had sorta betrayed her in Agrabah. Oh man, he wasn't looking forward to explaining that one to her.

Swallowing, Sora nodded, and he and Yami left the room in silence. When Yami closed the door behind them, the sound resonated in the empty corridors, and Sora felt as though ghosts of the past were watching him as he and Yami walked side by side.

-o-o-

**Torn page from an unknown journal:**

_The young girl perished today. I was with her when her frail body began to give out, and, as promised, she offered her heart to our studies. When we extracted it, the most unusual thing happened._

_Her body vanished. This, of course, has Even excited about the possibilities of our future experiments. That leaves room for a completely different branch of research from our current tests. _

_The girl's permission to use her heart and the research going into the study of its purity are being kept top secret, but sometimes I worry about Braig's rather large mouth concerning our plans. Even assures me that things will not get out, and that he is already hard at work with the construction of the heart's new shell. I know it will take time._

_For now, we are preserving the heart as best as we can. Until the shell's completion, I can only hope this preservation can further our knowledge of the possibilities of a heart's power outside of its shell. Even now, I fear it might disappear as her body had, and this work will go to waste._

_But those worries must wait. I have the girl's death to announce. My only wonder is what excuse we will give for the disappearance of Rinoa Heartilly's body. Perhaps there can be a closed casket. _

-o-o-

Leaving Jafar in the Cave of Wonders, they decided, was the best course of action. Riku was in a foul mood by the time Genie transported them back to their gummi ship on the outskirts of Agrabah. And while Aladdin took his magic carpet to check out what damage had been done to the city, the others tried to avoid close contact with Riku, not wanting to upset him any further. They didn't have to know what was going on in his head to sense the tense, angry aura about him. Donald, Goofy, and Mushu lingered outside the ship while Riku sulked on the lowered ramp.

It was still dark out, the desert empty and frigid, motionless. In the near distance, the walls of Agrabah no longer looked welcoming.

A deep chill had settled inside of Riku, who kept thinking back to his short time with Sora back there in the cave and the hopeful looks they had given each other. Just remembering Sora's hesitant smile made his heart ache. He had missed Sora before, but now that they'd run into each other again and it hadn't been under Id's terms, Riku felt a whole new level of desperation. He wanted Sora at his side again. Sora, it seemed, had missed him, too... at least, he liked to hope so. The way Sora had smiled, had teased him—that hadn't been resentment at all.

So then why had Sora _left_? Riku kept trying to wrack his brain for possibilities, but it just didn't make sense.

Maybe...

Maybe it hadn't been Sora's fault?

Maybe it had been Id or something?

Maybe Id had taken over and made Sora leave and maybe now he was at Traverse Town looking for people to torture!

Fueled by his sudden theory, _wanting_ it to be true, Riku leapt to his feet and rushed up the ramp of the gummi ship to contact Traverse Town on the comlink, both fearing and anticipating what he'd find. If Sora was there, it meant their separation wasn't Riku or Sora's fault, that Id had interfered... But if Sora _was _there—what could he do about it when he was all the way out here?

The link was answered almost immediately. Yuffie's face popped onto the screen, set in a grin.

"There you are!" she chimed. "We've been waiting for—"

Riku spouted off without waiting for her to finish. "Is Sora there? Did he show up? Is the town okay?" he asked hastily, and though he probably should have been worried if the town really was under attack, he sounded hopeful instead.

Lifting her hands to get him to slow down, Yuffie laughed. "Whoa, whoa, start over! What's up?"

"Is _Sora _there?" Riku repeated, getting impatient. "At Traverse Town."

"Uhh..." One of her brows knitted in confusion. "Nope. _Sora?_"

_Dammit! _Riku hit the edge of the keypad with a fist, glaring at her as if it were her fault. "He—He was here, it was him! We saw him and he left here and I thought maybe—"

Yuffie's carefree expression filled with a hint of sympathy as Riku rambled, and she cut in before he could get too far. "Sora's not here. And if he _was _here, like attacking the town like last time, I'd be out there kicking his ass, not playing bored secretary for Mr. Grumpy-pants Leonhart."

For a moment, Riku just sat there and stared in disbelief at the screen, despair tearing into his heart. So it hadn't been _Id's_ fault that Sora had left, which meant Sora had left on his own, which meant he hadn't wanted to make up with Riku or be around him, or...

_Stop thinking about it!_

Gritting his teeth, Riku tore his gaze away from the screen and slammed his hand down to hang up on Traverse Town. He reached up to rip off his headdress and threw the gold links to the floor of the ship, letting out a frustrated scream and fighting back sudden tears.

"If Sora doesn't hate me, why did he just _leave_!"

He wasn't expecting anyone to answer, really.

A warm hand rested on his shoulder, and Riku whirled to find Goofy regarding him with an optimistic look. "Maybe he had ta take care of somethin'?" he suggested.

Unable to be angry with Goofy there trying to cheer him up, Riku just bowed his head, giving a weak nod. He pulled away from Goofy and slumped down on the ship ramp again, curling his arms around his legs, staring forlornly at the sand below.

Sand. It was different from Destiny Island's sand. Hotter, not quite as smooth, and more of an orange tint, too...

Riku worried his lip, thinking back to that moment in the Cave of Wonders when Sora had had possession of the genie's lamp and the opportunity to wish for anything he wanted. He had looked at Riku, then, as he had hesitated.

At that moment, Riku had known exactly what _he _would have wished for.

Home.

Burying his face in his arms, Riku tried not to feel so alone.

-o-o-

Yami remained silent until he and Sora passed into hallways more familiar to Sora. They were somewhere near the dungeons, and Sora couldn't help thinking that Yami had taken a roundabout route back to the main part of the bastion just to throw Sora off. Suspicious. Wondering about the Beast and how he was holding up, Sora wasn't anticipating Yami's voice when it cut through his thoughts.

"Why did you come back?"

Sora lifted his face, looking confused. "Huh?"

"You came back," Yami said without glancing at him. He said it so calmly and offhandedly that Sora had a feeling that Yami'd been mulling over this particular question since they'd gotten back to the bastion. "You were reunited with Riku, yet you return here."

Finding it a little funny that Yami was the one with the question this time, Sora folded his arms behind his head and smiled. "I wasn't ready," he admitted. He probably wouldn't have felt so confident about saying that in front of anyone else, but for some reason, a part of him just wanted to be honest with Yami, despite how secretive Yami was with him. It felt good.

"Riku will be far more desperate to keep you next time," Yami said softly, but with certainty.

"Maybe," Sora said, though he was pretty sure Yami was right. "But I needed to come back anyway. I made a promise."

"With Maleficent?" Yami asked, his expression guarded.

Sora snerked at that, lowering his arms. "No, with Aladdin. I said I'd look for Jasmine," he explained. "She's a princess," he added for emphasis, watching Yami closely. The man's expression still gave nothing away. "And Beast is looking for Belle," Sora continued, "and I _know_ you know where they are."

Yami coolly regarded him. "And you think I will divulge that kind of information freely?"

"Nope," Sora said. "I don't know what you're trying to do or who you're working for or even if you _are _working for someone, but I do know that whatever it is, it makes you keep your secrets." He paused there, his smile fading as he watched Yami more closely, reading him. "Kinda like you're scared to tell someone because they'll hate you for them."

Yami turned his gaze away again.

_Score one point for me, _Sora thought with a hint of smugness, and then continued aloud. "But whatever it is, Yami, it's keeping you from doing the right thing," he said more seriously. With a carefree air, he folded his arms back behind his head. "So instead of expecting your help, I'm just gonna look on my own."

The silence that ensued was heavy with Yami's unspoken rationalizations. He wasn't even going to defend himself, it seemed, or give Sora any lectures about what he deemed 'the right thing' to be. But the lack of argument didn't bother Sora. Maybe Yami was changing.

When Sora lowered his arms again, Yami studied him and finally spoke. "Your feet," he said, drawing Sora's attention. "You might want to heal them."

"Huh?" Sora examined his feet, realizing that the rocks of the crumbling Cave of Wonders had torn holes through the slippers he'd been wearing, and hints of blood were on the tattered cloth. They didn't even hurt, though. "Oh. _Oh._ I didn't even notice..." he said mostly to himself, then glanced up at Yami. "They feel kinda numb, actually. Think that's bad?"

Yami gave an admonishing look. "Do not over exert yourself, Sora."

Sensing a bit of a mother hen in Yami, Sora grinned at him. "And why do _you_ care?" he teased.

"Just some advice," came the nonchalant answer, Yami feathers remaining unruffled. Sora wondered what it would take to set him off—make him mad, or laugh, or cry.

Yami couldn't be all that bad. Maybe some of his priorities were wrong—like how he'd wanted to take Jafar's heart instead of winning the fight fairly, and like how he had no qualms about using the darkness even though he knew it was hurting him and would make him wind up like Ansem... And especially like how he'd taken Riku from him...

But he had some good points, too. He was never short of advice and never gave it to Sora in an overbearing or arrogant way. Yami also knew what Sora was going through. Even though he kept his secrets well, Yami's presence made Sora feel more comfortable about what was happening around him and to him. He wasn't alone. He'd saved Sora a few times, too, and though it could have just been his duty to Maleficent, Sora liked to think that Yami actually cared about what happened to him. Sora was still wary of him after what he'd done, but more and more of him was beginning to sympathize, and he wasn't sure why. _Was _it because Yami was showing signs he cared?

When they reached the main corridor, Sora grabbed Yami's arm to get him to stop. "Yami," he said delicately, purposely not teasing, "why did you save me back there?"

As if sensing Sora's earnestness, Yami extracted his arm and turned to face him. Their eyes met, but Yami said nothing for a few seconds, and Sora could almost see the internal struggle the man was having. To admit kindness, or to pin it on duty, or to continue being secretive even to the point he couldn't express his own emotions—which would Yami choose?

"I wanted to," the man said at last, though his voice was impassive. "I owed you, anyway..."

And there, Yami smiled his meaningless smile.

Sora was tired of seeing that smile.

"You know, I was wondering something," he said conversationally, and Yami's smile faded into curiosity. Sora continued in a conspiratorial tone. "You'd think Maleficent would have been _proud_ of Jafar."

Now Yami looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"C'mon!" Sora laughed. "Think about it," he said, grinning wide. "They were so alike! Jafar and Maleficent, I mean." He started to gesture with his hands, drawing designs in the air as he described them for Yami. "Both with the funky hats, both with the creepy staves, both wearing these fancy dress things." Then he made a big circle with his hands and pretended to perch them on his shoulder. "Both with fat birds that liked to stare! They both even have the lip curling thing going on when they don't agree with you!"

One of Yami's brows furrowed, and he looked like he was trying not to be amused. "Hmm..."

But despite the skepticism, Sora planted his hands on his hips and continued on, making his next statement with certainty. "They were _dating_, I know they were!"

As his voice echoed down the hall, Sora stared up at Yami with confidence. At first Yami just blinked in surprise, digesting Sora's bold theory, but then the funniest thing happened.

Yami let out a snerk. Then, startled by the noise, he covered his mouth, embarrassed...

And burst into laughter.

Sora listened to the deep, tentative laugh escaping Yami, filling the hall with new echoes, resonating within _Sora_, who felt sudden pride for getting real emotion out of Yami. He took that moment to admire the way Yami's eyes squeezed shut, amber hidden, and the way his white bangs fell unevenly into his face, and the way his shoulders shook as he tried _not _to laugh, one of his hands holding his side as if to contain the sound. But it was too late to hide it.

Sora had heard the richness of his voice and the capacity there for more _life_.

Yami may have had a hand in ruining Sora's life, but Sora was going to have a hand in rebuilding Yami's.

"What is so amusing that you two deemed it more important than reporting to me?" Maleficent's cold, sibilant tone suddenly cut in, ceasing Yami's laughter and making Sora whirl around with alarm. She hadn't been standing there a minute ago, and Sora really hoped she hadn't actually heard what he had been joking about.

She was eyeing Yami very suspiciously, probably because she'd never seen him laugh before. He composed himself well, however, and after clearing his throat, he returned her gaze with his usual guarded expression. The only signs he had been laughing at all were the dampness of his eyelashes and the slight flush on his cheeks.

Even when Maleficent began speaking again, Sora's mind returned to the sound of Yami's laughter and the image of his real smile. Sora felt Yami's emotion inside of himself, lingering somewhere near his heart as a subtle, warm weight. Happy, Sora shifted his gaze towards Yami, who risked a glance in return.

It was a simple act, just a meeting of his eyes with Sora's, but Sora felt as if it had been a silent thank you.

-o-o-

When Aladdin returned on his carpet, the sun was beginning to rise over the dunes.

Riku had already bottled his depression up, knowing that he couldn't do anything about Sora at the moment, and he had to focus on his duty. But as Aladdin reported his findings, that parts of Agrabah were in ruins but the city wasn't completely empty, Riku could hardly pay attention, his thoughts continually straying back to what little time he'd shared with Sora. When he thought about how close he'd been to getting Sora back, he felt this restless urge inside of him. He wanted to snap at the world, tell it to hurry the hell up, that he wanted to leave and scour the remaining worlds for more traces of Sora. He didn't want to be _here_ anymore.

"If the city isn't a complete loss, you'll be okay, right?" Riku asked abruptly, interrupting whatever Aladdin had been saying. Everyone turned to look at him, and he realized it had been the first thing he'd said to them in over an hour. Without waiting for a response, Riku turned and headed back into the gummi ship, his mind made up. They'd leave Agrabah as soon as possible and head to the next world. He could feel them watching his back as he disappeared up the ramp, but he ignored their concern, not caring if he was being a jerk or not. He went right to the comlink and called Traverse Town back up.

This time Cloud answered, to Riku's surprise. The blonde's face was half hidden by his red mantle, but Riku saw those icy blue eyes study him with confusion. Riku hadn't sat down and he stood stooped over the control panel, so Cloud probably had a good look at what he was wearing. Though he was undoubtedly curious, Cloud didn't ask about it.

"What's the situation?" he asked Cloud instead.

"I should be asking you that," Cloud replied smoothly, eyes narrowing. "Yuffie mentioned that you were being a little hysterical."

"It was nothing," Riku cut in dismissively. The fact that Yuffie had called him hysterical kind of bugged him, but he wasn't going to comment about it. "What's going on over there?"

Cloud glanced off screen for a moment before shifting in front of it, returning his gaze to Riku and lowering his voice. "Leon has been spending most of his time here in Cid's garage just to see if you've called. When he started _pacing_, we had to force him to get some rest." Cloud paused there, his eyes faintly smiling.

Leon had been that worried? Leon had been the one to stick Riku with the dog and the duck in the first place, and Riku was still bitter about that, but... if Leon really was acting as restless as _he _felt, Riku couldn't stay mad at him. It was actually funny to think about Leon prowling Cid's garage in front of the comlink.

"We're all fine," Riku assured. Then, more carefully, he asked, "Did Leon... mention anything about Ansem?"

Something flickered in Cloud's eyes, and though it was subtle, his expression darkened. "He doesn't want to talk about it much. When he's not here, he holes himself up in the Dalmatian house. Cid... got out a few details, though, and... there seem to be discrepancies with our memories."

That was interesting. "Discrepancies?" Riku wondered aloud.

"Is that Riku?" a familiar voice asked from the background.

Cloud suddenly looked away from the screen as if caught. "Ah, Leon's here. I'll put him on."

And before Riku could protest or ask any further questions, Cloud disappeared, there was a brief shuffling sound and lowered voices, and Leon showed up. He looked much better than he had when Riku had left Traverse Town, that's for sure, but he seemed tired.

"Hey," Riku greeted.

Leon took a moment to eye Riku's outfit, much like Cloud had, except this time Riku received a cautious, "...what are you wearing?"

Not really in the mood to relay the entire Agrabah tale, Riku wondered how much he could explain without raising too many questions. He settled into the chair in front of the comlink and sighed. "It's a long story, but..."

He summarized the situation with Aladdin and Jafar, and then touched briefly on Sora and Yami, not wanting to draw too much attention to how much their presence had shaken him up. By the end of his tale, Leon seemed a little troubled by what he'd heard. It wasn't obvious that he was worried, but Riku could tell by the slight furrow of his brow and the way it reshaped his scar there.

"Cid has been working on a second gummi ship built out of gummi scraps that Donald and Goofy had picked up during their solo trip," Leon said. Since this was without comment of Riku's story, Riku had a feeling that Leon was going somewhere with this. "If you can, pick up some more space debris for him to make a larger ship. As of now, it only has the capacity to fit two people."

"Aaaand what would you do with this extra ship?" Riku asked suspiciously.

Leon's gray eyes thinned, challenging Riku to object to what he was about to say. "When you return to Traverse Town, we figured that Donald and Goofy could take the two-seater, and Cloud and I could return to the ship you're using now."

Pretending to hesitate, Riku put a hand to his chin, looking thoughtful. "I don't know... Donald and Goofy and I work pretty well together after all. You'll have to convince me you're better than them."

Leon remained unfazed by the teasing. "You could always put us up against each other in the next tournament, if you really want proof," he said.

This suggestion surprised Riku, who had been under the impression that the coliseum had just finished the new tournament. "Already?" he asked. "Doesn't Phil have to do renovations and all that stuff?"

Giving a slight shrug, Leon glanced away from the screen at someone to his side. "Cloud wants to go. It's still a few days off. We got the notice yesterday from Chip and Dale," he explained. Riku hadn't ever spoken to the chipmunks directly, but he'd heard Leon, and Donald and Goofy as well, mention them a few times. He figured they were partly in charge of communications and traveling amongst the alert worlds like Traverse Town and the king's home world.

A new tournament, though... At this point in time, Riku didn't think it was a good idea, but that could have been because he was desperate to find Sora. "I'll think about it," Riku said after a moment. "I want to check out some other worlds first. Cloud wants to go because of Sephiroth, doesn't he?"

"Probably," Leon murmured, looking away again. It must have still been a touchy subject. Then again, every time they went to the coliseum, someone new popped up and surprised them. Cloud first, then it was Sephiroth... Who would it be next? _Ansem_ back from the dead?

Speaking of which.

"I heard that there were discrepancies with your memories and Cid's?" Riku said, prompting Leon to give him more information.

Leon's eyes returned to his, and he took a second to respond. "...Cid... doesn't believe me about Yami," he said hesitantly.

That made Riku sit up straight, interested. "What does Yami have to do with it?"

"A few weeks ago, after you showed up here after Hollow Bastion... do you remember the conversation you overheard after Yami visited you? Cid, Cloud, and I were discussing Ansem and Yami," Leon said. "I mentioned to them how Yami had changed significantly and he looked just like Ansem—from what I remembered of Ansem at the time."

Riku nodded, remembering.

"Cid agreed with me at the time when I said Yami could be Ansem's kid," Leon explained. "He said it made a lot of sense."

Frowning, Riku remembered what he had asked Yami in Agrabah, when he'd been in Jafar's room.

_"Are you—Ansem's son?" _

_"Not in the way you are thinking. See for yourself, Riku."_

"Cid doesn't think the same now?" Riku wondered, wanting Leon to continue.

He shook his head, his voice lowering as he leaned closer to the screen. "No, he doesn't. Ansem was our leader—he was middle-aged, according to Cid. I remember him younger. Older than me, but... not middle-aged. When I described Yami to him—because Cid gets the kids in the town mixed up all the time—he said they looked nothing alike. So I described Ansem to him, and he said that Ansem didn't look like that at all, either."

"Then what _did _he say Ansem looked like?" Riku asked, annoyed that Cid couldn't make up his mind. "I thought everyone agreed, even Cloud."

"Not sure, but Cid seemed adamant," Leon said. "Cloud does agree with me. Cid's the only one who thinks otherwise. Yuffie and Aerith don't even remember seeing Ansem in the first place..."

"Uh..." Riku frowned, confused. "They don't remember their _king_?" he asked. "I know it was nine years ago, but still!"

"He was pretty mysterious," Leon admitted, his tone dropping again, reminiscent. "But the people loved him. Even now when I think about it... with the amount of time he spent with me, and then Cloud and Sephiroth and those experiments... I don't know how he had time to rule."

Oh, that's right. Riku had almost forgotten how close he and Ansem had been. Riku didn't like to be drilled about Sora or Yami, so no doubt Leon was feeling uncomfortable with all of these questions. They didn't seem to be helping to solve the mystery, anyway, but adding on more questions instead. Cid was the oldest from Hollow Bastion, so his memory should have been the most accurate, right? But Leon—Squall—had spent the most time with the man... Maybe Cid was thinking of someone else?

"We'll figure it out," Riku sighed, rubbing his forehead. "How are you, anyway? Feeling better?"

Leon gave another noncommittal shrug, but then he paused as if remembering something. "Ansem had a book. It was for kids... but he told me he grew up on it, and sometimes he'd read it to me. Cid had a page of it laying around. I want to try finding the rest."

Despite the peculiarity of the request, Riku nodded, finding it kind of cute. It sounded like something Sora would ask for. "Think the pages are scattered around the worlds?"

"Maybe," Leon agreed, sounding distant. He blinked slowly, focusing on Riku's face as if coming out of deep thought. "Oh, and your heartless is getting sicker."

His heartless? Was he talking about the anti-Riku?

Riku glared at the screen. "Just kill it already before it gets out and starts taking people's hearts!"

"Merlin wants to study it some more," Leon said with a hint of amusement.

"Tell him to catch something smaller, then," Riku grumbled, getting up from the chair. "I'm going to tell them we're leaving. I want to explore at least one more world before returning."

"Be careful," Leon said, gray eyes stern. "It's good that you're sealing these worlds, but now that you know Sora and Yami are involved, things could get messy."

Sora and Yami. Those two names together seemed so ironic.

Riku returned his gaze, giving a stiff nod. "I know. Thanks. I'll call when we land again," he said, ending the conversation. The comlink blipped out, filling the ship with silence. Outside, he could hear the short gusts of desert air push against the gummi, and beyond that, the voices of his friends. If he could call them friends, really... How much did he know about them? He'd been thrown into this awkward trinity, and though the trip had allowed him to know them a little more, he still felt like he didn't belong with them, or they with him.

Trudging down the ramp, he paused with his hand against the underside of the ship, facing the odd group outside. Abu was perched on Aladdin's shoulder, Carpet sat upright next to him in the sand, Donald and Goofy were laughing at something that had just been said, and Genie was dune-surfing in the distance on a bright yellow and blue board, celebrating his new found freedom on two legs. They all seemed so happy without him...

Riku didn't have to announce his presence, for as soon as he was in sight, Carpet perked up and leapt into the air, darting towards him and circling him once before hovering in front of him as if in welcome.

Unable to help a smile, Riku reached out and patted its top edge where its head would be if it had one. "Hey, Carpet."

"Ahyuk, we were just about ta get ya!" Goofy announced, and Riku glanced toward him.

The others were now watching him, and even Genie was guiding his board in their direction. Just as he came gliding up on the sand, Genie removed the goggles he'd been wearing and let out a whooping laugh, kicking his board up and grabbing it.

"A new day, a new future, huh?" Riku asked, offering him a smile though his heart wasn't in it. He was glad the genie was free, but Riku couldn't help thinking what could have been possible with just one more wish.

"You bet!" Genie cried. "And I'm tellin' ya—after we fix up this pigsty and find Jasmine, I'm going on _vacation_. I'm thinking Bermuda or the Himalayas—haven't been _there _in ages..."

"Ohh, the Himalayas are great this time of year," Mushu piped up from Goofy's shoulder.

"So you're going to rebuild Agrabah first?" Riku asked. "How are you going to find Jasmine?"

"Well," Aladdin cut in hesitantly, his dark eyes hopeful. "We were hoping you'd help us with Jasmine. Goofy was explaining how your vessel can go to other worlds, but Donald said you guys couldn't take me."

"It'd be meddling even more than we already are," Donald said, pointedly narrowing his eyes at Riku, who rolled his eyes in response.

Aladdin nodded. "But if Jasmine really isn't on this world anymore, like Genie said, there's a chance you'll run into her where you're going, right?"

Riku glanced at Donald and Goofy, wondering what the odds were that they'd actually run into a stray princess. "Well... we can look," he offered, not sounding too confident about it.

But it worked anyway. Aladdin's face lit with gratitude, his voice rising. "Anything! Thank you!" he said, moving forward. "Since _I _can't go, I had an idea—well, Genie was the one who suggested it—but we want you to have his old lamp." Aladdin pulled the brass lamp from under the sash at his waist and held it out for him, continuing, "It doesn't work like it used to. Genie's no longer bound by its rules. But he says that, if you ever need his help, if you rub the lamp, he'll come. And also if you find Jasmine."

Well, it wouldn't hurt to have the lamp around. Riku took it with a short nod, managing another smile. "Sounds like a plan."

"And Abu has something for you, too," Aladdin added, nudging the monkey on his shoulder. "Go on, Abu."

Giving a screech of protest, Abu hid behind Aladdin's head, who laughed and grabbed him, holding him out to Riku. Though he was dangling from Aladdin's fingers, Abu gave an indignant huff and crossed his arms.

"Do it," Aladdin urged. He lifted his gaze to Riku's again. "I don't know if he got it at the palace or in the Cave of Wonders, but since you protected him during the carpet rides, I thought he should give it to you."

Obediently, though not without moping, Abu reached into his small vest and pulled out a bundle wrapped in paper. Curious, Riku took the present, murmuring a thanks as he ran his thumb over the paper. It looked written on.

"Hold this," he said to Goofy, handing him Genie's lamp. He then unfolded the paper, uncovering a small tiger-shaped charm embedded with precious jewels and laden with gold and silver. It even had a loop coming out of its back as if it were supposed to be hung from something. Deciding he'd try it on his keyblade later, Riku looked at the paper it had been in.

Right at the top, two words made his heart give a sudden jerk.

_Ansem Report._

Before he could give himself away, Riku covered up his surprise with mild curiosity. "This looks interesting," he said, folding it back up with slightly trembling hands. He wasn't sure why he wanted to hide the report from the others. Maybe it dealt with the fact that the last report he'd had had been stolen from him by Id. Smiling at Aladdin and Abu, Riku tried not to let his eagerness show. "Thank you. I love the charm, too."

When Aladdin returned the smile, a hint of sadness there, Riku knew it was time to go. He didn't want Aladdin to start asking about Sora or reassuring him or anything. As much as he liked his new friends, he had spent too long on this world already. Somewhere out there, Sora was waiting.

"Come on Donald, Goofy—we're going," he announced. "We've got people to save, worlds to seal, and a princess to find." And before he turned to head back into the ship, he glanced at Aladdin and Genie, nodding farewells. "I'll let you know about Jasmine. Good luck with Agrabah."

And sure enough, as he disappeared back into the ship, he heard Aladdin's voice chase his back.

"Thanks, and good luck finding Sora!"

_For that,_ Riku thought bitterly, _I won't need luck._

As he heard Donald and Goofy give their own goodbyes, Riku slumped into his usual seat in the gummi ship and unfolded the Ansem Report, determined to think about other things besides Sora until they got off this world.

-o-o-

**Ansem Report #1**

_Much of my life has been dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. That knowledge has guarded this world well. Not a soul doubts that. I am blessed with people's smiles and respect. But though I am called a sage, there are things I do not understand. I believe darkness sleeps in every heart, no matter how pure. Given the chance, the smallest drop can spread and swallow the heart. I have witnessed it many times._

_Darkness... Darkness of the heart. How is it born? How does it come to affect us so? As ruler of this world, I must find the answers. I must find them before the world is lost to those taken by the darkness._

-o-o-

By the powers vested in her, Maleficent had deemed Sora not guilty for betraying Jafar. In fact, by gaining the phenomenal, cosmic powers of a genie, he had become a threat. Getting rid of him had been doing her a favor. She had only sent Sora with Jafar to test him, and that it hadn't concerned her if Jafar had succeeded in dominating his world or not.

She had sent Yami in after Sora when she had discovered the keyblade master had landed on the world. Though she didn't explain her reasoning, Sora knew she'd been forced to trust Yami on that one, knowing she couldn't trust Sora with Riku considering their past together. Yami must have also been a back up in case Sora hadn't been able to take down Jafar himself.

All in all, Sora was relieved when that was over and the pressure was off of him.

She turned to Yami next, though, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Someone has been in the lower corridors using the heartless mechanism. When you find out who it is, exterminate him," she said in her usual cold tone, chin lifted. Then, dryly, she added, "There might be use for you yet." And with that, she lifted her staff, gesturing him to leave.

Yami hesitated, obviously wanting to bite back, but he decided to obey. With a small bow, he turned and began to walk away, but not before glancing at Sora again, amber eyes unreadable, but there was something deep there that Sora wished he could decipher.

As soon as he was gone, Maleficent spoke up again, tone cold. "Keep an eye on that one."

Sora frowned, confused. "He saved my life."

Maleficent lifted her chin, eyeing him coolly, as if daring him to speak against her word again. "If I cannot have servants who obey me, perhaps I should begin hiring goblins and trolls to do my bidding. At least _they _would get the work done." Before Sora could defend himself, she changed the subject, flinging her robe to her side as she turned towards the corridor opposite the one Yami had left through. "Tell me, child..." she said without looking at him. "When you were facing Jafar, why did you not use the magic I have taught you?"

Sora faced her back, hesitating, not even sure of what to say. He didn't know why he hadn't thought to tap into _those _powers to fight. Maybe it was because they seemed so close to his dark powers, since Maleficent had helped him hone both. "I... don't know," he admitted.

She glanced over her shoulder and gave a soft tut before leaving, her staff clicking rhythmically against the stone floor.

Feeling uncomfortable, Sora decided to go rest, and after he got some sleep, he'd find Yami. Thinking back to his rich laughter, Sora wanted to hear more of that and see less of those meaningless smiles.

_Pitying your enemies? _Id mused.

"Well, what about you, Id? Aren't you lonely, too?" Sora asked. "Isn't that why you always come to talk to me?"

And when Id didn't respond to that, Sora knew he was right.

-o-o-

Riku woke to the sound of Donald shrieking.

Before he could even register what was going on, the gummi ship gave a sudden lurch and he went flying out of his seat. Catching himself against Goofy's chair, he looked out the front of the ship, immediately alert and ready for action.

"What's going on!" he shouted.

"M-M-M-M-Monstro!" Goofy cried, holding onto his hat and pointing at the viewscreen.

"By the _ancestors_!" Mushu crowed, his claws digging into the head of Donald's seat.

At first it just looked like the usual empty space they traveled through when the heartless ships weren't trying to hinder them, but then the ship violently shook and threatened to send him sprawling onto the control panels. Donald, in the driver's seat, was desperately handling the steering gear to keep the ship from losing control.

"Hold on!!" he squawked.

Riku gripped the sides of their seats, eyes wide as he had an abrupt feeling of déjà vu, to when Yami had been driving the other gummi ship and they had gotten sucked into that wormhole and had wound up on Hollow Bastion. Only this time it wasn't a wormhole.

"What the hell is a Monstro!" Mushu demanded.

He didn't have to wait for an answer. The ship tipped to the side this time, throwing Riku against the floor, his hands holding onto Goofy's seat as he gaped at the viewscreen. The shaking grew into an outright earthquake as something large passed along the belly of the gummi ship, and that's when Riku saw it.

Gray, massive, swimming freely through the emptiness of space as if it were its own ocean—a giant _whale_.

Without thinking, Riku lunged forward, grabbing Donald's hands—wings—whatever—and jerking the controls to the side to escape the whale as it turned to come straight for them again, maw open to welcome them.

"**GO**, get us _out of here_!" Riku screamed.

"I _am!_" Donald screamed back.

"Waaaa-ah-ah-ah-ah!!" Goofy cried.

Riku and Donald's hands guided the joysticks down, Monstro's mouth disappearing to the ship's portside, just barely, the left wing of the craft skimming along the giant whale's body, making the entire structure quake. Their escape was short-lived, however, as Riku saw the gigantic tail swing right at them.

The fin hit the front of the ship, sending it spiraling backwards like a ball off the end of a bat, the momentum and spin throwing Riku across the ship without warning. He let out a panicked cry, his hands scrambling for a grip on anything—

But then his head connected with the back wall, and all he knew was darkness.

-o-o-

**do you want more power?**

-o-o-

This time when Riku woke, it was with a groan, his hand immediately rubbing the throbbing spot on the back of his skull. He cracked his eyes open, squinting as bright sunlight filtered through the front of the ship. Where were they? And was it just him, or was the world... rocking?

"He's awake!" he heard Mushu announce, making him wince. There came a patter of claws and then he felt the small dragon climb up onto his lap up to his chest to peer into his face. "We were worried, man! Should have been wearing your seatbelt! Donald had to use a Cura spell!"

Riku grumbled out, "Then why do I still feel like crap?"

"He's okay!" Mushu called, and then leapt off of his chest again.

It was then that he heard the voices arguing in the background. Riku sat up—he had been put back in his seat, he noticed—and looked towards the viewscreen where Cid was pressed right up against the comlink, shouting at Donald, who shouted right back.

"If you can't fuckin' steer the damn ship, I'll fuckin' go there and do it myself!"

Donald's angry response was so garbled with his accent that Riku couldn't understand it.

Cid did, however. "Did you just call me a fuckin' _palooka_?"

If Leon hadn't intervened when he did, Riku had a feeling that the argument would have gotten a bit out of hand. Cid let out a loud curse as he was shoved out of the way of the comlink and Leon's face filled the screen instead, his eyes stormy.

"Cloud and I are coming on the two-seater," he announced, voice clipped, no questions asked.

Behind him, Cid's voice could be heard, another loud, angry curse. This time, Leon pulled away from the comlink to yell back, which surprised Riku. He'd only ever seen Leon mad when he'd caught Yami and Riku in _his_ bed.

Two seconds later, Cid reappeared on the screen, looking very disgruntled. "The other ship will be ready in one day," he said. "They'll check out the damage yours took during the crash."

Riku got out of his seat and staggered up between Donald and Goofy's chairs to face Cid in the comlink. He had problems finding his footing, for the ship still felt like it was rocking back and forth on uneven ground. "Fine. But does anyone know where the hell we are?" he asked, glancing out the screen, his eyes finally adjusted to see past the brightness of the blue sky.

What he saw was more blue.

_Ocean _blue.

Eyes widening, he pressed himself against the glass, trying to look for golden beaches or a lone paopu tree in the distance, but there was nothing that told him it was Destiny Islands.

"We've been here before," Goofy said, completely calm and the opposite of Donald, who was still fuming in his seat. "We didn't go explorin' last time, but the thingamajigger here says there's people nearby, ahyuk, and no heartless!"

"People?" Riku asked, still scanning for land. "I don't see anything."

"Under the surface," Donald cut in.

"People under the _water_?" Riku asked, surprised. So maybe this wasn't home after all. "I want to explore this place. Even if there are no heartless, maybe we can seal it anyway."

"Good idea," Donald said, looking at Goofy, who nodded in agreement.

Riku glanced at Mushu, who was perched on the back of Goofy's seat again. "You coming, Mushu?" he asked.

"Heck no, I'm all adventured out," the dragon replied. "I'm just gonna kick back here and snooze for a bit."

Riku gave a short laugh. "Aren't you supposed to be a guardian?"

"Pssh, _Mulan's_," Mushu pointed out, crossing his arms. "Besides, water ain't my thing, if you know what I mean."

Shaking his head, Riku tried not to look amused. "Fine, but don't touch anything," he said before he turned towards the comlink where Cid was waiting. "Tell Leon and Cloud that we're going to go ahead and start exploring."

"Probably a good idea to, anyway," Cid said gruffly. "It'll be at least a day before I can finish the other ship, and you're about another day away in distance. To keep in contact with us, take the handheld link—it's tucked under the panel."

Riku checked where indicated and found a small joystick-like device with a screen. He slid it out of its compartment and inspected it. "Why didn't you tell us about this before?" he asked, thinking it might have come in handy on Agrabah or some of the other worlds.

"Didn't think you needed it before," Cid countered, "but if you're goin' underwater, you'll need something to track the ship's whereabouts. Plus, Merlin has a few things he wants to tell ya."

"Underwater..." Riku echoed, glancing out the front of the ship at the gently rocking waves. "Won't this short circuit?"

"It's waterproof," Cid said, and then added self-importantly, "I built it myself."

"Uh-huh," Riku said skeptically. "And how are we supposed to survive underwater?"

"Magic," Donald announced, getting out of his seat.

"Like you used on our clothes before?" Riku asked, glancing down at his purple hoodie and usual pants that Donald had transformed back after they'd left Agrabah.

"Sort of," Donald said with a little smirk.

Ten minutes later, Riku had never felt more awkward in his life. But—at least he could breathe.

The water was warm and cold at the same time, swallowing him completely but feeling as light as air against his new form, and it had turned his silver hair into delicate locks that floated about his face in a feathery halo. The transformation had not only stripped him of all clothes, but had given him fins and a tail that he hardly knew how to use. He felt bare, vulnerable, but also powerful, feeling strength behind his new tail, which was an impressive sight on its own.

The skin of his bare abdomen was still light peach, but it began tapering off into a milky color, creating a literal V where his human body ended and his fish tail began. His scales were silver, luminescent when they reflected the sunlight streaming in through the surface of the water, and they trailed down his lean body, darker along his back and lighter along his front. He wasn't completely silver, however, for he had three light turquoise stripes—one curving around his rump to where his thighs would be, a second above his knee area, and a third down towards his calves.

He wasn't shaped like what he'd pictured a mermaid to look like, he noticed. His tail seemed normal enough, its vertical design more definitive of a fish instead of a mammal, with some more turquoise stripes along the sheer film between the flukes. A large fin sprouted from between his shoulder blades and ran down his spine, his backside, and tapered off where his last stripe was—a rather large dorsal fin. An anal fin was along his underside, the ventral, starting where his first stripe was and bending along the curve of his body, pointed, though it too tapered off into a softer film on the inside, like when he stretched it. And lastly, right at about his hip bones, skinny fins trailed down the length of his body—pelvic fins—and they were what reminded him of the fish he seemed to be likened to.

A peruvian angelfish. He remembered, once upon a time, Sora'd had two as pets. Except Riku was shades of silver and turquoise, not gray and black.

Impressed, he grinned, glancing at Donald to compliment him, but Donald and Goofy's new forms made him falter. For some odd reason, Donald's top half was still duck, and the rest of him had become octopus-like, and Goofy was even more bizarre with his normal silly dog face, but with a sea turtle body.

Both of them were lazily twirling in the water, trying to figure out how to swim. Riku decided not to say anything about Donald's impressive magical skills.

"Uh..." He paused, blinking. "Hey, we can talk?"

"What did you expect?" Donald asked, moving his tentacles, beginning to glide better through the water.

Riku flicked his tail and went in the wrong direction. "Gah..."

"Ahyuk, this is fun!" Goofy called, upside down and wiggling his pinniform legs. Flippers. Paddles. It was eerie seeing a sea turtle after so long away from home, Riku mused.

"Hello? Dear goodness, that's not how you go about it at all," came a familiar elderly voice. Riku pinpointed it to Cid's mini-comlink device that was currently held in one of Donald's tentacles. It was Merlin's voice.

Donald glanced down at the small screen. "Hello?"

"Tell the boy that if he cannot master the simple act of swimming, there is no hope for the worlds, keyblade master or no!" Merlin said.

"I _heard_ that," Riku snapped back.

"Oh, hehe, well then there's no need to tell him," Merlin replied. "Listen up, boy! You thought you could take right off like a shot, did you?"

Riku folded his arms over his chest, glaring in the direction of the handheld device. "Swimming is harder than it looks, so sue me."

"You merely _look _like a fish. That doesn't mean you can swim like one—you don't have the instinct. So you'll have to use your brain," Merlin explained, and added dryly, teasingly, "for a change."

"I heard _that_, too," Riku shot back, and both Donald and Goofy snickered.

"Ah, sticks and stones," Merlin said dismissively. "Pay attention, now! You are living between two planes—somewhere between the ceiling and the, uh, floor. Yes. There are a lot of ups and downs, like a, uh... helicopter."

"Helicopter," Riku said flatly.

"Yes, you do know what that is, don't you?" Merlin asked.

"Yeah, but—"

"Good," Merlin cut in, immediately continuing before Riku could get smart with him. "Now, every flick of a fin creates movement. So first you start with your caudal fin. Go on—give it a try!"

Not even knowing which one was his _caudal _fin, Riku tried moving his dorsal, only succeeding in turning himself slightly.

"No, no, no—" Merlin said. "Your _tail_, tail!"

"You could have said that in the first place," Riku said impatiently, flicking his tail again, this time pushing off in the direction he wanted. He glided smoothly through the water, passing by Donald, who held the screen to face him so Merlin could see.

"Good, good! That gives you the forward thrust. Now, come on, let's get a rhythm," Merlin said. "Move your fins! Right, left..."

Riku obeyed, kicking through the water, trying out his smaller fins, marveling at how every slight movement changed his momentum or direction. Under Merlin's cheerful chanting, which soon became singing, he found himself twirling and dipping through the water with ease, his powerful tail sending him shooting through the water like a guided missile. When he kept his arms tucked to his sides, he discovered that he could swim even faster, and all it took to slow down was to fan his fins and hold his arms out.

The rush of the water against his skin and the freedom accompanied with the smooth swimming filled him with an elated feeling, his heart soaring as he did a small loop-the-loop, trying to catch the ends of his tail.

"Ahyuk-hyuk-hyuk!"

Recognizing the laugh, Riku spun himself around, spotting Goofy, who had somehow gotten the hang of his flippers and was speeding through the water nearby. Before Riku knew what he was doing, he was chasing Goofy, grinning wide as he effortlessly caught up with the sea turtle, his hands catching hold of Goofy's back legs as he laughed back.

They swam past Donald, who was using his tentacles to push himself through the water towards them. Merlin was still on the screen and now chuckling at their playing. "Yes, yes, not all of it is fun and games, remember that," he said. "You will find that your abilities—magic and otherwise—have severely diminished."

"Oh come on, Merlin!" Riku called, darting around Goofy and grabbing his front flippers, pretending to dance with him. "Don't be an old coot! The water feels _great _after Agrabah, and there are no heartless here."

"True," Merlin agreed, "but there is a keyhole to find."

"And Sora," Donald added.

That made Riku's playfulness come to a halt. They were right. What was he doing? It was like as soon as he'd tasted the freedom of the open ocean—even more intoxicating than a magic carpet ride—he had lost all sense of purpose and mission.

Seal the world. Wait for Leon and Cloud to show up. Then go back to saving other worlds. There wasn't time for playing.

Coming to his senses, he let Goofy go. Goofy twisted around to face forward, but his momentum from Riku's dancing sent him bumping hard into Donald, who let out a startled cry, tentacles flailing. Laughing, Goofy righted himself.

"Sorry, Donald!"

"You big palooka," Donald grumbled, though it was lighthearted.

Both of them looked towards Riku, who had regained his serious demeanor. "Well, we have about two days here... Where should we start looking?" he asked.

Goofy made a circle around him and Donald, still cheerful. "The ship's narration—"

"Navigation," Donald corrected without missing a beat.

"—navigashun said people were pretty close by, so maybe if we do a little explorin', we'll find them!"

"Or maybe that mini device Cid built has some navigation on it, too," Riku said curiously, starting to reach for it.

Only, Donald no longer had it.

"Ah—?" came the duck's confused gasp. "Where'd it go?"

It took Riku a second to realize that the comlink had fallen from Donald's grasp when Goofy had rammed into him, and by now, it'd had a good start in escaping them. Quickly looking down, Riku spotted it just as it disappeared into the shadowy depths of the ocean.

"Crap!" Riku cried, immediately darting after it. "Merlin!"

"Wait up, Riku!" he heard Donald call after him, followed by Goofy's surprised cry.

It was already too far away for Riku to catch up to it easily, so he ignored their protests and swam faster, kicking the water and propelling himself, a blur through the water.

By the time he reached the bottom of the ocean, the transmitter device had disappeared. Wondering if he'd overshot the angle, Riku glanced around, feeling his heart thunder inside of him despite how easy the swim had been.

The area was still lit enough for Riku to be able to see where he was, this region full of large blue-gray and pink rocks covered in coral and various sea life, kelp littering parts of the ocean floor where Riku spotted a multitude of colored shells and both familiar and foreign species of fish. Riku, so pale and colorless compared to the life down here, felt completely out of place. Stone archways and crevices—naturally formed, almost like underwater caverns—were to one area, and Riku spotted a strange golden ethereal glow in the distance. Wondering what was there, he knew he'd have to wait for Donald and Goofy first.

Deciding to swim back a little ways, Riku turned just in time to see a flash of red and green amongst the rock and golden sand. The movement was gone too fast for him to tell what it was, but it had been too large for any of these normal fish.

Wondering if his keyblade worked underwater, Riku swam after what he'd seen.

Though Goofy had mentioned there'd be people nearby, Riku was still surprised when he heard unfamiliar voices. Slowing down, he approached the strangers with caution, listening to discern who he was about to come across.

"C'mon, Ariel, your dad's going to be mad if he finds out you've been spying on barbarians!" said a young voice, boyish and whiny.

"Ohh, Flounder, stop being a guppy! You sound just like him! He's not a barbarian just because he's not from around here!" came from a young woman, her pitch melodious but not high, and it was laced with excitement at the moment. She giggled, her voice turning secretive, conspiratorial like when Selphie and Kairi were sharing gossip. "Did you _see_ his tail? It glistens like a pearl!" she said, her voice rising with admiration. "And his _body_—"

"Ahh, I've heard enough!" the first voice cried.

Riku pressed his hands against the smooth rock wall and peeked around it, spotting the two speakers. One was a large yellow and blue fish, whose fins were over its eyes at the moment as if trying to block out something. The other person, the girl, was a mermaid with long, flowing red hair, and a slim green tail. A purple sea shell top kept her from being completely exposed, and though Riku didn't swing that way, he had to admit she was pretty attractive, around his age. Her slender body slowly twirled through the water, her sheer green flukes lazily bowing upward in a dreamy way.

"—so built, but not nearly in that beefy way like those suitors Daddy keeps sending me. He's _perfect_, with those strong arms and sculpted abs and sharp hips, and—oh, Flounder, I should go back and find him and talk to him!"

"No!" the fish gasped, darting forward and pausing in front of her. "Ariel, you'll get in so much trouble!"

The mermaid's face formed a pout eerily like Sora's, but then she broke into another grin, grabbing onto Flounder's fins and twirling him around. "Admit it, he's gorgeous!"

Man, this girl was star-struck.

"Noo!"

"Admit it," she giggled, her fingers dancing over the fish's belly, who rolled over in the water like a dog and laughed. "He's beautiful! I've never seen anyone with a tail like that, and his hair is as white as Daddy's and he looks so young!"

Wait—were they talking about _him_?

The fish pulled away from her tickling and zipped through the water to escape her. "A-Ariel, shouldn't we hide that new treasure of yours first? In case Sebastian comes by, or—"

"Oh!" she gasped, her eyes widening. "You're right—but what if I never see him again?"

"Then you can't get in trouble for liking him," Flounder pointed out.

Despite the fish's prudish behavior, the mermaid laughed at him, not taking him seriously. She dipped through the water towards the sand below, scooping up a red bundle that she slipped up to her shoulder like a purse. Then she reached for another object, something that definitely caught Riku's eyes.

The comlink!

"I wonder what this is," the mermaid said thoughtfully, running her fingers over the screen. "The face on it disappeared when I grabbed it."

"Maybe it's possessed," Flounder said with a shudder. "Maybe it belongs to the sea witch!"

The mermaid gave him a skeptical look and slipped the device into her bag. "Don't be silly. Scuttle will know."

Flounder made a face at that. "That seagull again? Ariel, your dad is going to be wondering where you are!"

"You worry too much," Ariel said playfully, and without warning, she kicked off through the water, swimming right towards Riku. He wasn't fast enough to duck back around the corner, and his silver hair was a dead giveaway. Ariel froze, a sharp gasp escaping her as she and Riku stared at each other, both caught red-handed.

Never mind her crush on him, Riku did the first thing that came to mind. He narrowed his eyes and swam forward, ready to steal her bag away from her if necessary. "You took something from me!" he said.

And she probably did the first thing that came to _her _mind. She gripped her bag tightly against her side, turned tail, and fled, darting out of sight before Riku realized what was happening. She was fast!

"Hey, wait!" he cried, immediately taking chase.

To his dismay, she was already gone by the time he left the small clearing they'd been in, coming out into a wider area leading off into other caverns and underwater pathways worn through by currents. He could still see the glow in the distance. Glancing around, Riku scanned the tall rock structure with the large boulder near the bottom before skimming over the mess of coral nearby, wondering if that mermaid was just hiding from him. There were at least a hundred hiding places in this area alone, let alone the places she could have gotten to by now, considering how fast she had been.

Great. So much for Cid's comlink!

Trying not to get too angry, Riku turned away from the area with an annoyed huff, heading back to where he had first arrived. He ran into Donald and Goofy half way there, and they looked relieved to see him as if they'd been looking for him the whole time.

"Did ya get lost?" Goofy asked.

"Or find the transmitter?" Donald added in, letting out a disgruntled harrumph when Riku shook his head.

"I ran into a mermaid. She stole it and disappeared," he explained shortly, coming to a stop in front of them, his silver hair dancing in front of his face. He brushed it back, turning his gaze towards the glow in the distance. "While we're looking for her, I think we should go that way."

"That's the direction the people are in, ahyuk," Goofy said, lifting a fin to his mouth. "At least, I think it is."

"It's as good a start as any," Donald agreed, already heading in that direction. Goofy and Riku trailed after him, Riku quickly taking the lead with a powerful flick of his tail, sending him into a little pirouette through the water.

The glow, as it turned out, was the least impressive of what they found. A pathway of spiraling stone columns led up to a magnificent underwater city of golden spires that sparkled even this far down in the depths of the sea, creating the glow that Riku had seen. The place was enormous and breathtaking, looking like a sprawling roller coaster of glistening tracks, elevated, curving circuits with towering columns to support them. And as they swam closer, it only grew larger, soaring to hundreds of feet above them, making the threefeel as insignificant as tiny fish under its impressive structure. They began to see mermaids and mermen almost immediately, all swimming in casual fashion through the water in every direction and depth, like little flying cars in a futuristic city following invisible streets. They all had colorful tails and hair, only the elderly with white locks, and no one with silvery scales like Riku's, from what he saw, let alone stripes and a dorsal fin, too. Donald and Goofy stood out on their own as well, the strange duck-octopus and dog-turtle breeds that they were.

"Have any idea where we're going?" Riku asked cautiously as they swam deeper into the city, feeling countless eyes watching them, hearing a swell of alarmed and curious whispers, too. They were already causing a stir and they hadn't _done _anything.

"Nope," Donald replied, and then shook a fist and tentacle at a nearby mer-child who had been gaping at him. "What are _you_ looking at?"

"Ahyuk, now don't be rude, Donald," Goofy said, waving a flipper at the kid. "Hiya! We're just passin' through!"

Quick movement from above caught Riku's attention, and he glanced up to spot a team of strong-looking merpeople—three men and one woman—swimming towards them with spears.

Guards. Why were there always guards? Nothing could ever be easy for them, could it?

"We got trouble," Riku hissed, holding out his arm to get the others to stop behind him. He held still as the merpeople surrounded his trinity, holding their spears pointed towards them, not even bothering with questioning first. Riku lifted a hand, trying to pacify them. "Look, we come in peace," he said in a straightforward tone, meeting the eyes of the merman in front of him. He was about as twice as big as Riku and no doubt could swim faster, too. "If we're intruding or anything, we'll gladly leave without your assistance. We're new and just wanted to look around."

Donald wasn't nearly as calm about being held back with spears. "You don't know who you're messing with! Put those things down!"

"Donald," Goofy said hesitantly, placating, "I think that's kinda meddlin', ya know."

Riku was having bad flashbacks to the other day when he, Leon, and Cloud had tried strolling up to Mulan's village and had been surrounded by guards upon arrival, thanks to Mushu's reassurance they'd be welcomed with warm arms. Except that time Riku had been welcomed as a child god, and this time Riku couldn't pin the blame on Mushu.

At Donald's outburst, the guard nearest him had moved forward, his spear coming a bit too close for Donald's comfort, who let out a squawk and backed up towards Goofy.

"If you're going to talk big, at least act the part, too," Riku said warningly, to which Donald harrumphed again.

"Silence!" the brown-haired guard in front of Riku said, his tone forceful, and he too extended his spear, this one at Riku. "You are strangers to these waters—that much is obvious. State your purpose here in Atlantica without incident and we may let you swim free."

Though not as impressive as the soldiers from Mulan's village, but at least not as ugly as the ones in Agrabah, these people seemed to have very little contact with the outside world. Even if there were no heartless here—yet—maybe Riku could trick them like he had in Agrabah...

"Our purpose," Riku said, raising his voice so the nearby locals could hear, too, "is to save your people from an oncoming threat called the heartless. We are warriors who have come a long way and just want to make sure your city is safe." There he paused to glance at Donald and Goofy for their input. They nodded enthusiastically at the guards in agreement. Feeling confident, Riku crossed his arms over his chest and lifted his chin. "Now let us swim free, or your world will perish."

For a moment, none of the guards did anything, but one by one they gradually looked at each other as if trying to mentally communicate to figure out how to handle Riku's bold claim. Finally, the female guard moved forward, lowering her spear. She had short blonde hair pulled behind her in a pink fan-like lappet, and her top and tail were violet. "Take them to King Triton," she said, eyeing Riku distrustfully. "If your claim is false, stranger, the king will be unforgiving."

"It's not," Riku with conviction.

"Hmph." Her face changed, then, the distrust fading into interest. Flashing him a brief smile, the mermaid glanced at the other guards and nodded towards the trinity. "I will see to it that they have the audience with my father," she said brightly.

"Yes, Andrina," the large guard said, pulling his spear away from Riku, who was blinking at the mermaid in surprise.

One of her blue eyes closed in a wink before she spun around and darted off through the water, leaving the guards to deal with Riku and his tiny entourage. Her _father _was the king? Damn.

"Swim," the same brunette from before snapped at him.

Not giving the guards a chance to lift their spears again, Riku obeyed, flicking his tail and heading in the direction that Andrina had left in, casting a glance over his shoulder to make sure Donald and Goofy were following. They were, and the remaining guards brought up the rear, sandwiching them so they couldn't make a quick escape. Well, it wasn't like Riku had anything to worry about. He hadn't made any false claims.

As they passed through the golden city, which was actually more of a green-yellow glow of natural stone and plant life, not metal, Riku tried not to stare back at all the civilians they passed, who kept turning to each other and whispering as soon as they saw the trinity.

They were led to the highest point in the structure, through a dimly lit passageway of more spiraled columns and coral, to a lofty, open throne room, also lined with columns, dome shaped with an aperture at the top allowing a natural turquoise glow to illuminate the throne. The throne itself was tall, its base sculpted to represent the rising crest of a wave, and in the center of the swell rose a twisted spire on which sat the seat itself—carved stone shaped like an armchair with a back shaped like a feather-star. Two tall braziers sat at the sides of the throne, bubbles rising from whatever light source resided within.

Lounging on the elegant throne was a merman built like a titan, with a broad chest and massive arms that could rival even Hercules's. His hair, mustache, and beard were long and white, but despite them, he didn't seem too elderly. A golden crown sat atop his head, a set of rising steeples like the points of a tree sponge, and in one of his large hands he held a golden trident. Andrina hovered next to him, her hands clasped in front of her.

The king sat up straight when the trinity was escorted into the throne room, and though his eyes scanned over Donald and Goofy, they narrowed at Riku especially, leveling on him with silent certainty. Riku met his gaze, unwavering, wondering what was passing through the merman's mind. When their swim finally came to a stop, the three guards took positions around the trinity, two between the throne and them, and one at the room's exit.

A small red crab suddenly zipped past Riku, muttering to itself as it approached the king, and shortly after the crab came a tiny seahorse with a—horn? Its tinny song rang throughout the throne chamber, announcing their presence.

"Introducing King Triton and the court musician Horatio Thelonius Ignatius Crustatious Sebastian!" the seahorse cried.

"Just Sebastian," the crab hissed.

"That's enough," Triton said sternly, curling a hand at the side of his throne as he leaned forward. He still hadn't taken his eyes off Riku for some reason. "I know why you're here, and you are not wanted. Atlantica is safe, and therefore you have no reason to stay. Take your magical weapons elsewhere."

"Your majesty," Riku began, pretending to be earnest, "if you know where the keyhole is, then yes, just letting us seal it would make your world safe. Otherwise, the heartless _will _come."

"Your majesty," the crab tried to speak up, hesitant as if knowing the king had a short temper, "perhaps we should listen to—"

"No," Triton said. He rose from his throne, the trident at his side, and the crab immediately fell silent. "If they come here," the merman said directly at Riku, "it's because _you _will bring them here. You must leave these waters at once."

Riku bit his tongue, glancing briefly at Andrina, who was watching her father with a worried expression. Triton seemed unyielding, though.

"Ahyuk, excuse me, yer majesty," Goofy spoke up, "but we can't leave yet. Our vessel is stranded."

"And the magical device we had to find it was stolen by a mermaid," Donald added helpfully.

Riku nodded, catching onto their plan. "We can't leave until we find it again, or until more of our people come to get us, which will be in two days. And if the heartless do come during that time, sealing the keyhole will protect your world."

Triton's chest rose and fell with a sigh, and though it was obvious he didn't want to deal with them at all, it seemed he had no choice but to buy their story for now. "Very well. Two days. But do not expect a warm welcome or any help finding what you are looking for," he said in an austere tone, cutting away any hope they might have had for help from these people.

It was more than enough leeway for Riku. He'd find that keyhole, that red-haired mermaid, and be done with this world.

"Deal," he said. "Two days, and we're gone."

-o-o-

"Think we can find it in two days?" Donald wondered as they left the royal quarters of the city, this time without escort.

"We saved Agrabah in less than one," Riku pointed out. "We should start with asking about the surrounding area, maybe describe the mermaid I saw..."

"What'd she look like?" Donald asked.

They passed through the columned pathways, heading to the edges of Atlantica, and Riku slowed a little to scan the nearby merpeople. "She had a green tail, purple top, red hair, and looked about my age, fifteen to sixteen," he said meditatively, searching for the right combination of colors amongst the myriad of people around them. "Unless their years are different here."

Goofy swam in front of him and paused, gesturing with a fin back towards the direction they had come. "Ahyuk, is that her?" he asked.

Riku turned, following Goofy's line of sight, and couldn't believe his luck. There, giggling with Andrina, was the mermaid who had stolen their transmitter, and her large fish floated nearby.

"It _is _her!" he said, kicking his tail and rushing through the water towards them without waiting for Goofy or Donald. "Hey—hey, you!" he called out, keeping the anger from filtering into his voice, but it was there, simmering inside of him.

The red-head—Ariel, if he remembered right—lifted her head in surprise, blue eyes widening when she realized who was coming right for her. "Oh!" she gasped, darting behind Andrina, clutching the other girl's shoulders as if to shield her. Her head peeked from behind the older mermaid's arm, shyly watching Riku swim up to them.

Andrina laughed, grabbing hold of the other girl's wrist, tugging her forward. "Ariel, don't be so timid—say hi to our guests!"

Ariel tugged her wrist away, casting a worried glance in Riku's direction. "H-Hi, um—" She curled a hand around the other mermaid's arm, hissing in an embarrassed manner, though Riku could still hear her words, "Sis, that's the one I was talking about!"

"Oh—" Andrina said, regarding Riku, her blue eyes also widening. "Oh, I see!"

_Sis._ Riku realized with dread that the two mermaids were related, which meant that Ariel was also Triton's daughter... which meant that this was going to be harder to do than he had anticipated. "You _stole _something from me," Riku said in an acidic tone, not wanting to give them an opening to get sweet with him.

"Arieeeelllll," the fish whined from nearby. "I told you he'd be maaad!"

"Hush!" she shushed him before moving forward, swimming in a circle around Riku, openly studying him. She seemed to have her confidence back. That spelled trouble for Riku. "I didn't steal anything, I _found_ it," she said openly, coming close to him. As she did another loop around him, her cool hand brushed along his bicep, making him start.

He pulled away from her, narrowing his eyes. "Well, you _found _something that belongs to _me_, and if you don't give it back, I'll tell your father that you were flirting with me. I'm sure he'd love finding that out."

For a second, Ariel's face darkened in disappointment, and Andrina let out a giggle nearby. "I think I'm going to go now," the blonde mermaid announced, playfully waving at Ariel and Riku. "Don't get into trouble, you hear?"

"Andrina!" Ariel called after her sister in disbelief. Riku wondered if her poise was going to crumble now that the other mermaid was abandoning her, but as soon as Andrina was gone, Ariel's expression filled with relief, her eyes bright. "Well, now she can't tell on me. Tell me—" she said excitedly, grabbing Riku's arm and tugging him with her as she began to swim in the opposite direction than her sister, "—where are you from? What's your name?"

"Hey, let go!" Riku protested, glancing back at Donald and Goofy, who were watching nearby with confused expressions. "I'm not going anywhere with you unless you give me back my stuff!"

Ariel laughed playfully as she came to a halt and twirled towards him, still holding onto him. "Let's make a deal. I'll give you back what you want _and _help you find the keyhole if you say you'll spend the day with me!"

Riku frowned, beginning to ask, "How did you know about the key—oh. Your sister." He pulled away from her again, not liking his options there. There had to be a way around this—he'd rather not be stuck with the mermaid.

"Say yes!" Donald called.

Irritated, Riku wanted to ignore him, but he knew Donald was right. This was the best opportunity they had to find the keyhole if Triton himself wasn't going to give them any help.

"Fine," Riku said, and Ariel's lit with an excited grin, before he added, "but you have to tell us about the surrounding area first."

"Us?" she asked, looking confused.

Riku nodded towards Donald and Goofy. "My friends. They're coming, too."

Her lips pursed into a subtle pout when she realized Riku wasn't alone after all, but within a second, her smile was back. "Okay, deal," she said, and with a lightheartedness that reminded Riku so much of Sora, she snatched his hand again and swam for the edge of the city. "Come on!"

This time he didn't protest. Donald and Goofy came swimming up behind them as they left Atlantica, Ariel taking the lead with her hand wrapped firmly around Riku's.

"My name is Ariel!" she called, throwing a grin over her shoulder.

"Riku," he offered, "and the turtle is Goofy, and the octopus is Donald."

"Ri-ku," she said, testing the syllables. "Well, once I tell you about Atlantica, I want to know about your world, where you're from, why you're here... My dad doesn't approve of the outside world and gets _so _mad whenever he finds out I've been near the surface. He babies me so much."

"He did seem pretty strict!" Donald agreed.

"What's wrong with the surface?" Goofy wondered.

"They're fish-eaters, barbarians, my dad says," Ariel explained. "He doesn't like anything that deviates too far from the norm. His sister, my aunt was banished a long time ago for practicing dark magic! Well, it's just a rumor, but they call her a sea witch."

"Sea witch?" Riku asked, interested.

"Ursula," Ariel said in a dark tone as they sped into the open ocean, scattering a school of silvery fish. "It's said she can grant almost any wish, but for a heavy price. I've never really met her..."

_Almost any wish._

As Ariel continued to talk, with Donald and Goofy carrying the conversation, Riku's mind lingered on that one phrase, that one dark possibility. For a heavy price, he could get almost any wish. He thought about Sora's happy grin and how _he _should have been here with Riku, how he should have been the one holding his hand and laughing.

Just what _would _Riku give to have Sora with him again?

-o-o-

Sora heard voices.

After resting, he had taken it upon himself to seek Yami out, but his search had led him to the chapel still with no sign of the amber-eyed man. Instead, he had found Maleficent again, only she wasn't alone.

Making sure her raven was nowhere in sight, Sora risked a glance into the chapel, spotting the woman standing before another figure—a _large _figure, robust and dark, black tentacles sprawling across the stone floor. The woman—if it could be called that—had a half octopus body, her upper torso a shade of purple that reminded Sora of artificial grape. Her large face was done up with lipstick and eye shadow, and a beauty mark graced her cheek, but none of that made her any less unsightly. Her gray hair was slicked back into a kind of cowlick, the rest of it cropped short to her neck.

She had a loud, obnoxious laugh that sounded more like a _heehaw_ and filled the chapel in an echoing, wince-inducing way. Shrinking back so he couldn't be seen, Sora felt his stomach churn as he watched her tentacles curl and slide across the stone.

"Don't _worry_," the octopus was saying, her red lips parted into a malicious grin, "I'll make an offer that pretty boy just won't be able to resist, mmhmmhmm."

"Be wary," Maleficent said calmly. "The keyblade master may be reckless and desperate, but he has his perseverance."

"And _I _have my own," the octopus countered with amusement, already turning to leave. A dark portal had opened up to welcome her.

Worried about Riku, Sora bit his lip, silently backing away from the chapel, knowing for sure that he had to find Yami now. As he tiptoed away, he heard the dark portal close behind the octopus, and then Maleficent's quietly patient, sinister reply.

"And no one will miss it, Ursula."

-o-o-

* * *

::dies:: The next part of this chapter will be much _much_ more exciting, trust me. I get all energized when I think about it. It has potential to be even better than Agrabah.

Happy birthday, Stygian Solace!


	36. Ch 21: Chain of Memories part two

_Author Notes:_

We're getting close to the end—about ten parts or so—and I have to make some tough decisions... When I started this fanfic, I knew exactly what I wanted to happen. But along the way, certain characters changed and grew on me, certain revelations in the series were made, and I've had to do a lot of replanning. _However_, one thing that has _not _changed is Yami's identity. And it won't.

Thanks for sticking around, and thanks for all of the support! Huuuuge thanks to Aoi Nikko, Lane, Dark Ki, Vash's Girl, Fruchiseka, Mistress Nashya, and Chaos0110, and everyone else who listened to me ramble or helped instill courage—and there were a lot of you! Also, forgive the choppiness of the beginning. I must have edited it a hundred times, but I still can't get it right. The pace picks up, I promise. ;0;

**Note: **If you're having problems picturing Riku's merman form, I have some links in my profile to sketches done by Lane and V.

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Chapter Twenty-one: **Chain of Memories _– part two 

-o-o-

When the sunlight streaming through the water began to dwindle, Riku was relieved that at least the first day was coming to an end, but he also knew it meant that he'd be stuck here for another one. Donald and Goofy had opened up to Ariel's playfulness with ease, welcoming her games and questions without hesitation, while Riku had struggled to keep up with their lively antics.

At the moment, he was resting. He, Donald and Goofy, and Ariel and her friends were gathered in a colorful undersea cavern, and Sebastian was in the middle of teaching Donald and Goofy the lyrics of one of his latest songs. Ariel and Flounder were nearby, laughing and teasing them. To avoid embarrassing himself, Riku had taken refuge on a smooth, flat rock with pink plants growing along the underside and up the edges.

He took in everything with a sense of detachment, watching them laugh and sing and play together, never once feeling like he really belonged there. He kept thinking back to his short reunion with Sora, wondering what he could have done to have made it end differently. He hoped Leon and Cloud would show up early and save him from this world, but even then they wouldn't know where to look for him. He still had to get Cid's comlink back.

What had happened to Donald's "no meddling" rule, anyway? Then again, Riku knew he couldn't avoid this one—Ariel wouldn't let him out of her sight.

Strange enough, though, Ariel wasn't half bad for company. As the day had passed with Sebastian the crab continually getting on her case for doing what she wanted to do instead of what she should have been doing, like practicing her singing for an upcoming festival, Riku had begun to sympathize more and more with the fun-loving mermaid.

Maybe it was because her restlessness reminded him of his own. She wanted independence from her overbearing father and the responsibilities of her heritage. She wanted to explore the unknown. Adventure, laughter, meeting new people, seeing new things—wasn't that what he and Sora had yearned for when they had been stuck on Destiny Islands? If Riku had had Sebastian watching _his _every move and reporting his actions to his father, Riku would have reacted with more impatience than Ariel did.

But perhaps Ariel was even more like him than he had thought.

Riku spotted her whispering something to Flounder in a conspiratory manner as Sebastian led Donald and Goofy through the song's lyrics again, correcting Donald's mispronunciation and Goofy's wrong word usage. Ariel took advantage of their distraction to approach Riku and quietly speak to him.

"Follow me!"

And, without waiting for his response, she grabbed Riku by the arm and pulled him out of his lounging position. She flashed him a smile and pressed a finger to her lips, and he obediently remained quiet, curious as to what she had planned. As she began to swim off, tugging him with her, he didn't put up a struggle and followed after her, leaving the cavern behind.

She led him to an inconspicuous boulder at the base of a rock face. He recognized this area as somewhere near where he had first run into her, and when she pushed the boulder aside a crack to reveal an opening beneath, he realized that this was where she had disappeared to earlier.

"This way," she whispered, "hurry!"

He nodded and darted through the gap. The area beyond was well lit, the hollowed space leading upward, a tunnel carved through by water over time. The dying sunlight from the surface filtered through the open top like a natural lamp, casting the burrow in dancing reflected light. Riku could see countless ledges lining the circular stone wall, and upon them sat an array of surface world trinkets that _he_ found familiar, but a mermaid like Ariel probably viewed them as peculiar or priceless. Small chests, music boxes, broken statues, dishes, dolls, a globe, clocks, paintings... She must have been collecting for years.

When he was done looking around, he glanced at her for an explanation as to why she was showing him all of this.

"What do you think?" she asked when she caught his gaze. She was smiling at him in an enthusiastic, expectant way, like she had been waiting for a reaction of some kind.

"Pretty impressive," he admitted.

"Flounder and I go exploring almost every day—sunken ships, beaches after storms... It's dangerous, but I think it's worth it." She flashed him a pleased grin and did a pirouette, her vibrant hair spiraling around her body as she kicked upwards through the water, spreading her arms and lifting her face as if to embrace the stream of sunlight. "I want to go there some day," she said eagerly. "I want to see it all, learn everything that I can about the world up there!"

She curled her arms around herself, smile spreading for a moment. But then her excitement began to fade, a wistful depth in her eyes as she lowered them to meet his gaze, her tail flukes folding in a slow arc. "But... it's not going to happen," she said.

He knew that look when he saw it. Flicking his tail, he rose through the water to her level. "You're just going to give up before even trying?" he asked with a frown, wondering why she had resigned so easily.

She looked away quickly, her fair floating forward and obscuring her expression from him, and she self-consciously clasped her hand around her wrist. "Well..." She hesitated. "It's my dad... He's so old-fashioned—he doesn't let me near the surface. I only get to explore the beaches when I can sneak away from Sebastian..."

"So why let that stop you now?"

"I'm almost sixteen," she replied with a sigh, tucking her hair back. "I want to do more things. But I'm the youngest, so he's keeping a close eye on me."

Riku pointedly glanced around the small grotto at her massive collection of human things. "If you ask me, if you can horde away this much stuff behind his back, you're going to be able to keep doing this for years to come."

As she giggled at that, he swam up to one of the smooth ledges, reaching out to trace a hand over a collection of books. Next to it was a pewter beer stein, a candelabra, some picture frames, and a small mirror. Everything was well cared for despite the watery home, and Riku found himself thinking about how much time she must spend in here to clean her treasures of algae and other sea life.

"To tell you the truth," he said, his fingertips running along the clean glass of the mirror, "I know what it's like to feel so trapped." He tilted the frame to study his own reflection and couldn't help finding his image haunting, his hair and skin so pale against the backdrop.

"Really?" she asked, sounding delighted. In the mirror, he spotted her drawing closer to him. Her eyes were wide, full of wonder, a brilliant cerulean like Sora's.

He nodded, brushing his silver hair away out of his eyes as he continued to stare into his reflection, remembering back to a few months ago. He had been so prepared to leave everything behind just to get away, just to go adventuring, to set sail on that raft and leave his boring, insignificant life behind...

"Yeah," he said. "But... If you know I'm not from around here, doesn't that make you even more curious about what else lies beyond your home?" he asked. His voice had taken on a distracted edge as he fell deeper into his own thoughts, remembering when Kairi had washed up on shore after the night of the meteor shower, and how her arrival had made _him _wonder what else lied beyond _his _home.

"Of course," came her automatic response, but she didn't sound so sure anymore. Had she been expecting Riku to tell her to stay home and listen to her Dad like a good girl? Hah. No.

He _had _done what he could to leave home, hadn't he? And now he'd do or give just about anything to be back there with his friends. With Sora. God, he wished Sora was with him right now. But after everything Riku had done... he wasn't sure he deserved that kind of wish.

And here he was encouraging someone else to follow in his footsteps.

"Then go out there and see what it's like," Riku said, turning away from the mirror to meet her gaze head-on.

She was still watching him. Her eyes filled with a hint of uncertainty before sharpening with sudden conviction, and she smiled. "You're right," she said at last, cheerful again. "Why give up now? There's still so much I haven't seen yet, so much I don't understand..."

For some reason, he was relieved. Maybe he hadn't wanted to be the only selfish person. "Yeah," he agreed, smiling back. He was not expecting her to move closer or to touch his arms as tentatively as she did, but he didn't pull away despite the uneasiness that was beginning to grow in his gut.

"Have you ever been up there?" she asked.

"Above water?" He automatically turned his gaze upwards to the light. "Yeah. It's completely different."

He felt her draw closer. "Different how?" she pressed. "Tell me about some of the things they do on two legs."

A shadow passed overhead, and Riku gradually lowered his eyes, lost in thought. "They can walk in all kinds of manners... with an airiness, or sluggishly, or silly..." he said. She probably didn't even know what that looked like. "Or very fast."

"Like running?"

He nodded, and a faint smile touched his lips as he pictured the race track back at home. "Yeah. Definitely running. Racing is fun, and so is fighting—it's easy to use the ground to your advantage in a fight."

Ariel curled a hand under her chin. "What about those strange _things_ they ride on?"

"Things?" he asked. He hadn't seen what the people on shore were like, but maybe it didn't matter as long as she got an answer. Gesturing with two hands, Riku made a shape in the water. "Bicycles have two wheels. If you're talking about cars, those have four wheels and go really fast, and they're box-shaped. People can also ride surfboards in the water, or skateboards on the streets... those are flat and take a lot of balance to ride on."

At this, she looked momentarily confused, but she seemed to accept his descriptions. She returned her hand to his arm and tilted her face with a grin. He wanted to draw away, but he didn't. "Do people fall down a lot?" she wondered. "Sometimes I watch them, but I never see them fall."

Lost in his thoughts of home, he could still hear Sora's surprised cries whenever he fell during a fight or because of his old shoes. "It happens," he replied after a moment, his smile turning reminiscent.

"What about dancing?" she asked, drawing him out of his memories.

Though he hadn't participated in the earlier musical activities, he'd gotten a good example of Ariel's dancing when she had been trying to teach Donald and Goofy. "It's not too different from down here, I guess," he admitted. "Except people get their legs tangled and feet stepped on."

Ariel giggled again. "They sound fun. And, you _know_..." The way she trailed off like that made Riku meet her gaze, and only then did she continue her sentence, a teasing smile on her lips. "You didn't dance with us today."

There weren't many situations where a girl could throw off his calm composure, but he was sure he looked alarmed in that moment. "I don't—"

But his protest cut off when a sharp tug on his arm sent him right up against her. Her purple top brushed against his bare chest, and he felt her laugh more than heard it. "Come on!" she said. "I want to see you dance."

He stiffened immediately, his heart racing and his thoughts freezing, but when her hand went to rest on his hip to coax him into a dancing position, panic flared up within him. He recoiled, shoving her away as if her innocent contact meant something else.

Confusion and embarrassment passed over the blue depths of her eyes, and Riku realized what he had just done. Stunned to silence, he backed away, suddenly sick with himself for overreacting. But he could still feel the contact of her fingers against the skin of his hip, the press of her chest, the movement of her laugh...

An overreaction or not, he understood now that a large part of himself didn't want to get that close to someone he knew had an interest in him—even in innocence—again. Not after what had happened with Yami.

Ariel searched his face for answers, but Riku couldn't find the words to apologize. He felt like a complete bastard, especially when she then formed a pout. It looked just like Sora's.

That one look reminded him of what he had done and what he had lost in the past few weeks, and in that moment, everything he thought he had accepted, everything he thought he could handle—it all came back at once, that self-hatred, that deep horror and guilt, and the anxiety over whether or not Sora would accept his apology. It welled up inside of him, striking with such an intensity that he didn't know how to handle it. He hadn't even done anything this time, but it still felt like he'd crossed another forbidden boundary.

Unable to explain himself to the confused mermaid, Riku did the only thing he was capable of doing.

He turned and fled. He raced away from Ariel's grotto, kicking his tail with such force that he lost hold of his senses, all of the blues and pinks and golds of under the sea blurring around him.

And when he felt like his anger and misery and shame were about to catch up to him again, he swam even harder, heading for the inky depths of the sea.

-o-o-

"Yami?"

Sora peeked into the upstairs part of the library, disappointed when he saw that the area was empty.

If Maleficent and her purple octopus friend were planning on hurting Riku, Sora wasn't going to sit on his hands and wait for it to happen. Even if it meant pissing Maleficent off, Sora would do the right thing. He just didn't know how to find or warn Riku, and somehow he knew that Yami would know what to do. The problem was that Yami was remaining elusive.

Before he turned away to look elsewhere, he noticed that something was resting on the desktop. It was a single sheet of parchment positioned in such a way that it looked as if it had been left on accident.

Deciding to be snoopy, Sora shuffled towards the desk, glanced around again to make sure Yami really wasn't there, and then leaned close to read. At the top of the page were numbers that didn't make sense to him—maybe a date? But the rest was legible.

_Nearly two years have been put into the construction of the shell, and we are finally ready to give Rinoa's heart a new home. Yet we have overlooked an important factor in her creation. _

_When we place Rinoa's heart into this manufactured body, if everything goes smoothly, we will have essentially given 'birth' to a new person. But she will not be Rinoa Heartilly, even with her pure heart. Rinoa will not be rising from the dead._

_No, this infantile princess must be hidden, she must be closely observed, and most importantly she must remain within our power. If my theories are correct, we will be able to use her when the time is right._

_Because he played a much larger part in the development of her shell than I did, Even has left me the task of determining her living arrangements. The old woman who used to care for me still lives here at the bastion. I am considering approaching her about this..._

_But first, I have been left with another task concerning the forthcoming child._

_Naming her._

Sora stared down at the crinkled parchment and scrawled black words, wondering what to make of them. As he finally pulled away from the desk, the perspiration his hands left against the smooth wood faded from the surface like fleeting ghosts.

Something about what he had read made him feel like he was snooping into things not only beyond his knowledge, but beyond his right to meddle. A chill crept into him, leaving him on edge, and as he backed away from the desk, he had the disturbing notion that he was being watched. Casting a glance behind him, he spotted nothing, but the thought still remained, worrying at the edges of his nerves. He had a bad feeling.

Deciding not to take the paper, he left the library to find Yami somewhere else, wanting to escape the uneasy feelings the reading had given him. People in this bastion had been playing with a girl's heart. They had been _creating _bodies—no, just one body. A false princess.

He wondered if that princess had anything to do with the three he was already looking for.

-o-o-

Riku had no way of knowing how long he had been swimming except for the waning sunlight, which had finally dwindled away to nothing some time ago. Darkness had swallowed the world, and Riku felt like waiting prey in the black, watery void. Even with his keyblade, he wasn't sure how formidable of an opponent he would be against a shark, especially in the dark, if one took an interest in him.

Every caress of kelp against his skin, every flicker of bioluminescence in the shadowed abyss around him made his heart leap. He would freeze and instinctively reach to summon his keyblade, only to stop himself and listen for a moment to make sure the coast was actually clear—as if the gliding predators of the sea made noise. He remembered stories from his youth. If he heard anything at all, it'd be the thrust of a tail right before the shark struck, and by then it'd be too late.

Unsure of which way he had come, Riku eventually gave up swimming. As the moon rose and granted a faint glow to see by, he sought out a safe place to rest. In the face of a large drop-off, he found a small nook that was just big enough for him to fit into. After folding his fins, he curled up on his side to face towards the sea, settling in the soft bed of seamoss. Short clumps of seagrass lined the edge of the nook, allowing him coverage for whatever might be lurking out there in the dark.

And as he rested there trying to figure out what he was going to do next, an ache began to settle in his body. Swimming and using muscles he hadn't used in a long time were taking their toll on him. Plus, he'd only gotten about an hour of sleep in the gummi ship after Agrabah before they'd crashed here, and not only that, he couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten...

Stomach growling on cue, he slipped his arms around himself and shifted against the slippery moss, disturbing what felt like a crab. It scuttled against his tail and disappeared somewhere in the plantlife.

Great. Sharing a home with a crab.

How far he had fallen...

Riku was the keyblade master, yet he held no power to keep his friends or to see them when he wanted. He felt so weak, alone, confused... He couldn't even find his way. What kind of hero got _lost_?

When he closed his eyes in an attempt to sleep, he couldn't. His mind kept racing, replaying scenes of the past, trying to connect the pieces and figure out what was going on around him, like with Sora and Yami. Who was whose enemy now? What had Yami meant about Ansem? Why had Sora been in Agrabah...?

Why had Sora left? Riku must have asked himself _that_ a hundred times by now, but it still hurt every time he remembered how Sora had looked at him. That sad expression kept haunting him. He felt like a masochist for how many times he had thought about it.

Riku had already admitted to himself that he had screwed up. He just didn't know what he could do to repent for something like that. Both of them had suffered so much for that stupid, stupid mistake, and he knew he couldn't just grab Sora and apologize like he'd originally hoped...

It'd probably have to be on Sora's terms... Unless Riku had already messed up beyond forgiveness.

Nonetheless, he still wanted to apologize, even if... Sora didn't want it. Even if he lost Sora.

Wounded by the thought, Riku buried his face in his hands, trying to force his mind to stop thinking about those things. But then he again remembered Sora's smile back in the Cave of Wonders right before he had disappeared into the darkness, and he asked himself those questions all over again.

_Why?_

"Poor lost little human..."

Riku's head shot up, his instincts wakening. He had his keyblade out before he even spotted who had spoken to him.

His eyes adjusted slowly to the figure, but even then he didn't need the dim light to see the glowing gold eyes in front of him. Momentary panic struck him—was it a heartless?—but the voice had been an echoing rasp, not like anything he'd heard before.

"Who are you?" he asked cautiously, lifting his keyblade in warning. The weapon, he noticed, was giving off faint radiance.

The creature glided forward, and its silhouette became two right before they moved close enough for him to discern clearly—two moray eels, black and gray with spindly teeth and calculating gazes. They each had one yellow eye, together making the golden pair he had mistaken as a heartless.

They softly cackled at his wary expression. Then, after glancing at one another, they fearlessly slid forward into his hiding spot, speaking in wheedling tones.

"All alone..."

"Trapped in darkness..."

As they swam in a circle around him, he turned to watch them, keeping his keyblade held defensively as he listened.

"Thinking about what could be..."

"When he could do it for himself..."

They came together again, matching their eyes as they glided closer to him, still speaking, this time as one.

"_If only he had the help._"

He narrowed his eyes, carefully considering them. His interests had been perked, but even an idiot could tell these guys couldn't be trusted. "Explain," he ordered, pointing Oblivion at them.

"We know someone who can help you," the left one said in a controlled hiss, and the right one spoke up without hesitation.

"Who can make any dream come true."

"Ursula can grant you..."

"_...whatever you desire_," they both finished.

Ursula. Ariel had mentioned an Ursula, hadn't she? A sea witch who could give almost any wish...

This was it. This was what he had wanted, wasn't it? A chance to set things right. Maybe she could help him find Sora. It was also possible she knew where the keyhole was.

But... the fact that these eels had approached him with this opportunity at such an appropriate moment wasn't the only suspicious part about this. They knew he was human. He wondered just how long had they been watching him.

"What's the _catch_?" he asked skeptically.

The eels glanced at each other again, sharing a secretive look, and then regarded Riku with slow, menacing grins.

"A contract."

"A fee you must pay."

Riku remembered what Ariel had said earlier in the day... something like Ursula the sea witch could grant almost any wish, but for a high price. A "contract" implied that he'd have to agree to whatever the payment was before he got what he wanted in return. If he didn't like the deal, he could always say no.

And it wasn't like he couldn't protect himself if things went wrong. He didn't think it would hurt to see what this sea witch had to offer.

"Fine," he said, lowering his weapon. "Show me the way."

-o-o-

The bedroom was the last place Sora wanted to look in order to find Yami, but he was running out of options.

He hesitated in front of the double doors, remembering the first time he had been standing here. Though it had been weeks ago, Sora hadn't mustered the courage to return here since that night when the green will-o-wisp had led him to these doors...

He would never understand what had compelled Riku to do it, and he was pretty sure he'd never understand Yami's motives. But then, if he did ask them, would they even have good answers? How could they justify something like that?

Swallowing nervously, Sora pushed open the left door. It gave a slow creak as he peeked into the room to see if Yami was inside.

The curtains to the balcony were open, and a gentle breeze had scattered a few pages of music onto the floor around the piano. There was no one in the room. Likewise, the balcony and the small upstairs library were empty.

Where _was _Yami? Had he left the bastion?

At a loss as to where else to search, Sora decided he'd risk trying Ansem's old studies. Maybe even the dungeon where Beast was... Yami had found him in each of those places before—perhaps Sora'd get lucky.

Sora glanced at the bed where the sheets were twisted as if Yami had had a bad dream and hadn't bothered to fix them after getting up. Remembering what he had seen taking place on that mattress, Sora lowered his eyes and left the room, closing the door behind him. Its resounding thud eased away some of his discomfort, as if he were trying to shut out the memory as well, but he knew the images from that night would never truly leave him.

-o-o-

The eels led him to a dismal valley where lava fissures, underwater chimneys, and jagged crags made up the terrain. In the middle of a ring of active lava tubes, a leviathan-sized skeleton of a fish rested on its belly, its back lined with crooked spines like the twisted fingers of black coral. A strange magenta glow shone from within the structure, and its mouth lay agape as if to welcome Riku as he drew closer.

The enormity of the skeleton didn't really sink in until he had followed the eels up to its maw where each of its pointed teeth was twice his size. Riku hesitated at the threshold, wondering what he was about to swim into.

At first glance, the throat of the gigantic skeleton seemed to be lined with a garden of some kind, but was actually a collection of squirming gray-green polyps. When he passed over them, they opened wide eyes to watch him, reflecting despair. One even tried to snake around his trailing fin, but he knocked the creature away with his tail before darting forward, catching up to the eels.

They had already reached the end of the skeletal hall, but they must have seen his trouble with the polyp because they were snickering with each other. Ignoring them, Riku entered the spacious cavern beyond, which must have been the stomach of whatever beast the sea witch had taken up residence within.

Riku glanced around the area, noticing a closed giant scallop to his right and also what seemed to be a dressing table with a mirror, including a giant cushiony sponge for a seat and various shelves with bottles of unknown contents.

At the very core of the hollow, a bulbous, arrow-shaped mass protruded from the ground. Riku first took it to be a strange type of sea plant or perhaps some prehistoric blastoid, but its dark, stonelike appearance made him think twice—its apex looked like _teeth_. Riku could only wonder what the structure really was.

As the eels glided past him, he lifted his gaze to see where they were going. The spine of the leviathan sea creature trailed overhead, continuing directly forward and vanishing beyond a large, dark conch shell that was emitting a slow stream of bubbles. It was this conch that the eels disappeared into, and in the shadows of the shell's mouth, something larger than them stirred.

Sonorous and saccharine, a woman's voice suffused the cavern. "Flotsam, Jetsam," she cooed, "you brought me a customer."

As the speaker began to move from within the shadows, a slender black thing first slithered into view. It was a tentacle, and even from that simple, fluid movement, Riku could see the muscle and power behind whatever creature it belonged to. Another one appeared, then another, and they pushed against the rim of the shell to heft the heavy figure out of the conch.

She floated down with all her tentacles flared outward like an octopus, and when she landed, they bunched and rolled out to move her across the floor. Aside from himself, she was the first one he'd seen who didn't look like the other merpeople, whose tails were colorful and simple. She was anything but—she was entirely curves, robust belly and breasts and all. Her face was painted up as if she had been expecting company, and a spiraled mollusk shell dangled on a string around her neck.

This had to be the sea witch. Ursula.

"Mmm, and a handsome one, at that," she added as she lifted a tentacle, curling it under his chin and tugging him forward. He pulled away from her grasp and made a face when one of the suction cups stuck briefly to his skin. "Don't be so un_easy_, dear," she said, playfully chiding as she circled him and followed his figure with her eyes. "We're very much the same."

"You don't even know me," he said in a derisive tone. Though her brazen nature did unsettle him a little, he didn't bother turning to watch her. He let her do her round and study him. If she thought him to be uneasy, he'd show her otherwise.

When she returned to his line of sight, she was carrying a ribbon of pink kelp around her shoulders. "Don't I?" she asked, deliberately shrewd. "You and I are stuck in a position we don't want to be in—and would do practically _anything_ to get what we want." Brushing past him, she met his gaze with a knowing smile. "We live by our ambition, sweetheart, aaaand..." She drew closer to him again, her voice lowering to a secretive intonation. "...you want the same thing I do."

He backed away, uncomfortable with the way she presented herself—like she _did _know everything about him, like she really could help him. Something was telling him he should back out of this while he could. "I doubt that," he replied, regarding her skeptically as he turned to leave.

But before he could swim away, she slid the ribbon of pink kelp in front of him, pinning him behind the satiny leaf to keep him from escaping. Then, as if she hadn't been about to lose him at all, she leaned in from behind him to whisper darkly into his ear.

"The keyhole."

A shiver went through him. He knew he wouldn't be able to resist _that _bait.

Interested but wary, he brought a hand to the kelp and slowly lowered it before facing her. "You know where it is?" he asked.

When she saw that she had his attention, she withdrew and moved across the cavern again. "No," she said, sounding amused, "but I know someone who _does_, mmhmhm." She tossed the kelp aside, and it twirled and floated past the eels, who swam in circles around the sea witch as if awaiting orders.

He didn't trust that laugh of hers, but curiosity won him over. "Who?" he asked.

Planting a hand on her hip, she glanced over her shoulder at him, smirking. "Why, King Triton himself," she said a little too casually.

He caught onto the implications immediately from what Ariel had already told him about Ursula. "Right," he said. "The same guy who banished you."

"Hmph, and the same guy who refuses to help _you_, my dear," she said. Though his sarcasm had been poignant, her own wit remained completely unaffected. With a lofty gesture, she turned back towards him, speaking dryly. "He's so high and mighty and _unmoving _up there on that throne of his that he's probably grown barnacles by now."

Not only did he sense resentment and envy there in her tone, he sensed a cry for vengeance. Maybe even a hint of sympathy... He didn't like how easily she was getting him to play along.

She slid close to him again and rested a dainty hand on his shoulder. "The good news is that we don't need him to find the keyhole. What we require is that trident of his."

"You keep saying _we_," he noticed. He twisted out from under her hand. "I didn't come here to be your stupid little pawn. I'm not an idiot. I've dealt with people like you before."

Ursula raised her fingers to her chin and smirked. "Oh dear, I think you've misinterpreted my intentions. I'm merely a businesswoman—here to help poor, unfortunate merfolk..." She gestured towards him. "Like yourself."

"You mean cheat and swindle poor, unfortunate merfolk," he persisted with a scowl. "It'll take a lot more to convince me, and if that's your idea of help, I don't want it. I'll find the keyhole myself."

Her friendly act dropped a little, giving her voice a clipped edge. "If you're not here for help with the keyhole, then why _are_ you here?"

The answer to that was something he didn't need to hesitate over. "You can grant almost any wish, right?" he asked, focusing back on why he had come here in the first place. He approached her with less caution, his expression turning hopeful.

She lifted a hand again, this time inspecting her nails. "That's right, angelfish."

Riku grabbed her wrist to draw her attention to him directly. When her eyes met his, only then did he press forward, somber. "Can you bring someone to me? Someone I can't reach."

It was her turn to brush his touch away, her red lips tilting with a pleased curl. "That... _could _prove difficult," she said, and the way she paused made Riku think she was carefully choosing her words, "depending, of course, on who and where this... individual of interest is. But I _do _like a good challenge."

The throaty chuckle she gave after that did nothing to deter Riku, and if anything, her confidence inspired his own. If he could get this to work, he wouldn't have to worry about hurrying to Hollow Bastion... But the nature of his request was a gamble of its own.

"His name is Sora," he said, lifting his chin, showing some of the confidence he used to be able to assume so well. "And... he's not on _this _world."

Up until that moment, Riku had had his doubts on whether his idea was possible or not. In all the worlds he'd come across, only Maleficent had known about worlds outside of her own. Jafar had been a close second with his knowledge of the heartless.

Riku wasn't sure what kind of reaction to expect here, but then a pleased smirk formed on Ursula's face, and he knew he had his answer.

"So the keyblade bearer doesn't care if he violates the ever annoying and _boring _world order law," she said with a level of approval. "That opens up my options quite a bit."

She tapped the top of the bulbous structure next to them, and it sprang open like a flower, except these petals were made of teeth. He inched away from it, staring into its watery, lavender glow. Her tentacles shifted, propelling her up the side of the cavern to the closed scallop overhead, which also snapped open as soon as she touched it, revealing shelves of more mysterious bottles and jars.

"Tell me, handsome," she said, now businesslike, "where _is _this Sora of yours?"

Riku watched her with interest as she began to yank bottles from the shell and let them float and spiral downward into the open lavender claw-blossom that he realized was a cauldron of some sort. Witch indeed. With each bottle and its living contents, the cauldron flashed brighter, releasing plumes of underwater smoke.

"A place called Hollow Bastion," he said, not meaning to sound as awed as he did.

Her arms froze. Then, as she slowly turned back towards him, hanging upside down from her tentacles, a low, sinister chuckle built in her throat. The cocksure look in her eyes at that moment was the same as Jafar's before he had disappeared with Sora and the lamp. "Oh, how _rich_," she practically purred. "This'll be _good_."

He hadn't trusted her before, but now his instincts were really on edge. Careful not to seem apprehensive, he edged around the cauldron, putting space between himself and the sea witch. As soon as he got Sora, he would high-tail it out of this place.

"Look, can you get him or not?" he asked.

Two more bottles plunged into the lavender concoction, and she responded first with a sharp laugh. She twirled towards him, moving across the wall of the cavern before dropping back to the ground, tentacles rolling towards him. "Babe, I won't just _get _him for you, I'll even turn him into a merbrat so those silly human lungs of his won't cut your precious reunion short."

As she closed the distance between them, he tried backing farther, but when she snapped her fingers, her two eels curled around Riku's arms and pulled him to the cauldron. A tail thrust under his chin to lift it, and he met Ursula's gaze, his eyes narrowed with distrust. She returned his look with a condescending smile.

"Now then, listen up—this is important," she said. "Since this request of yours extends beyond this world, it will require more _effort_ on both our parts." She gestured, and her eels released him, only for her to slip an arm around his shoulders and turn him towards the cauldron, which was displaying a shadowy representation of the layout of worlds. "I can find him the hard way—that is, the _slow _way—by using my magic alone. Or..."

She touched one finger to his chin, tilting his face upward. Their eyes met again.

"Or we can find him the fast way," he finished for her.

"That's riiiight." Slowly drawing away from him, she flicked her fingers, and the claw-blossom snapped closed again. "By giving me something of his to go by, you could have _instant _gratification."

"Tempting," he admitted, eyeing the witch warily, "except... I don't have anything of his."

"Mm hmm hmm. That's where you're wrong," she said. With a dramatic flourish, she draped herself over the closed cauldron and tucked her hands under her chin. Her smirk turned impish. "Tell me, just how dearto you is this Sora?"

Why did he get the feeling she already knew the extent of their relationship? To play it safe, he decided to withhold the details anyway. "He's... my best friend," he said, and though he sounded natural, it was apparent from Ursula's expression that she didn't buy it.

"Is that what they call them these days?" she said dryly. She sat up and slid forward, a tentacle twisting into his hair to play. "You two must have quite some memories together."

He didn't give her the reaction she was probably trying to achieve. "What are you getting at?" he asked, letting his suspicion reign.

"Give me one of your precious memories," she said, flicking a lock of his hair and retracting the tentacle. "If that best friend of yours really does hold such a large piece of your heart, then one memory of him should be enough for me to find him." She paused there, carefully reading his expression. "Of course, you don't get to choose which one I'll take."

After all the memory diving he had done with Leon, Ursula's request shouldn't have surprised him as much as it did at first. He had witnessed first hand what the power of memory could do. If one memory could help her find Sora for him, he believed it.

"One memory isn't too bad..." he murmured.

"Oh, but I should warn you of a certain side effect," she said, and it was obvious she had saved this bit of news for last on purpose. She rolled off the cauldron and tapped its peak, making it spring open like before, and the purple glow suffused the chamber once again. "I can't simply just _take _a memory. It doesn't work that way."

"Why not?" he asked, following her movement with his eyes.

Even as he spoke, her hands danced in the water, summoning images from the cauldron with ease. "Memories are formed along an intricate chain," she said, displaying a complicated loom of chains interconnected and branching off and returning to one another. It was a dizzying pattern, busier than any spider web he'd seen. "To take one memory," she explained, pinching a portion of the false web away, "more than one link needs to be removed." As the link in the image disappeared under her fingers, an entire branch went with it. The whole pattern shifted and rearranged itself, links reconnecting and new branches forming just to fill in the holes that had been created.

Riku had a feeling he knew what that meant. "Which means... you get a whole chain of memories?" He glared. "How is that fair?"

"Consider that part of your payment," she replied, planting a hand on her hip.

"_Part_ of? But—"

She waved her fingers at him, cutting him off. "You can't get something for nothing, you know." She closed her hand with a sense of finality. The cauldron folded back in on itself, and she moved across the cavern, slicking her hair back. "I _am _doing you quite the favor, therefore the rest of the payment should be... _valuable_..."

"I don't have anything valuable," was his automatic response.

She shot him a look that told him she had been expecting him to say that. "Wrong again, handsome."

He watched with a frown as she moved to the far wall of her watery home and snatched something from between the bones of the structure. It was some kind of sea slug, and it squirmed as her hand clasped firmly around it. With a powerful squeeze, she crushed it, and the creature gave a sharp flail before falling still. Then the witch slid across the ground towards the entrance of her lair where the garden of polyps watched her with their wide eyes.

"Normally I ask for a person's most valuable possession, but you're a tough case," she explained. She began to pinch off pieces of flesh from the slug, flicking the matter towards the writhing polyps. One by one, they stretched outward and clamped their mouths around the floating chunks. "I would ask for that lovely weapon of yours..." she said contemplatively, "...but I'm sure there's some trick to it." Finished with feeding her little pets, she pretended to wipe her nails. "You will have to bring me something of equal value."

He could hardly believe what she was requesting of him. "And where am I supposed to find something of equal value to my keyblade when it's the _keyblade_—the greatest weapon of _all_?" he demanded.

"Easy," she replied, steepling her fingers together as she turned back towards him, her smile wide. "You find the greatest one _here_. Like, say... Triton's trident."

"The trident..." he repeated hesitantly. The deal was tempting. King Triton had been a jerk to him anyway, and like she had mentioned before, with the trident Riku had a chance to find the keyhole. He didn't trust Ursula with it, but... Couldn't he handle whatever happened?

All he wanted was to have Sora here with him.

"Get me the trident by sunset tomorrow," she said, as if reading his thoughts, "and you and your lover boy are free to do what you please."

Either she really did know the extent of their relationship, or she was just teasing. Either way, she knew how to work him well. The thought of having the whole of tomorrow with Sora to himself helped ease some of his skepticism away. Except for this new term of hers.

"What happens if I don't get the trident by sunset?" he asked.

Ursula's expression turned sinister. "Lover boy returns safely to where I snatched him from," she said, leaning over the cauldron to aim a wicked grin at him, "and you, handsome, become _mine_."

The confidence there in her voice should have driven him away from the deal. It all narrowed down to that simple dilemma he kept finding himself at: duty or happiness. But as sagacious as he was, the desire to do this selfish act was greater than his need to play hero.

In his moment of hesitation, Ursula grew bolder. "Not getting cold fins now, are you?" she teased.

He coolly met her smirk with one of his own.

With a wave of her hand, a golden scroll materialized in front of him, fragments of light glittering off it. Riku's eyes scanned the writing in front of him without taking in any details. A quill made of fishbone was offered to him, and he took it, suddenly aware of how fast his heart was beating.

"Do we have a deal?" she asked.

He breathed deeply and closed his eyes, and once again Sora's sad smile from Agrabah was there to meet him in the darkness. He opened his eyes, and from beyond the golden glow, Riku could see Ursula's eager, dark gaze.

Duty could wait.

With a trembling hand, he signed his name on the scroll.

-o-o-

Sora hadn't seen Beast in days, but even though he didn't look sick or haggard, something about the way he carried himself told Sora that he had almost given up on his mission here. He hardly looked up when Sora approached the bars of his cell.

"Beast..." he whispered, concerned.

A fuzzy ear twitched, and only Beast's blue eyes lifted towards Sora. "Did you find Belle?" he asked in a rasp.

Sora wanted more than anything in that moment to have something positive to report. Yet despite all of his looking, he had nothing to offer the poor creature. "No... But now I know you're not alone," he said. Wetting his lips, he lifted his hands to the bars of the cell and leaned close. "There are other girls missing—princesses. I think they're all here. And I think I can get Yami to help m—"

A sharp roar interrupted him, and Sora stumbled back as Beast whirled towards the bars and slammed into them with a ferocity that looked almost painful. His paws clutched the bars where Sora's hands had been, and he pressed his face up against them, intense anger tightening his voice.

"That _trickster_—" he growled, baring his clenched fangs, "—bring him back here so I can tear out his throat!"

"Wha—" Sora tried not to gape in confusion. He found himself backing away from Beast. "I thought you two were getting along?"

"_HAH_." This was practically spat with derision. "He thinks he can play both sides with his decorated _lies_. I'm nothing like _him_." Beast swat at the air and twisted away from the bars, falling to all fours to prowl his cell, his eyes still on Sora. "My selfishness may have made me into _this_, but _he_—" Beast shook his head, hissing. "He deserves _worse_."

Swallowing hard, Sora stepped cautiously forward. "Did Yami come by here?"

Beast's shoulders shook with a short, dry laugh. "Came, told his stories, and left," was the growled reply. Then Beast seemed to hesitate, his eyes glancing down the hall, and there was a flick of his ears as if trying to listen for something. When he spoke next, there was still fury there, but this time with a hint of worry that he seemed too proud to admit. "There was screaming earlier. Glass breaking."

It went unspoken, but Sora heard the silent command.

_Go check on him._

"Thanks," Sora rushed out. He had no idea what Yami had said to upset Beast so much, but with the mention of screaming, Sora found himself more inclined to find Yami, not stay and ask more questions. His feet led him quickly down the corridor, picking up speed until he was outright running. He headed deeper into the bastion, knowing exactly where he was going.

Ansem's study.

-o-o-

More ingredients were hurled into Ursula's cauldron, each cloud of smoke rising higher and higher in the cavern, and the sea witch herself circled and danced through the plumes, her crowing laugh rising with triumph.

Riku stared into the lavender abyss with wide eyes, wondering if he had made the right decision. But it was too late to back out now.

Another explosion rose from the cauldron, and Ursula propelled through the water above it, spreading her arms as if to capture the backlash. Then, still soaring above him, she turned her face downward. Her eyes focused on him, reflecting glory and madness, and her grin—malice.

Dagger-like, her fingers rose through the smoke, the movement tight and controlled, and she began to sing.

"Beluga, sevruga, come winds of the Caspian Sea!"

Her voice filled the cavern, echoing inside of Riku and making him back away. The eels met him from behind and shoved him forward again, right up against the edge of the cauldron as the power within swirled with shades of blue and red, creating a vortex and sweeping his hair forward.

"Lacuna amnEstos—"

The vortex spiraled outward, and he threw up an arm to shield his eyes, magic pulsing and rushing past him.

"—hippocampus separatus—"

The power dwindled to a haunting luminescent green, smoky wisps snaking around his body, through his hair, as if searching for something.

"—una memoria a mí—!"

They found it.

The scintilla of magic pulled away briefly, just as Ursula's last note sharply rose, and then cut off with a shrieking laugh as a ghostly green hand formed out of the mist, struck through his chest, and curled around his panicking heart.

For a split second, he thought she was actually going to steal it. That would have been the end of it all.

But then the hand slid out of his chest, and a cold burn surrounded his heart, making him double over and clutch himself, as tiny golden strings were pulled out of him, their ends pinched between two ghostlike fingers. He watched through his bangs, wincing and biting back cries, as inch by inch his chain of memories was extracted, an intricate loom of tiny links and branches, some bigger, some brighter, some leading nowhere, some dark and forgotten.

He gasped out, finding his voice through his confusion.

"A-Aren't memories... s-supposed to be in the mind...?"

Ursula approached the golden web, running a finger along the fine threadlike chains, the touches eliciting tiny pinpricks of pain inside of him, making him grit his teeth and curl a hand harder against his chest. Gauging his reaction, her smirk widened with pure satisfaction.

"That they are," she replied with a deep laugh, "but I want the memories dearest to your _heart_..."

Her finger came to a stop near the branch of memories closest to his chest, right over a large link that gave off a radiance brighter and more pure than all the rest. Her thumb pressed under it, and she began to crush the link.

_I brought something for you..._

_You actually believe the legend, Sora...?_

A painful spasm ran through his heart—

_I want to share the fruit with you, Riku..._

—and he clenched his eyes shut, biting his lip to stifle the cry that wanted to escape him—

_...so we're always together, even if you disappear..._

—but it came out as a whimper instead, just as the pressure around the memory tightened—

_I want to be able to help you, even if I'm too weak._

—tightened, and then disappeared completely.

There was a brief moment in which he remembered exactly what it was he had just lost, but the more he concentrated on the paopu and Sora's confession, they slipped away from him. His eyes opened only to watch as the memory was pulled away from the web, a hollowness growing within him as more and more chains went with it, and he realized with despair that he had no idea what he was losing anymore.

The misty green fingers and the long line of memories disappeared into the shell dangling from Ursula's neck, and he was left to witness how his remaining memories began to rearrange themselves, creating a new pattern to fill in the holes that had just been created.

He curled his arms around himself and shivered, squeezing his eyes closed again so he could clear his mind and remind himself why he was here, why this sacrifice had been necessary to get what he wanted.

What he wanted. Sora.

He loved Sora.

He wanted Sora back. He wanted to see Sora.

Most of all, he had to apologize.

Wait.

Apologize?

No... not to apologize.

To...

To what?

-o-o-

Sora arrived at the postern and raced down the hallway, holding a hand over his heart. He had no idea why, but it was hurting, like something terrible was happening, and he could only think that maybe Yami had done something unforgivable again—

He burst through the half open door of Ansem's study and froze in the threshold, panting as he took in the sight in front of him.

Torn books and glass littered the floor, and the desk lay in ruins, cracked down the middle, its chair thrown onto its side. The display tubes were shattered, blueprints were ripped from the walls, and there, amongst the ruin, the portrait of Ansem hung untouched on the wall.

Beneath it, curled up and trembling with his hands clenched pale in his hair, was Yami.

"Yami?" he questioned, carefully crossing the room towards the other man. There was no response, no movement except for the shaking of his shoulders, so Sora reached a hand out, resting it on Yami's head to get his attention. "Yami, what—"

That earned a sharp flinch from Yami, who caught Sora's wrist before Sora could pull it away. Yami slowly lifted his face, his expression full of shame, and fresh tear tracks lingering on his cheeks.

But what really concerned Sora was what he saw where amber should have been. Instead of the haunting golden hue he was used to finding staring back at him, there was a dull gray brown, the ugly shade of mixed complementary colors.

"Your eyes..."

-o-o-

Holding onto his head, Riku struggled to piece together his thoughts.

He wanted...to save Sora from Maleficent? Yes, that was part of it. Sora shouldn't be working with Maleficent. He should be with Riku, at Riku's side, using his powers to help Riku so they could fight together, not against one another. They were best friends, weren't they? Why did they have to fight?

Sora may have hated Riku now, but... Riku could never hate him back. Riku knew how he felt about Sora.

Maybe if Sora understood how much Riku cared... he could convince Sora to come with him?

Ursula was laughing again, and her cauldron was flashing, throwing orange light, and the ruckus distracted Riku. He felt lost, unsure of why he was even here anymore. But things were already in motion, and he would have Sora with him now.

The liquid power of Ursula's magic surged upward, splitting into two streams, which then thrust straight into a portal of darkness, disappearing from sight.

-o-o-

Sora's simple statement of concern was all it took for Yami to lash out.

Tearing his gaze away from Sora's, he shoved Sora away, his voice breaking as he screamed, sounding nothing like the Yami he knew.

"Get away from me!"

Sora staggered back from the force of Yami's push, but before he could catch his balance, his foot hit the spine of a thick tome. He began to fall backwards, catching just a glance of Yami's expression—surprise, sudden concern—

Because that was when the air ripped open in front of them. Out of a portal of darkness erupted two ribbons of orange magic, snatching Sora in mid-fall.

It happened so fast that Sora only had time to send Yami an incredulous look, who was already lunging forward to help Sora. His fingers brushed Sora's leg right before the boy was jerked through the portal, away from his grasp, and into a completely different setting and situation.

The power surrounded him, forming a shimmering, translucent bubble, and he was deposited onto his knees in the middle of it. He pressed forward, resting a hand against the side of the bubble, and peered through to find out where he was now. He gave a scared gasp at the sight of large bones lining the walls of an underwater cavern. Whatever had happened, it hadn't been Yami's doing. This became obvious when Sora spotted the big purple octopus he had seen talking to Maleficent earlier, and next to her was a pale figure Sora recognized even with the strange fish tail.

Oh _no_.

Sora met Riku's gaze, which was reflecting the orange light of the cavern, giving his green eyes a surreal shine. He looked hopeful, and Sora was glad to see him safe, but...

What the heck was going on?

"Riku?" he called apprehensively.

The octopus chuckled, and before Sora got his answer, the bubble around him abruptly constricted, surrounding him, suffocating him with whatever magic it was. He squirmed against the spell, but he had no power to stop what was happening, his cries muffled in the water as his clothes were ripped from him and the energy dissolved into his skin, twisting his bones and reshaping his body.

Thrashing, he felt his lungs burning for air as the skin on his legs began to meld together, becoming one, his feet fanning outward. Rubbery blue skin grew over his own, covering him from the waist down, something pointed shaping against his back. Within a few seconds, the transformation was done, and Sora could breathe again. He gulped in water, not caring how it was possible, so long as he didn't drown.

When the orange light faded, releasing him, he dropped backwards through the water, his tail coming above his head, and he realized what he had been turned into. Part dolphin?

"What—?" he gasped. He tried to move, only for his tail to send him in a slow somersault. He cried out and flailed, trying to steady himself, but someone was there to catch his arm.

Riku.

It was like Agrabah all over again as countless conflicting emotions seized Sora, making him momentarily forget he was even supposed to be mad at Riku, because he was just glad to be near him again. Still a little shaken from Yami's condition and his transformation into a dolphin boy, Sora gladly grabbed onto Riku in return, confused as to where he was, why he had been brought here, and what Riku had to do with it—but the fact Riku was here was enough for him to accept it for now.

A fond little smile pulled at Riku's lips as Sora met his gaze, and something there in his expression seemed... _off_.

"It takes some getting used to," Riku said, righting Sora's position in the water. "Come on."

"Come on?" Sora asked, looking nervously at the purple octopus watching them. "But—"

"I have it covered," Riku murmured, and he started to lead Sora towards the exit of the cavern. "Just move your tail fin."

Sora awkwardly obeyed, letting Riku do most of the work, but he kept his eyes on the lady octopus as they swam by her.

She gave a dark laugh and spoke to their backs. "Sunset, Prince Charming. Remember that."

Not understanding, Sora glanced at Riku for an explanation, but was met with a grim expression. "What's going on?" he asked, starting to tug his arm away from Riku's firm grip. "Riku—"

"I'll explain on the way," was the clipped response.

Despite that, though, he loosened his grip on Sora's arm and almost tentatively slid his fingers down to clasp Sora's hand. Then, with a faint smile that looked almost shy, Riku squeezed his hand and swam forward, pulling Sora with him.

As they passed through the skeletal hall, the squirming green worms below them watched their movements, and to Sora, they almost seemed to be silently crying. What had led Riku _here _of all places? He wasn't happy about having to wait for answers, but he decided to be patient for Riku's sake. He'd trust him. The uncharacteristic innocence of Riku's touches made him less willing to get angry because it was just so... different.

Sora followed Riku's guidance and kicked with his tail, trying to get the hang of swimming. The water felt natural against his new form, a little taste of freedom, almost, but he wouldn't let go of Riku's hand just yet. The ocean beyond the skeletal way was quiet and dark, but cracks in the ground issued forth a magenta light, giving them something to travel by. Riku led them away from wherever they had been—some giant dead fish?—and they hurried over the dangerous terrain. Sora wanted to ask where they were, but the way Riku kept glancing around made him think that Riku might have been lost, too.

"Riku, what's going on?" he asked again, staring at the sweep of Riku's hair against his bare shoulder because Riku wouldn't look at him. "Why am I here?"

Riku's fingers twitched against his own, and then he clutched Sora's hand more tightly. "I could ask you the same thing," he said too calmly. It was the same kind of tone Riku used to give him whenever he was hiding something he was scared to tell Sora. But it was still sincere, a hint of worry under everything.

"What are you talking about? I just _got _here," Sora pointed out.

"Where you should be," Riku said, his jaw set with conviction. Sora wished he would look at him directly. "Not out there spreading heartless for Maleficent."

Sora's bad feeling grew worse. Something was definitely off here. Did Riku really think he was destroying worlds? Playing Maleficent's puppet? Didn't Riku realize what had happened on Agrabah? Sora had _saved _the world.

He jerked his hand out of Riku's, and Riku turned, slowing to a stop and giving him a guarded but determined look. As he circled back towards Sora to grab his hand again, Sora crossed his arms, not letting him. "Why would you say something like that?" he asked Riku, trying not to look as hurt as he felt.

"We're best friends, Sora," Riku said by way of explanation, except it made no sense to Sora. "I'm not going to let her ruin you. She's _evil_ and she's manipulating you. Can't you see that? I don't want to have to fight you if I can avoid it." And even though Sora was confused, he could _hear _the concern in Riku's voice, he could see how the sincerity did filter through Riku's expression. It was bizarre. "Why can't we be a team?"

"Team?" Sora repeated, trying to make sense of all of this. What was Riku going on about, anyway? It was _his _fault Sora was avoiding him. Getting miffed that Riku seemed to have no idea why Sora didn't want to be with him, Sora retorted, "We _were _a team, and then you cheated on me with Yami!"

"What...?" A perplexed look passed over Riku's face, almost like he really didn'tunderstand, but then the expression faded into irritation. "What are you talking about?"

"You! What you _did_!" Sora yelled, hurt that Riku would try something this stupid just to get Sora to forgive him. "Stop pretending it didn't happen, because it did, and now you're being a stupid jerk!"

At Sora's words, Riku's tail flicked, sending him back and putting space between the two boys. Riku looked taken aback, his eyes full of uncertainty, vulnerable and unlike Sora's old Riku. Now that Riku wasn't accusing him of stuff, Sora continued in a calmer manner.

"You're the one not making sense, Riku," he insisted. "And you're acting really weird. What happened? What's going on, anyway?"

Riku shook his head, staring off into the dark sea. "You're the one who got jealous of my keyblade and ran off to Maleficent," he said, sounding bewildered, almost like he was trying to convince himself more than Sora. He returned his gaze to Sora, his brows drawing together. "Why does it matter if you have a keyblade or not? You shouldn't be working with the bad guy."

"_I'm_ working for the bad guy?" Sora asked as he moved forward, disbelieving. "I'm not helping Maleficent, and I haven't. You saw that on Agrabah!" He jabbed a finger against Riku's chest. "_You _were the one with the big purple octopus! What did she do to you?"

"The sea witch helpedme," Riku said, grabbing Sora's elbows and gently shaking him. "What's gotten into you?"

"What's gotten into _you_?" Sora demanded, wrenching away from Riku's grasp. The sea witch had _helped_ Riku? Yeah, right! Sora knew what he had heard her telling Maleficent. Even though he wasn't sure how the octopus's plan had led to _this_, he was going to find out, no matter what Riku wanted to hide from him. "Never mind, I'll just go ask her myself!"

"No—" Riku gasped, reaching out to stop him. "Wait, Sora!" But before he could grab Sora's wrist, Sora took off with surprising speed, his dolphin tail easily letting him slip ahead of Riku as he turned back towards the sea witch's lair—the one place Riku didn't want to go back to. "Sora, _stop!_"

Riku began to swim after him, but Sora already had a significant head start, and the farther ahead he got, the more despaired Riku felt. He'd _just _gotten Sora back, and already Sora had gotten away from him—but he couldn't let Sora go. He had to make Sora _understand_...!

But just as he reentered Ursula's terrain, he heard a girl's voice behind him.

"Riku, wait up!"

Ariel.

Riku hesitated, wanting to stop Sora, yet torn because he suddenly realized that he needed Ariel if he wanted to fulfill his contract with Ursula. Ariel had access to her father, who owned the trident. If Riku wanted to get that trident, he'd have to let Sora go for now...

Deciding to take care of the terms of the contract first, he slowed and let Ariel catch up to him.

She swam out in front of him, grabbing one of his arms as if to hold him back. "Riku, where were you going?" she asked, her blue eyes wide with worry. She glanced in the direction he had been heading. "The sea witch? You couldn—" But she cut herself off there to study his unguarded expression, and he looked down, unable to hide anything. "What's wrong?" she asked. She sounded scared.

He swallowed, feeling sick inside, but he couldn't afford to be weak now, not when he had to be convincing. Not for the first time wondering where his old confidence had gone, he met her gaze as unwavering as he could. "I need... the trident."

"_Trident_?" she repeated with surprise.

"Your dad's the king, right?" he asked, keeping his voice steady.

"But..." Her own hesitation there reminded him of something Sora used to do, stuck between doing the right thing and the obligation to make Riku happy. "...why?" she asked after a moment.

He had his answer prepared. "It can show me where the keyhole is," he said, managing to sound pleading. "I need your help getting it. You know your dad will never give it to me himself."

"Is that... true?" Her fingers slipped away from his arm as she looked into his eyes, searching for honesty. "The trident can really help you?"

But he knew he couldn't give her the whole truth.

He nodded. "Please. Before sunset."

Carefully watching him, Ariel drew back, silent for so long that Riku feared she might not do it for him after all. Then she finally nodded back, a trace of uncertainty in her gaze. "Alright. Meet me in my grotto before then. I'll have it for you."

Riku released a sigh, relieved. "Thanks. I owe you," he said, offering a smile.

She returned the smile shakily before turning, swimming off. This time he memorized the direction so he knew for sure which way Atlantica was. Whether or not Ariel would succeed, Riku didn't know, nor did he know what the trident could do if it really was the most powerful weapon here, as Ursula had said.

But those worries were to come.

With a flick of his tail, he turned back towards the leviathan skeleton. Right now, he had to find Sora.

-o-o-

"Back so soon?"

At the sound of her voice, Sora paused in the threshold of the octopus's lair. "I had some questions," he said when he spotted her. He moved away from the squirming worms below him and approached her, who was sitting on a big, squishy pink sponge-like chair in front of a mirror.

"Let me guess," she said as she swiped her hands through her gray hair, "you're worried that this side trip of yours is going to put you on Mommy's bad side."

"Mommy?" he asked, his brow furrowing.

"The Mistress who thinks she rules the entire universe," she replied. "Maleficent!" Then, in a dry voice, she added, "What a witch..."

As she squeezed a tiny shellfish and applied its insides to her lips to redden them, Sora crossed the cavern, glancing at her reflection in the mirror. "She's not my master—_or_ my mom," he said, firm and assertive. "She doesn't own me. And anyway, aren't _you_ a witch?"

"Watch it, darling," she said. "I'm a business woman." She puckered her lips, smacked them, and then turned slightly towards him, lifting an eyebrow. "Speaking of which... Is there anything I can help you with?"

Casting a glance over his shoulder, he wondered if Riku was going to follow him or not. He decided to get what information he could. Returning his gaze to the octopus, he asked, "Why was I brought here?"

"Why don't you ask your lover boy?" she replied snidely, turning around in her seat. "He's the one who paid for it."

That quickly changed the list of priorities in his mind. Riku had _paid_ something to bring Sora here? What for?

"With... _what_?" he asked, almost scared to know.

When she returned his question with a throaty laugh, Sora knew immediately that, whatever Riku had given her, it spelled bad news. "That would be spoiling the fun, now wouldn't it?" she said. In her reflection, she flashed him a smirk and daintily waved a hand at him. "Better hurry and find him."

More than just worried now, Sora turned to go.

"Oh," she said, briefly stopping him. He glanced at her again, wary, and she spoke as if amused with his distrust. "And when you do find him, be sure to spend all _day _catching up."

Sora left without a reply, hurrying out of the cavern to head back to find Riku. He wished he had a plan or at least some direction to go by, but he honestly had no idea what Riku could have paid to make him act the way he had.

Sora kicked his tail harder, determined to find him fast, wanting to make things right. Maybe it was time to stop running away from what had happened weeks ago. Maybe Riku wouldn't have done this if Sora had just... stayed with him in Agrabah. But even though they could have avoided this, Sora knew it wasn't his fault more than Riku's—but his actions had made Riku this desperate.

Sora stomached his growing guilt and shook his head, trying to clear his mind.

That was when something collided with him. Hands grabbed his wrists and Sora abruptly found himself being pulled into the shadows of a jagged rock face. Before he could even see what was happening, he found himself pinned against the surface, pale skin and hair filling his vision, right before determined eyes met his own. The scales of Riku's tail were rough on his smooth underside, and his hands were so tightly clamped around Sora's wrists that it was beginning to hurt, but Riku seemed not to notice.

What mattered in that moment was not the sea witch's plan, the fate of this world after the next sunset, or Riku's own fate if he couldn't deliver the trident. What mattered was this shaky reunion, and the way Sora met his eyes with his own quiet resolve. Though there was hardly light to see by, when Riku looked at him, he saw the blue depths of the sea back home, and he remembered their deep, unbreakable friendship from before all this happened. It felt like so long ago since he'd been this close to Sora, but he still held feelings for this scrawny, adorable best friend of his.

And although Sora may never return those feelings, and Sora may never know how much Riku did care about him, and even if Sora had discarded his paopu fruit, Riku still considered them bound by destiny. No matter how far Sora would fall, Riku would do everything he could to pick him up and brush off the damage.

When Riku spoke, his voice was rough but laced with a sincere certainty that made Sora shiver.

"I'm not letting you escape this time."

-o-o-

* * *

I've had the bulk of this chapter planned for such a long time, and it's exciting to be able to write it finally. 

But this has to be the hardest chapter I've ever written. I'm going through one of those phases where my writing style is doing wonky things and likes to disobey me. But please don't ask about my other projects right now. 180, LNOL, and co-writes will come when I have the time to work on them. Thank you for your patience and support, as always!

Review and make me feel better? Offer critiques?


	37. Ch 21: Chain of Memories part three

_Author Notes:_

**HAPPY FIFTH ANNIVERSARY, **_**STYGIAN SOLACE!!!**_

In honor of the occasion, this chapter is _**extra long**_, as requested. I'm posting lots of SS-related stuff on my LiveJournal about the past five years, so check it out if you're interested. There will also be cake involved. For me.

I'd like to give a ginormous thanks to Lane, who has been with this story since its creation and has been there almost every step of the way over these past five years. I couldn't have come this far without her. Also huge, huge, huge thanks to Ashanti and Vash's Girl for helping me get through my Riku-writing woes and suggesting dialogue/prose when my brain couldn't process anything remotely in character. Also thanks to Nashya and Fruchiseka and Dark Ki for their kindness and patience. These days, I'd be lost without all of you. As for the rest of you, thank you for all of your continued support and critiques.

SORRY FOR THE **HUGE** WAIT! (Insert real-life excuses here.) That said, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-one: **__Chain of Memories _– part three 

-o-o-

Riku's grip remained unyielding around Sora's wrist long after they had left the sea witch's lair. Now they passed through dark waterways without direction, Riku leading Sora in silence, who remained haunted by the words Riku had told him before this dizzying race to who-knew-where.

_"I'm not letting you escape this time."_

_"Wha—"_

_"I mean it, Sora! And if you try to leave—using the darkness or whatever—I'll follow! I swear I'll follow!"_

When Riku had said that, Sora had seen Riku's face through the magenta light of the sea witch's terrain and had recognized the look in his eyes—a fierce resolve, a recklessness that had led to more than a few accidents over the years. Sora couldn't remember the last time he had seen that look, and now, probably over an hour after seeing it, nostalgia still lingered within him.

At first he had been angry with Riku for making deals with the octopus and for acting like _Sora_ had been in the wrong the whole time during this adventure, but the silent swim had settled him down enough to begin thinking things through.

At some part in their journey together, he might have found his current situation exciting. He and Riku were in an underwater world as merpeople—something Sora never would have expected possible despite all of the creatures and magic spells he had come across. So far, he hadn't been able to enjoy this world because of Riku, but at the same time, the only reason he was here at all was Riku... and whatever Riku had paid to bring him here.

Sora's questions sat at the tip of his tongue, waiting for their chance to get Riku to explain things, but Sora kept hesitating. He couldn't see Riku's face from this angle, and that made him uneasy. He wanted to be able to see Riku when he spoke to him. After everything they had gone through, he wasn't sure what to expect from his former best friend and boyfriend.

Former...

He and Riku hadn't been separated more than a few weeks, but Riku already felt like a completely different person to him, like he wasn't the same Riku from Destiny Islands or even the same Riku from Agrabah—and that had only been two days ago!

But what had changed? Was it because Sora had left him there...?

_Well, whatever's wrong with him, stick around and see what it is, _Id spoke up.

Id hadn't said anything in a while, but at a time like this, Sora was willing to follow his advice (even if it wasn't advice so much as a demand). He agreed with Id here. He wanted to know what was going on. He deservedto know.

_I am,_ Sora assured him, but he expected that discovering whatever _was _going on would be tricky. He couldn't just ask Riku what he wanted to know, could he?

Then again, he had never been that careful around Riku in the past. When Riku had pushed him, Sora had always pushed back. Riku may have pushed too hard last time, but Sora was tired of letting the fall hurt him. It had been weeks since that disaster. Maybe it wasn't the right place or time to expect an explanation or apology from Riku, but he wasn't going to sit back and continue to let Riku run this show, either.

"Riku?" he finally cut in through the silence.

Though subtle, Riku's fingers tightened around his wrist.

"Yeah?" came the hesitant response a moment later.

"Do you even know where you're taking us?" Sora wondered, hoping it would strike a nerve.

It did.

Instead of continuing onward, Riku yanked on Sora's wrist and pulled him into a narrow crevice. Sora still couldn't see where they were going, but he felt the water current and temperature shifting around him as Riku led him deeper into the darkness, and somehow he knew the fluctuations in the environment meant they had entered a cave.

In a swirling flash of light that illuminated their surroundings, Riku summoned his keyblade, and Sora saw how accurate his instincts had been. Riku really had led him into a small cave. Other than the fish that scattered away from them and hid amongst the sea plants, they were alone.

Riku's expression was calm, maybe even guarded, but he met Sora's eyes as he finally spoke.

"This is far enough."

Riku hadn't answered the question, Sora noticed.

"Far enough for what?" he asked as he pulled his wrist out of Riku's grip. Riku let him, but his fingers had been there so long that Sora still felt their presence. He rubbed at his skin to get the feeling to go away, all the while watching Riku, who kept staring right at him as though afraid he'd disappear.

"I don't want to get interrupted," Riku replied with a slight narrowing of his eyes. His determination from before seemed to be back. "I risked too much to get you here, so I can't let anything bad happen."

Sora saw his opportunity there to begin his interrogation. "But why bring me here?" he asked.

Riku glanced away, sullen, and glared off into the shadows. "Because how was I supposed to know when we'd see each other again?" he pointed out, his brows knitting. "Or under whose terms that would be. Or if we'd really have to fight on opposite sides next time..."

The way Riku spoke made Sora hesitate. His words carried no confusion, leaving no doubt in Sora's mind that Riku believed everything he was saying, even though it made no sense to Sora. He had no idea how Riku's version of events had gotten so twisted out of perspective that he believed _Sora _was an enemy. But Sora couldn't argue against Riku's concern.

When Sora had left Agrabah, he had been so focused on how _he _hadn't been ready to face Riku or ready to come to terms with what had happened, and he hadn't stopped to think about how leaving Riku like that would affect their already messed up relationship. The way Riku had looked at him on the magic carpet when they had met face-to-face for the first time in weeks—Sora had recognized all of the emotions he had seen. Relief, remorse, hope...

Riku was no longer showing those. Had he missed his chance for Riku's apology...? For an explanation?

And he had assumed things had been so complicated _before_ being brought here. Now what was he supposed to do? Well, all he really _could _do was to keep asking questions. Riku said he had "risked too much" to bring Sora here, so...

"What exactly did you pay the octopus?" he asked Riku.

For a moment, from how Riku glanced quickly at him and then looked away again as if caught, Sora wasn't expecting Riku to answer honestly, or at all. Yet there came a hesitant reply, spoken softly and guarded.

"A memory," Riku said.

He turned away after saying it, leaving Sora staring at his back with incredulity.

"A _memory_?" he asked, trying to make sense of the answer.

He didn't know whether or not to believe it, as crazy as it sounded, but... now that he thought about it, if dragons and mermaids existed, hearts could literally be stolen, and worlds were protected by giant keys, who was to say that memories couldn't be traded? If Riku had paid that witch a memory, no wonder he was acting all weird. Things were beginning to make a little more sense.

But how could Riku have just _let _the witch have a memory?

He was scared to know what Riku might have been thinking when he had made that decision. She could have taken something serious—or worse! Memories were unique and precious—_not_ something to barter with like they were munny. The factthat Riku had let someone so evil have something that special was like a stab to Sora's heart because, in a way, Riku was throwing something priceless away again. And for what? To drag Sora back to him?

"A memory?" Sora repeated. This time his incredulity was bordering on anger. "You gave her one of your _memories_?"

Riku must have understood his tone because he still wouldn't meet Sora's eyes, even as he turned back to face him. "Yeah," he said, then started to try explaining, "but I—"

"Riku, you're the keyblade master!" Sora cut in as soon as he heard the opening for Riku's excuse. He didn't care _why _Riku had done it, just that he had done something so risky and—and _dumb_! "You can't go around giving memories to scary octopus people! She could be really dangerous!"

"Dangerous?" Riku echoed, and then released a dry laugh. "I didn't care if it was dangerous, okay? I wasn't... thinking about that."

"DUH! I don't think you were thinking at all!"

At Sora's bluntness, Riku's shoulders stiffened, but he said nothing.

Sora was getting really tempted to beat some sense into him. Wasn't Riku supposed to be the hero? Wasn't he supposed to be the smart one, the strong one, the one with the plan? He had looked up to Riku all those years only to just now realize what an idiot Riku could be. Being reckless was one thing; Sora had known that part of Riku all his life. But this...? First the Yami thing, and now _this_. It baffled him.

"Riku," he whispered, earnest, "how could you be so _stupid_?"

Maybe it sounded childish, but Sora meant it.

He knew it had hit a sore spot when Riku's head snapped up and, just for the briefest of moments, Riku looked hurt. Then it was gone, and Riku was opening his mouth again.

"Isn't it obvious?" he said, eyes narrowing into a defensive glare. "I did it because I wanted to see _you_!"

Silence.

Sora stared.

All this trouble for something so simple? It left him in disbelief again, his face clouding with confusion as he tried to form words to express how _insane _all of this was beginning to sound.

"Riku, you..."

He what? Had lost all common sense? Was that desperate?

No, no—

Sora clenched a hand in his hair before sighing in frustration. Picking on Riku wouldn't get him his answers. He moved forward through the water, deciding to close some of the distance between. He wasn't scared of Riku, and there was no way he was going to back down that easily.

"Why for _me_?" he asked. "If I'd wanted to see you, I would have come to you myself! When I was ready!"

"Exactly! _When_ would you have been ready?" Riku pointed out, the tension in his voice growing. He wasn't backing down either, like Sora had sparked that old competitive drive within him. There was something about the way his eyes looked, not nearly as guarded as the rest of him anymore—almost desperate. "I wanted to talk to you _alone_, without Maleficent directing you, without an audience."

"I'm _not_ working for her!" Sora yelled, trying not to get too annoyed with the bogus accusations. "Stop saying I am!"

Despite Sora's denial, Riku's determination remained steadfast, and he also drew closer through the water to meet Sora's silent challenge of authority. "Look, I'm tired of fighting with you, fighting to get through to you—"

"And we weren't fighting with each other!" Sora cut in. "There wasn't _time_ to." He broke off for a second and clenched his jaw, emotions welling inside of him as he thought about what he wanted to say next, but he didn't want to give Riku another reason to think he was being the weak one here. "The only reason we're not together anymore is that you completely screwed everything up, and—" Sora paused for just a moment to study Riku's reaction, and when he saw the confusion there spreading into irritation, he rushed out the rest of his sentence to match his irritation before he could break down instead. "—and—and I've gone through a lot of really crappy stuff because of how much you hurt me, and I'm not ready to forgive you for what you did, you selfish, _stupid _jerk!"

"Stop calling me that!" Riku snapped, eyes blazing. "And how did _I_ screw everything up? What did _I _do? You're the one who ran off—"

This time Sora interrupted by shoving Riku back. "You idiot!" he cried, his patience running thin and giving him room to be upset. "She took your _memory_! How can you even trust yourself right now?!"

Maybe it had been the push or maybe it had been the reemphasis of Riku's stupidity, but whatever it was, Riku faltered. Now that Sora was getting so upset, Riku's antagonistic demeanor was beginning to shift, no longer looking annoyed with Sora, but with himself.

"Because..."

But Riku couldn't finish it. He glared to the side again, his tail flukes twisting in an awkward gesture. Sora figured that Riku must have known that making the memory deal with the witch had been a bad move; maybe that pride of his was just making it hard for him to accept it.

"Riku," Sora said, sounding almost pleading, "she could have totally taken advantage of you! What would have happened if she had taken all of your memories, or the memory of the keyblade—? You would have _lost_! Game _over_, Riku!!"

Then, as if Sora had finally put the situation into terms Riku could understand, Riku's defensive walls slammed back up, almost like a final stand to protect himself. "I know what I'm doing!" he snapped.

"You _don't_!" Sora returned. He was definitely not backing down now, not when he had Riku cornered, not even if Riku was refusing to see the truth. Sora would pound it into him if he had to. "She could have even killed you!" Sora flicked his tail and swam forward again, grabbing Riku by the arm to meet him face-to-face. "You don't even realize _what_ she's taken from you!"

Riku brushed Sora's hand off of him but didn't move away. "I don't _care _what happens to me!" he said, beginning to sound desperate, but his eyes were clear, honest. Then he reached out in return, lightly grasping Sora around the elbow as he searched Sora's face. "Sora, I just..." His fingers tightened. "I just wanted my best friend back!"

Once again, Sora stared, moved speechless because of the simplicity that lay behind all of their complicated problems.

_Ah, so the truth comes out, _Id laughed, picking up on Sora's train of thought.

Riku didn't care what happened to himself... but had he even stopped to think about how Sora would feel if something _did_ happen to him? All of those memories they had together, all of those happy moments that made up for the bad, all of their promises, especially the one that had bound their destinies, silly legend or not—and Riku still didn't understand how he felt?

In that moment, as those words struck through Sora, all he saw was Riku's utter stupidity and selfishness...

And before he realized what he was doing, his fist flew out.

It slammed into Riku's jaw, snapping his head back, and not even the resulting sting of his knuckles made Sora's glare falter. He felt his eyes burn and was glad that even if he did start crying, Riku wouldn't be able to see his tears amongst the water. Not that Riku would have noticed anyway, since he was still reeling from the punch—it was the complete shock on his face that finally cleared Sora's rage, letting indignation take its place.

_Best friend..._

So was that what Riku really wanted? Then what exactly had the paopu fruit meant to Riku? Was their friendship that much more important to Riku than the step they had taken beyond that?

He couldn't remember the last time he had hit Riku like that. He probably hadn't hit Riku at all since they had gotten together, not even when sparring. Had he? It felt like such a long time... It made him think about what else had changed between them since they had left home.

They had been best friends since forever but boyfriends for only a short time. His boyfriend had been the one who had betrayed him, not the old Riku, his best friend who had never left him out of anything he had done, not even homework or a blitzball game. When Sora thought about Riku and how much he missed him, he thought about their time back home, before they had shared the fruit, before they had officially gotten together.

He missed his best friend. He missed running on the beach with Riku, listening to Kairi giggle behind them as she followed along. He missed lazing around in the tree house and hanging all over Riku without getting uncomfortable or embarrassed. He even missed the rich sound of Riku's laughter as Riku's attention had been on him and only him. He especially missed the late nights when Riku had come to him to stay the night, and how they had curled up in Sora's bed together, telling stories about other worlds.

Those stories hadn't been anything like reality.

If Sora had never confessed to Riku or offered to share the fruit, maybe none of this would have ever happened.

Maybe...

Maybe there was a way they could start over.

As Sora's thoughts came to their hopeful conclusion, Riku's stunned look began to fade into a hurt one, and he finally spoke. "You hit me," he said, voice cracking slightly. He sounded bewildered. "Why did you..."

"Because _I _care," Sora said, shaking the sting out of his hand before clenching his fists, continuing to glare at him.

Riku took in the sight of his angry pout and turned his gaze away, cradling his jaw. For a second, it almost seemed like _he_ was trying not to cry, and that more than anything made Sora feel a little guilty for hitting him. But only a little.

"You care, huh...?" Riku said. A tinge of bitterness had crept into his voice. "Feels more like you hate me now..."

Sora was preparing to get angry again at Riku's last statement, but that changed with what happened next.

Riku lowered his hand from rubbing his sore jaw and gave Sora that same look from before, that fierce, determined stare that had left him nostalgic, but this time Sora didn't know what it was for. He could never predict a reckless Riku, especially not when that recklessness concerned _him_.

"Fine then," Riku said in a dark voice. "I'll say what I have to say, and then you can leave."

Sora didn't even have time to respond.

He abruptly found himself pinned against the wall of the cavern, glowing keyblade trapped between them, and Riku's face hovering inches above his own. All of Sora's anger disappeared under that single look, and he was reminded in that moment of just how dangerous Riku could be if he wanted.

Riku's muscular arm angled up so his hand could clutch the sea plants above Sora's head, and as Riku pressed even closer, his sharp hipbones and scales brushed Sora's belly like they had before, back near the sea witch's lair when Riku had cornered him. The weird friction sent a nervous thrill through Sora, who drew in a deep breath and met Riku's gaze with wide eyes, uncertain as to what Riku was going to do.

Riku himself looked calm, but he was so close that Sora could feel his slightest movements, even how he was trembling slightly.

Did that mean Riku was scared, too? But why...?

"Sora..."

Though it was a low tone, there was an intensity to Riku's voice that demanded the attention of everything around them, even the water, as the cave fell to a deeper hush. The moment seemed to move in slow motion as they stared at one another through the soft glow of the keyblade until Sora realized he could still speak, and even then, he was careful to keep his voice softer than Riku's as if he were scared to break that eerie hush.

"Y-Yeah...?" he asked.

Riku leaned closer, his long hair floating around their cheeks in a silvery curtain. He was still trembling, but when he spoke again, it was still soft, still intense, but steady. "This is probably the hardest thing I've ever done," he said, and Sora felt his heart pounding harder. "But I need to say it. I need you to understand, even if... even if you can't accept it."

_Accept what? _Sora's mind wondered, panicking because he wasn't sure he knew this part of Riku at all.

Sora felt the arm beside his head tense as Riku clutched the sea moss harder. "I'm not going to lose you," Riku whispered fiercely. "I need you by my side."

At a loss for words, Sora stared into his eyes, not sure what his own expression looked like, but it didn't matter. Nothing mattered right now except for what Riku had to say, because whatever it was, it had been the reason Riku had risked himself to bring Sora here. Riku shifted even closer, the flat side of his keyblade pressing against Sora's shoulder, the metal oddly warm against his cool skin.

Sora almost stopped breathing. For just a moment, he swore he felt Riku's heart beating as fast as his, an echoing comfort deep inside of him, but then Riku narrowed his eyes, and Sora lost himself in that sea of green.

"Do you know why?" Riku asked.

Sora took a shuddery breath and shook his head.

Riku's composure faltered a little, and he looked down as if to collect himself and his thoughts. "You're... not just my best friend," he admitted softly. "When you're at my side, I feel like... I can do my best." A deep breath from both of them, and Riku's tone grew fervent. "I can't stand being without you."

Then he looked back up, and Sora was drowning in those eyes again. The green narrowed even more, now reflecting the deep intensity in his voice.

"I _love _you. And I'm not letting you go again..."

Sora's eyes continued to widen as Riku's fingers found his hair and gently stroked through it. A thumb brushed his bottom lip, which began to quiver under the delicate touch. But even as unbridled emotions flooded Sora, Riku's gaze remained as unwavering and as real as his voice.

"...no matter _what_, Sora."

And that was when he finally understood.

The signs were all there: Riku only talking about being best friends and not boyfriends, also not even mentioning what they had been through together since they had left home, and showing no remorse at all for what he had done to Sora. There was a simple explanation behind everything Riku was neglecting to bring up.

Riku didn't remember any of it.

Part of Sora was indescribably happy for the confession Riku had just given. The other part of him, however, recognized what it meant.

Riku didn't remember _Sora's _confession. He didn't remember the two of them being together. He didn't remember the paopu. He probably didn't remember Sora's birthday or their night together. And he definitely didn't remember what he had done with Yami to have upset Sora so much.

Everything that Sora had held dear, and the _one_ thing that had truly hurt him during this stupid adventure...

They were gone. Riku had just... given them away.

And it had been so _Riku_ of him to not think of the consequences of his actions. He had done all of this to see Sora, maybe even to apologize or mend their relationship, only to accidentally destroy what had remained. Now Sora would never know.

That reality struck through Sora, who clenched his eyes shut, trying not to look as upset as he felt. He felt his warm tears slip free and escape into the ocean water, safe from Riku's notice.

He remembered his thoughts from a few minutes ago—of how much he wanted his best friend back and wished they could start this over. Despite how much Riku had hurt him, and as much as Sora wanted to hear _why _he had done it, Sora had to accept that he wasn't ever going to hear it now.

Riku had been able to escape the burden of those memories, but he had left Sora with them, along with the emotional baggage they carried. It had been the ultimate selfish act.

But it was _Riku_... and his intentions had been honest.

_"__I did it because I wanted to see __**you**__!"_

If Riku really didn't remember any of the reasons Sora was mad at him, what was the point anymore? Maybe those memories just... weren't worth all of this trouble.

As this ran through Sora's mind, all he really wanted to do was explain it to Riku: that Sora had given him the paopu fruit, that Sora had confessed, that they had been together for months now, that Riku had let Yami take him, and how much Sora had suffered because of it—but...

He stopped himself.

He knew Riku, and the truth would only confuse him even more right now.

"Riku, I..."

The problem was that he didn't know _what_ to say if he couldn't explain the truth. Sora wanted to be selfish and tell him everything anyway, but he couldn't. Sora wasn't like that.

Even after everything Sora had been through, he still couldn't be the bad guy.

Meanwhile, Riku had begun to tense after Sora hadn't said anything in response to his confession, but when Sora offered Riku a small, reassuring smile, Riku visibly relaxed again.

However, when it became evident that Sora really didn't have a response to Riku's confession, Riku's uncertainty returned, and his expression closed off as he averted his gaze.

Sora felt the fingers in his hair slip away. He reached out and caught them, smile faltering for a moment as their eyes met again.

Silence weighed the space between them as Riku searched Sora's face as if expecting to find an answer or some kind of real reaction. There was none. Sora just lifted Riku's hand back to his hair and pulled his lips into a sunny grin to ease Riku's worries.

The truth could rest for a while. At least until Sora could figure out how to fix things. Riku had risked so much just to bring him here, and in Sora's mind, as stupid as Riku was for doing that, he did deserve credit for his courage, if nothing else.

"I missed you," Sora said, his grin fading into a pleased smile when he felt Riku's fingers curl back into his hair.

Riku's expression was closed off, probably because he wasn't sure how to take Sora's strange answer to his confession. This Riku didn't have any idea that Sora liked him back, let alone loved him. Without those memories, Riku was as inexperienced as both of them had been months ago back home. That meant Sora had the advantage here _and _the element of surprise.

Sora gently pushed the keyblade out from between them and folded a hand against Riku's shoulder, earning a hesitant smile from Riku, who seemed to be trying to accept Sora's ambiguous responses. It was obvious he was disappointed and thought Sora was just trying to be nice to him. In that moment, he was so easily readable that Sora couldn't help finding it cute.

Taking advantage of Riku's naivety, Sora leaned in and met his lips.

Through the hand he had on Riku's shoulder, he felt Riku's body stiffen with surprise, so Sora playfully moved his lips against Riku's with soft, sensual variations, enjoying the way Riku sucked in a sharp breath at the unexpected advances. After all, if Riku really had no memory of them being together, Riku would have no clue they had ever kissed. Delighted with Riku's reaction, Sora began to pull away, letting their lips slowly separate.

Riku looked completely bewildered but excited and relieved at the same time, which made Sora laugh. He rested his forehead against Riku's and allowed himself to relax. For some reason, even with Riku as confused and as stupid as he was, Sora felt relieved, _happy_ to have this moment with Riku. Maybe it couldn't last forever, but... was it so wrong for him to want this second chance? Just... for now.

Riku's hand tightened in his hair, and Sora's smile widened.

"You... kissed me."

"Mm-hm."

He felt Riku's fingers slide down to the nape of his neck first, and then Riku nuzzled against Sora's cheek bone as he spoke into his ear.

"Why did you kiss me, Sora?"

The intimacy sent a shiver tickling down Sora's body, ending as a pleasant flutter in his gut. He thought he had missed Riku before, but now that he had Riku here like this, he was reminded of why he had been attracted to his best friend in the first place.

"I wanted to," Sora said, and then lightheartedly poked his nose. "You know, you aren't the only one with a crush on your best friend."

At first it was just surprise that filtered over the curiosity on Riku's face, but as Sora kept watching, he witnessed how his words settled into Riku's mind and heart, and relief segued into a warm smile that changed everything between them.

That one look told Sora that, at least for now, everything would be okay. As if it were meant to be this way, the space between them felt lighter, and Riku was Riku once again.

"Is that so?" Riku said. Most likely to match Sora's playfulness, a subtle but teasing smirk was crossing his lips.

"Yup," Sora replied.

"You really don't hate me, huh?"

"Nope," Sora said, now grinning, "but you can be a huge jerk sometimes."

With a dry laugh, Riku shook his head and lowered his face, and Sora felt Riku's forehead rest against the crook of his shoulder. Riku's floating hair tickled his nose, but Sora took care of the problem with a simple sweep of his hand, his fingers pinning Riku's stray locks against his pale neck. The way Riku tensed slightly under Sora's touch didn't escape his notice, but after a while, both of them mellowed out, with Riku almost nestled against Sora and Sora's arm cradled behind Riku's relaxed dorsal fin.

They remained that way in silence for a length of time, which Sora spent thinking about how different it felt to hold Riku against him instead of the other way around. In a way, it seemed like Sora had done all of the maturing during this adventure, and Riku was still stuck back home on that paopu tree, lost in his escapist dreams.

When Riku finally did speak again, Sora was so consumed by his thoughts that he almost missed the murmur.

"Explain to me why we're not on the same side."

Oh yeah.

Even though Sora was ready to let their differences rest for now, Riku was still confused. Good thing that Sora had an idea already.

"What if I said... we could be?" Sora asked. Riku slowly lifted his head, and through the dim lighting that Riku's keyblade cast throughout the watery cavern, Sora could see Riku's curiosity return. "Let's make a deal," he said with a smile. "I won't run away again. I'll even stay here with you as long as you want... _if _you promise not to bring up Maleficent or the heartless—or anything else we've been fighting about."

Sora was expecting him to be skeptical, so when Riku looked as though he wanted to protest, Sora plapped a hand over his opening mouth. Then he ignored the withering stare Riku gave him.

"I mean it, Riku, just listen to me," he insisted. "While we're here, let's just... forget everything. I don't want to fight, okay?" Sora's resolve wavered there, and he ducked his head so Riku couldn't see his uncertainty. "And when it's time for you to go, if you still don't have your memory back, I'll explain everything. And... then I'll decide then whether or not I'll go with you."

He knew that going with Riku would be risky in terms of their friendship _and _relationship, but regardless, he had been avoiding Riku for too long. If Riku agreed to this small truce, Sora might get another chance to be with him—as they should have been. He wouldn't make the same mistake twice, and he wouldn't let Riku make it, either.

The touch of Riku's fingers to his wrist startled him, and he lifted his head, realizing he still had a hand over Riku's mouth. He could feel Riku's lips pulling into a smile under his palm. Muttering an embarrassed apology, Sora slipped his hand away to let Riku speak.

Before Riku even said anything, those fingers trailed through Sora's hair again, making Sora shiver and close his eyes, and he knew right then what Riku's answer would be.

"Alright," he said, and he said it so calmly that Sora could only marvel at his composure. It was almost like old times. "Alright," Riku said again. "No fighting. I won't bring up Maleficent or the heartless..." He paused to consider something. "But you can't bring up Ursula. She's my problem. I don't want you involved."

Sora was _already _involved, and he planned to stay that way... but Riku didn't have to know that.

He nodded. "Fine. It's a deal?" he asked, holding up a hand.

Riku returned the nod and grasped Sora's hand, squeezing it. "Deal."

They smiled at each other, and Sora instantly felt the cold vise that held his heart beginning to loosen after weeks of pressure. He really needed this tiny vacation, this... brief reminder of what genuine happiness should be like. And from the way Riku was smiling at him, he knew Riku needed this, too.

Now that they weren't fighting or trying to figure each other out, Sora took a moment to really _look _at Riku. Back at Agrabah, he hadn't imagined what he'd seen: Riku had lost weight. He also had slightly more muscle definition, but Sora somehow knew that the weight loss had less to do with Riku's training and more to do with stress. What worried Sora the most were the shadows under his eyes. Riku wasn't taking care of himself.

That was going to have to change.

After gently pushing Riku back to give himself room, Sora tugged on Riku's hand and started to pull him to the floor of the small cavern. Riku went along with it, and the keyblade lit their way, revealing a bed of sand and scattered tufts of sickly seamoss. The cavern probably opened a little above them to allow enough sunlight during the day to keep the plants just barely alive down here. Maybe it was cruel of Sora to so carelessly flop down into the sand and smother the plants, but they were extra cushioning, and that's all that mattered to him.

Riku followed his example and curled up on his side with Sora, looking perfectly content to nestle down into the seabed with Sora's arms around him. Once again, their positions felt reverse, with how vulnerable Riku seemed. That moment of innocence, however simple it was, made Sora happier than he had been since they had left home.

Minutes passed like seconds as the boys lay together like that, speaking in low tones and telling each other stories of their adventures that didn't involve Maleficent or Sora's involvement with the darkness. Sora retold his encounter with Aladdin, Abu, and Genie and how he had gotten involved with their misadventure; he touched on his worries about the beast in the dungeon and the missing princesses of Hollow Bastion; and he even talked about Yami, trying not to feel bitterness towards either of them about Riku's one-night-mistake, since the point of this brief reprieve was to escape it.

If only it were that easy. Sora hadn't been the one who had sold his memory to the sea witch. At times, like when Riku tried to tell the stories of his adventures, and he mentioned Mulan's world and the coliseum as if Sora himself had never been there with Riku, it was hard for Sora not to feel indignant and interrupt to correct him. Riku really didn't remember Sora being with him for most of the adventure, and it hurt. But all he did was grin and bear it.

The more they talked, though, the more Riku's energy seemed to plummet. Somehow, Riku's head ended up tucked under Sora's chin as Sora's fingers stroked through Riku's hair, and Riku began to fall asleep in the middle of explaining who the little mermaid with red hair ended up being and what she had done with Cid's comlink. Riku's words slurred before trailing off into nothing, and he only responded with incoherent murmurs when Sora prompted him to continue. Riku didn't. His breathing evened out and his body relaxed completely against Sora's, and Sora decided to let him sleep for now.

Riku must have been exhausted for him to pass out in the middle of storytelling like he had. From what Riku had told him about this world, Sora wasn't sure Riku had had much time to rest after he had left Agrabah...

When Sora was sure he was deep asleep, he wrapped his other arm tightly around Riku's waist, holding him close to revel in the feel of his body so close against his own. Fishy form or not, Riku was real. He was right here. And he was all Sora's, if just for now.

Sora smiled, rubbing his face into Riku's hair, and shifted his tail closer. Almost instinctively, Riku's tail shifted in return, curling close to Sora's so that their tail flukes touched. Sora didn't mind the contact, despite how odd it felt to have Riku's extra fins pressing against him. The rest of it felt nice. Even though Riku's body wasn't warm here, at least he had a heart. Sora had missed cuddling with his real best friend—which nothing could beat, he decided, not even cuddling with a dozen heartless Riku clones.

Unfortunately, he hadn't forgotten how he had almost done _more _than cuddle with an anti-Riku. _That _was something he'd never admit to Riku. Then again, by now there were probably plenty of things that Riku wouldn't ever admit to Sora either, so it felt like a fair secret to keep.

As Riku slept on, Sora's thoughts continued to wander, from his current situation to what he was going to do after this, and he even thought about home and wondered what might have happened if he had never taken Riku's hand when the darkness had been consuming him... Sora especially thought about what he might be able to do to help Riku here with his memories and that deal with Ursula.

As he contemplated everything in an attempt to sort his thoughts out, some time passed before Sora noticed how Riku had begun to shiver.

At first Sora didn't think much about it, but Riku's trembling grew heavier, even to the point his tail or hand or head would give little involuntary jerks. Sora shifted carefully to get a good look at him without waking him up and noticed that Riku's expression was almost a grimace.

Was he having a bad dream...?

_Heh, I wouldn't be surprised, _Id commented.

His existence flared up inside of Sora immediately, whose first instinct was to squash the consciousness nudging at his own. As much thinking as Sora had been doing for the past however-many hours, he had forgotten about Id already, especially since Riku hadn't had the memory of him to bring him up. Even though Id had been awake just a few hours earlier and Sora hadn't minded, his presence now felt irritating—almost like he was somehow trespassing on a special moment meant for just him and Riku.

Nevertheless, when Id had something to say, it wasn't always nonsense...

_What do you mean? _Sora asked.

_Riku's bitten off more than he can chew, _came the ambiguous response, which only irritated Sora more.

_And what does __**that **__mean? _

_It means someone else is going to get him before __**I **__will, _Id replied. _While I'm stuck here watching the two of you dawdle and mope about each other and get nothing __**fun **__accomplished. You know, at least __**Yami **__gets stuff done._

For a second, Sora couldn't believe what he had just been told. Was Id purposely goading him? It really seemed like it! Sora almost took the bait, too, but then Riku's tail brushed against his own, and he was reminded of where he was and what he was supposed to be doing. Right. This was a break from all of that stuff—he shouldn't even be thinking about Id or Yami.

_We're not moping. And stop trying to mess things up, _Sora said._ I'm happy right now._

_Happy. Why? Because Riku said he loved you? _Id teased. _Haha, you're such a child. He only said that so you'd come back to him. _

Sora's irritation quickly rose to anger. _Shut up. What would __**you **__know?_

_A lot more than you, apparently, _Id returned. _Riku is the type to like having control of a situation. _

Which was true, Sora agreed, but he didn't see what that had to do with this. If anything, Sora seemed to have more control here.

_So you think, _Id laughed, picking up on Sora's thoughts again. _Let me explain. With him thinking you're working for that witch, it's true that technically you're not under Riku's control anymore. He can't predict you. And since he's seen you travel by using the darkness, he knew he didn't have any way of stopping you from just... leaving this world. You could have just left, and he knew that. _

Sora was getting an inkling of what Id was insinuating, and it made him uncomfortable. _I wouldn't have left like that, _he said. _Riku—_

—_doesn't completely trust you, now does he? _Id pointed out. _As I said, he can't predict you. So in order to stay in control of the situation and in control of __**you**__, he had to make a desperate move—by telling you the one thing that would make you stay under his thumb. _

And Sora knew exactly what Id was talking about. Riku's confession... This time, Sora didn't say anything, his uneasiness spreading.

_You may think he's being sincere, but Riku only said what you wanted to hear, _Id said._ It was his way of staying in control._

Was it really? Sora had to admit that it made sense. It also made Sora wonder exactly how much Id witnessed whenever he was watching through Sora's eyes. Id seemed to know a lot that Sora didn't remember Id being around for... Or had Id just been reading Sora's thoughts? Guh—how creepy!

Sora tried to push Id farther into the recesses of his mind. _I said shut up! You're just trying to make me mad at him so I __**will **__leave him and make him even more open to evil people like that sea witch!_

_Hah! Sea witch? _Id said. _Trust me, he has bigger things to worry about than losing a memory. Or two. Or countless dozens._

Running his hand through Riku's hair again, Sora tried not to let himself get distracted by Id's teasers. Every time he said something like that, Sora just wanted to ask more questions—but he somehow knew that's what Id wanted, and giving Id what he wanted sounded like a bad idea.

_...I __**don't **__trust you, _Sora replied.

_Why?_ Id asked. _You'd rather trust someone who made you an oath and turned right around and broke it the very next day? Oh, don't let me forget how he __**sold **__his memory of that colossal mistake just so he'd have the peace of mind and an excuse to confront you with a straight face. _

_Shut up! _Sora snapped again. _Riku's not like that! Stop trying to turn me against him!_

But Id still wasn't done yet, and his mental intonation was beginning to sound downright malicious. _How do you know he didn't __**choose **__which memory to sell her? He did seem rather reluctant to tell you at first._

_Go __**away**_

This time, Sora shoved Id's presence completely into the back of his mind and tried to distract himself from everything he had just been told. He curled more closely against Riku, a little shaken and not wanting to believe any of it. Maybe Riku wasn't perfect—it was true that Riku made some awful mistakes—but that didn't mean he was doing all of this to be purposely controlling.

Id was just trying to trick him.

Burying his face in Riku's hair, Sora tightened his arms around Riku's slender waist, ignoring the scales and the fins, trying to take comfort in his closeness again. Almost in response, the sleeping Riku's fingers twitched against his side where they rested, and Riku's trembling subsided, if only a little.

That was enough for Sora. He relaxed and decided not to worry about Id for now. Since Riku was sleeping, he ought to get some rest as well.

Sora's gaze scanned the cavern before lifting, noticing a very faint spot of blue above them—a cavity in the stone that most likely let in light during the day, just like he had suspected earlier. Judging from that spot of blue, it was almost sunrise or already was.

As Riku's body gave another noticeable shudder, Sora rubbed a hand against the finless part of Riku's back to pacify him. Soon, Riku's deep, even breathing began to soothe Sora as well, helping him escape his confused thoughts. He found himself matching the rhythm of his breathing to Riku's, finding it hypnotizing, and a drowsiness passed through Sora, gradually drawing him off into a light doze.

By the time Riku's actual nightmare arrived, Sora was already sleeping like a baby.

-o-o-

_I feel your heart weakening..._

The voice sounded familiar.

It had a soothing rumble to it, a deep undertone that seemed to wrap his heart in a layer of silk. Like a soft breath tickling the back of his neck, it evoked pleasant shivers on instinct. It was a dark allure—something forbidden. Something he had, without realizing it, been ignoring for months. He had heard this voice before, but where...? Had it been an earlier dream?

Oh, yes. Riku knew he was dreaming again.

_And the hidden strength within is absolute. Perfect. _

Though it had been a while, he recognized the setting—the foyer of the bastion, the double staircase on either side of him, but he couldn't see beyond them because a heavy darkness saturated everything. The only source of illumination came from behind. He was standing with his back to the ornate fountain in the foyer's center, and the soft rush of water from the dragon's mouth sounded obstructed.

He wanted to turn and see why or where the light was coming from, but his body wasn't obeying. In every other dream, Riku at least had been able to control his actions, but not now—it was as if the dream were controlling itself this time, and he was left to play witness in his own mind.

_All of this untapped potential... _

He was aware of the sounds around him—someone crying close by, another person calling his name behind him, and a deep, sultry voice in his ear—but his mind refused to concentrate on them for long.

_I can draw it out._

Without his consent, his eyes scanned the shadowy figures standing just at the threshold of light. If anything, Riku could have recognized them from just their silhouettes.

To his left: Sephiroth's tall stature, his extraordinary wing and the faint shine of silver hair giving him away. His posture was calm, though the way his hand rested on the hilt of his sword led Riku to believe something about this situation didn't sit well with the warrior.

Beside him stood the Sora with dark wings from his previous dreams, except this time there was no sweet innocence there; pure malice shown through eyes stained yellow, and somehow Riku knew that this was not the same dark-winged Sora he remembered. This was Id using Sora's body, as he did in reality. At Id's side was Rikyu, the disturbing heartless clone that Merlin had taken a liking to. The anti-Riku was crouched at its master's side, its glowing eyes narrowed in Riku's direction as if displeased to see Riku, for once.

To Riku's right was a group of unpleasant familiars: Maleficent with her pet raven resting on her shoulder, Jafar practically mirroring her with his parrot, and Ursula the sea witch resting just behind them with her tentacles sprawled out over the floor. Though Riku couldn't make out their expressions, their postures seemed to hold an air of both confidence and... distrust.

_Soon, you will merely be another puppet. _

Then Riku's gaze swept to the two figures in front of him, both of them standing in the light and clear to Riku. Two Yamis. One was older, what Yami looked like when Riku had last seen him, in his late teens with his white hair sweeping down past his shoulder blades. He was completely calm, even passive—perhaps a little too solemn, especially with how he was restraining the younger Yami, who looked as Yami had when Riku had first met him: barely younger than him, short hair, a hint of baby fat left in his face. This Yami, however, was not calm. He struggled frantically against the older Yami, outright sobbing as he stared helplessly in Riku's direction, looking apologetic and terrified at once. The older Yami's arms remained unyielding around the other, holding him back with unnatural ease despite how much of a fight the younger one was putting up.

_Your power will rive worlds... make them quiver beneath your shadow. _

Riku wanted to make sense of all of this, why so many people had gathered here, why _them_, why there were two Yamis, why someone was still screaming his name, why the only source of light was coming from behind, why Id and his pet looked livid, why the others seemed so distrustful, why he couldn't control his own body or thoughts or his eyes as they slowly, slowly, _too _slowly began to move as he turned to face the fountain—not because he had told himself to turn, but because someone else seemed to be doing it for him.

His gaze focused on the fountain, and his lips curled into a smirk so ruthless it felt foreign on his face.

_And alleged heroes like this one will only get in your way._

"_Riku! _Answer me!"

Sora was the one screaming his name. Sora was inthe fountain. And _Sora_ was the source of light, the _only_ source of light—it surrounded him in a soft halo, making the fountain water shimmer and reflect off the surface of the pillars and statues and stairs nearby. The water itself was like ink, trickling black over Sora's body and leaving him drenched yet... strangely unstained.

Ribbons of darkness held Sora bound by the wrists and ankles, trailing off into the thick shadows enveloping everything except the small ring his light created. Sora twisted and pulled against his dark restraints, but there was no use.

Was that fear in Sora's eyes?

Pleasure swept through Riku at the sight, despite how much he wanted to feel horrified instead.

_Let us remove the distraction._

Riku felt himself unwillingly take a step closer to the fountain—and Sora.

And Riku could feel everyone staring, watching, anticipating. Whispers behind him were encouraging, "Do it," "Take care of the boy," "He's the enemy," "Get rid of the keyblade master." He was confused, but his body still drew closer with a purpose unknown to him.

He was a doll, completely incapable of moving on his own, hardly even able to concentrate on what was happening. Were they calling _Sora_ the keyblade master? Wasn't Sora on Maleficent's side? Why were they telling him Sora was the enemy?

Another step forward, and now he could feel the light spray of the dark water against his cheeks.

Young Yami's cries grew louder.

Sora's voice turned more desperate.

"Riku—! This isn't _you_! Don't listen to him! _Please!!_"

Another step.

Riku paused right in front of Sora, calmly regarding the stark panic in those wide eyes.

"_Riku!! _Snap out of it!" he screamed.

Riku felt his smirk begin to widen as Sora tried to wrench his arms free from his dark binds.

_A meaningless effort._

In an elegant gesture, Riku's hand swooped up, and the dark water of the fountain sprouted tendrils of darkness. They snaked through the air between Sora and Riku, fluid like wisps of smoke...

_Darkness is your weapon._

...yet as tangible and firm as any cord. With a flick of Riku's hand, the darkness snapped forward, circling Sora's neck...

_Don't be afraid to wield it._

And tightened.

For a moment, all Riku could see were the whites of Sora's eyes, then they began to redden from the pressure. Sora's fingers clawed at the darkness as he choked for air, collapsing onto his knees in the fountain water and sending the dark liquid spraying over the edge. As Sora struggled and writhed and croaked as the darkness constricted more and more and more, Riku only smiled, taking great pleasure in the sight of the keyblade master at his complete mercy.

Except, it wasn't Riku. Riku himself was horrified, silently crying for Sora's sake, but his body refused to obey, and the darkness kept its grip tight. He could feel the water soaking into his clothes, hear the whispers rising at his back, their voices blending into a mantra of, "Kill him, he's the enemy, kill him," but the young Yami's sobbing was loudest of all, reminding him of Sora or one of his other friends from home whenever they were helpless and all they could do was cry and cry and wait for someone, _any_one to help.

"Ri-Riku, don't do it... d-don't hurt Sora...!"

He didn't understand any of this!

_Imagine the __**power**_

Two Yamis—Sora and the darkness—all these people here—

_It could all be yours, Riku. _

And that _voice_...

_Absolute control._

A flash of light drew Riku's gaze to Sora's hand, which now clutched a familiar keyblade—Oblivion!—why did Sora have Oblivion?—and, within moments, the blade twisted around and cut through the darkness restraining his arm, then through the black noose, freeing Sora before Riku could even think to react. Which Riku was glad for. Internally, he was cheering for Sora to fight back, hoping he'd somehow be able to escape this nightmare—

"Stop _resisting_!"

The voice that left his throat wasn't his own, but rather the same one that had been purring in his ear this whole time, that audible trace of fingers running through his hair, tempting, taboo. _Who are you? _he wondered, but the thought froze and shattered when he—no, the Voice—summoned more darkness.

It snapped like rubber around the keyblade and jerked it straight out of Sora's hand. The hilt connected with Riku's palm, fingers curled around it, and in one swift movement, the blade was spun around and flying right back towards Sora.

Riku saw Sora's back connected with the ornate fountain wall, black water cascading from the lion's mouth above him, and he felt Oblivion's tip strike Sora's shoulder and sink into him, piercing through skin and muscle, crunching bone, and stabbing into the back wall with impossible force.

A scream tore from Sora, drowning Riku's senses with pure shock at what his dream self had done, who actually took pure pleasure in Sora's pain, reveling in the boy's suffering as if it fed his power.

Blood soaked through the familiar hoodie he wore, stained the old blue and white glove and fingers that flew to the dark weapon to try pulling it out. Through his grip on the blade, Riku could feel every movement Sora made, right down to his erratic breathing and pounding, panicking heart—a heart so bright, so powerful, he instinctively knew it had to be erased.

There, he felt the spoken caress, promising untold desires and hinting at unimaginable power in two little words.

_Do it._

Even with only one good arm, Sora fought frantically with the keyblade, gritting teeth and growling as he pulled at the blade with slippery red fingers. Riku mentally cried out at the sight, especially when he saw the blood half coating the silver crown hanging over Sora's heart.

This time, even the dream Riku hesitated.

Then, deliberate yet subtle, something smooth moved inside of him, like lukewarm water compressing his heart, something vying for more control...

Behind him, Maleficent and the others were still whispering, and that young Yami cried out again—"_Don't do it!!_"—strange and shrill, but sounding muted compared to the whimper Sora gave as he tugged desperately at the keyblade Riku held stuck through him, displaying him for all to see like a butterfly writhing at the end of a pin.

_**Do it.**_

The force within him erupted and overtook his heart, stifling his hesitation, and Riku could only watch as his own hand seized the crown pendant and ripped it from Sora's neck, the darkness rising around them in an attempt to smother Sora's light.

A nefarious hunger surged through him, there with the desire to _hurt_, as the darkness converged for a final assault, and Sora's bloodshot eyes flooded with terror—

_SORA!!_

—but when Riku jerked awake from the nightmare, all he could remember was the terror they had shared in that one instant.

Traces of the dream faded almost immediately as he tried to recall what exactly he had been so scared of, as if the visions of faces and the enigmatic words were grains of sand being sifted through his fingers. Soon, the images and voices had left him completely, and only vestiges of sleep remained as he stared down at Sora's slumbering figure.

He had awoken nestled against Sora in the underwater cavern and had lifted himself up in his panic, his arms trembling slightly from the strain of his locked elbows. Now that he remembered where he was and that both of them were safe, he lowered himself back into Sora's arms, still edgy from his evasive dream.

If he had forgotten it so easily, maybe it hadn't been as important as his previous ones. Though...

...if that were true, why couldn't he stop trembling?

**you can become stronger**

That voice!

Riku flinched and pulled away from Sora, summoning Oblivion as he spun through the water to confront the intruder.

No one was there.

It was just him and Sora, and Sora was still fast asleep, completely unaffected by Riku's skittishness. An overwhelming sense of déjà vu swamped him, meshing badly with his growing apprehension, and it left him too restless to find any comfort with Sora right now. He needed space. He needed to reassure himself that he could trust Sora and trust _himself_.

That, and he wanted to find out what time it was.

Riku's keyblade vanished as he kicked off from the bed of sand, heading for the underwater tunnel he had used to bring Sora into this cavern. A part of him was scared he had slept too long—he did feel rested, but that could have meant anything after that rush of adrenaline from a few moments ago.

If he had been asleep for hours, he'd have even less time to spend with Sora and much less time to meet up with Ariel and retrieve the trident from her... _if_ she had even managed to take it without anyone noticing. If it really was the strongest weapon in Atlantica, Riku doubted King Triton would just leave it lying around.

Damn it... He should have thought this through more carefully. What if she couldn't sneak it away? Would he even have time to try getting it himself? Would he have to _fight _King Triton for it? Great. He was sure that Donald would just _love _Riku screwing up the world order _that _badly. Fighting a ruler just to fulfill a deal with a sea witch to save his own hide because Sora—

No...

He wouldn't blame this on Sora. This had been Riku's decision. If Ariel failed, Riku would deal with the consequences himself. It was all he _could _do.

Swallowing back his dread, Riku left the cavernous niche, heading to find Ariel's grotto.

-o-o-

Sora woke with a start as something hefty dropped into the sand next to him, half of him expecting danger, but the other half of him definitely not expecting what it turned out to be. Sleepiness gone, Sora blinked down at what appeared to be an old fishing net full of...

"...clams?" he asked, looking up as Riku's pale figure floated forward.

Though Riku wasn't exactly sunny, he didn't look as haggard as he had been before Sora had fallen asleep. He glided through the water, sending Sora a faint smile, and the way it didn't quite reach his eyes made Sora worry.

"Yeah, breakfast," Riku explained. "It won't be your mom's clam chowder, but..."

"But it's food!" Sora said, his surprise fading into cheerfulness. He kicked his tail to join Riku's side to inspect the palm-sized shellfish. A dozen or so were loaded into the tattered net, some pushing against each other with their feet as they slowly tried to escape, while others were trying to dig through the net. "Where did you...?"

"I went to find that mermaid I told you about," Riku admitted, picking up a still clam. "Didn't find her. But there was a clam bed by a sunken ship."

Sora's excitement skyrocketed then. "A sunken ship?" he asked as he moved forward to meet Riku's gaze, and he sounded especially eager even to himself.

"Yeah. I can take you there if you want to see," Riku offered with an amused expression. Maybe it was Sora's imagination, but Riku seemed to be lightening up already. "But first—breakfast."

As if on cue, Sora's stomach rumbled, and both of them laughed. Riku dropped his clam back into the pile and drew closer to Sora through the water to ruffle his hair. Touched by the familiar gesture, Sora grinned. Things were beginning to feel normal, almost as though just falling asleep together had erased all of the pain between them. He remembered their promises last night, however, and knew that eventually today would end, and he would have to make his decision.

Stay with Riku... or leave again?

Well, despite what he chose, he was determined to make good use of their time together.

"Any idea what time it is?" he wondered.

Riku shrugged and began to gather the edges of the net. "Not sure. I looked earlier, and my guess it that it's about noon now." He nodded towards the exit. "Let's go up to the surface to check."

"Okay," Sora agreed.

He helped Riku with the load of clams, which was an easy weight with both of them working together. They swam side by side out of the cavern and angled upwards. Now that the sun was up, the sea was a vast blue with shimmering silver above. One after the other, they broke the surface of the water, welcoming the cool breeze and the distant cry of gulls, and Sora suspected that the wave of nostalgia that passed through him was shared by Riku as well. It was like they were almost home.

Sora raked a hand through his wet hair and saw Riku do the same before they met each other's eyes. After exchanging smiles, they both surveyed their surroundings, but not much was to be seen except the sparkling waves around them and a brilliant blue sky peppered with tufts of cloud. The sun wasn't hanging directly overhead but dipping slowly towards the horizon. If Sora had fallen asleep after sunrise, then he had been out of it for well over five hours...

"Past noon, then," Riku commented, also noting the sun's position. A worried look crossed his face and disappeared, and Sora wondered what it meant. Riku didn't have other plans, did he?

Sora tried to brush his own concern away for now. Gripping the net more tightly between them, he scanned their watery environment again, this time spotting a stationary mass amongst the rocking water. It was in the distance, appearing and disappearing from sight beyond the swells of lazy waves.

"I see something," he said, pointing.

Riku's eyes narrowed as he focused on what Sora was pointing at, then seemed to relax when he realized what it was. "I saw some rocks in that direction. Maybe one of them broke the surface." He turned to Sora with an air of confidence, even a familiar smirk lightly pulling at his lips. Sora knew that look well. It meant adventure was involved. "Let's check it out... We might be able to find a place to put these down."

Agreeing again, Sora followed Riku's lead as they plunged back into the water. As it turned out, what Sora had seen was indeed a rocky mass protruding from the sea. Sandy brown, it looked almost like a chair rising out of the water, with a flat base and a jutting peak, which supported a small crow's nest-like portion of a ship that had probably wrecked around here. Though the islet was deserted at the moment, judging from the dry material gathered in the crow's nest, something did live here.

Sora helped Riku heave the load of clams onto the tiny platform, and for a minute as they stared at the wriggling net, they were silent even though they were probably thinking the same thing.

How were they going to eat these? They didn't have shucking knives or even a way to cook them.

"Well..." Sora began, attempting to prompt Riku into coming up with a genius idea.

"I didn't think this far," he sighed, sounding annoyed with himself. "And I can't remember the last time I _ate_."

Sora found himself gawking at Riku. "Wha—?" And Sora had thought _he _had been hungry! Were people not feeding Riku or something? Worried about him even more, Sora attempted to lighten the mood. "Jeez, Riku—did she take that memory too?"

Riku's green eyes flashed with irritation as he regarded Sora, and then he spoke in a clipped tone. "I've had more important things to do."

Alright, so maybe reminding Riku about Ursula hadn't been the wisest thing to do. Awkward now, Sora pursed his lips and averted his gaze, studying the clams as he fell into thought. He'd almost broken his promise already. So far, both of them had been doing well about avoiding mention of Riku's memories and Yami and the keyblade—the subjects that had caused tension between them in the first place.

Wait a second...

The keyblade!

"Hey, Riku," he said, sounding buoyant to pretend he hadn't just made a stab at Riku's stupid stunt. "Get out the keyblade. I have an idea."

But Riku was skeptical. "For?" he cautioned.

"The clams!" Sora reminded. "You wanna eat or not?"

Riku hesitated, but he seemed to be catching on to what Sora was implying, and with a nod, he lifted a hand out of the water and summoned his keyblade. Sora always liked watching it appear—first with a burst of light, then its form swirled into existence out of fragments of shadow and indigo electricity, leaving behind the keyblade's sleek black design and dangling charm.

Sora held his hand out for it.

At first Riku stared at him in question, but Sora just grinned again to disarm his suspicion. Riku conceded and passed the keyblade to him, but Sora didn't miss the almost anxious way Riku's fingers ran through his dripping hair. He probably felt uncomfortable without its power—which Sora sympathized with. With the blade in hand, Sora inspected it up close, pleased that Riku was trusting him this much with the magical weapon.

There was something there... a deep, underlying strength. It practically hummedbeneath his hand. Feeling empowered, Sora turned the blade towards the bundle of clams and concentrated, tapping into the wellspring of power resting within his heart. He hadn't touched it in what felt like weeks, but it jumped at his call, springing forth and entwining with the keyblade's innate energy.

"Fire!"

Heat rushed into existence, flames swamping the clams and a good portion of the rock before swirling upwards into a conflagration and dispersing into sparks and smoke. When the magic cleared, it left behind a steaming pile of roasted clams and what had once been the fishnet holding them. They were no longer moving, their shells charred but still sealed shut.

"Insta-_fry_," Sora half sang, satisfied with the results of his fire spell.

Riku was smiling now, though Sora had a feeling it wasn't because of the fireworks. "Smells good," he commented. "Here." He held a hand out for his keyblade, and Sora obediently passed it back, already missing the humming warmth of the powerful weapon.

Riku's arm lifted above the water as he gave the keyblade an expert twirl, and then he brought it down in a rush towards the clams, sweeping over them without touching. Like magic—maybe because it _was _magic—every single clam shell sprung open, exposing the fleshy meat inside, cooked and waiting to be devoured.

"Show off," Sora teased.

Riku's smirk returned as he gave a casual shrug. "Whatever," he said, but Sora was happy to hear the playfulness in his tone.

There were eleven clams in all, and when Sora was done with his share, Riku willingly forfeited the extra one to appease Sora's large appetite. They didn't taste as good as the shellfish back home, but they still had the fishy, metallic tang he remembered.

Before Sora could finish the last clam, however, they were interrupted by excited cawing.

They dove out of the way just in time as a large seagull crash landed into the pile of open shells. Both of the boys grimaced at the sudden ruckus, especially as the gull began chatting freely—because apparently birds could speak on this world.

"Well, whaddya know! I leave for just a few minutes and someone drops by!"

The bird flopped over, reclining on the shells with his feet in the air as he looked at them.

"Or some_ones_. Ariel's pals? She never mentioned you... but I bet she told ya about my extensive human expertise, huh? Lemme see if I can guess what you want... Hmm..." He studied the two of them for a second before his face lit with sudden realization. "_I _got it!" he cried, flaring his wings as he hopped back to his feet. "You've eloped and you wanna know some human courtship rituals!"

Riku and Sora exchanged confused looks, but the gull continued on without waiting for them to respond.

"So _that's_ why you're up here. Well, let me get a better look at ya!" He moved to the edge of the rock, stroking his beak as he started to appraise Riku's face. "Wow, you got quite the catch here! She's a bee-yuute! I mean, Ariel's got the looks too, but this mermaid's _sensational_."

"Mer...maid?" Riku repeated slowly, his expression darkening. Even though Sora was holding back a laugh because yet again Riku was being called a girl, Sora got the distinct feeling that they'd better ditch the interloper before birdbrain ruined Riku's good mood completely.

At the sound of Riku's very _non­_-girlish voice, the gull leaped back in surprise. "Whoa!" Eyes wide, he lifted a wing to one side of his beak and leaned towards Sora to whisper loudly. "She's gorgeous, kid, but she ain't a Siren with pipes like _that_. Sure you wanna mate with—"

Sora clapped a hand over the gull's beak and laughed, trying not to let Riku's intense glare intimidate him. "Ehehe... thanks for the advice, but we gotta run—er, swim!" he exclaimed. "You can have the leftovers!"

When he released the bird, he snatched Riku's wrist and plunged into the water before Riku could object. He didn't want to give him the opportunity to turn the situation around and convince the seagull that _Sora _was the girl or something. Sora wanted to enjoy this funny vainglorious feeling while he could, which was while _he_ was in control and Riku wasn't.

Sora wasn't sure if it was the fact he had food in his stomach or of it had been the gull's blunder, but as he pulled Riku deeper into the ocean, he became more and more energized. The smile on his face was beginning to feel permanent, and apparently it was wide enough for Riku to comment on.

"You thought it was that funny?"

Sora shook his head, but his laugh said otherwise. "I'm just happy!" he said, full of spirit. "It's been a while since I had this much fun."

Riku's expression lightened considerably then. "Yeah." He offered Sora a smile of his own, though it only had a fraction of Sora's enthusiasm.

Riku's fingers slipped around Sora's wrist in return and tugged to get Sora to slow to a stop. The touch was simple but held enough command in it for Sora to obey, and as he waited, Riku's hand took his with an air of confidence. Sora felt his illusion of control fade away as he met Riku's eyes, and he wondered again if what Id had said last night had been true. Was Riku really all about control? Maybe he was...

But truth or not, did it matter as long as both of them remained happy?

Sora had done so much growing over the past few weeks that he had almost forgotten what it felt like to be his age. He and Riku had left Destiny Islands as children. Sora could only hope that when they got back, they would still have a touch of that innocence inside of them somewhere. They had been in such a hurry to grow up, they had lost sight of what was the most important to them. Because of their rash decisions, both of them had suffered losses—family, friends, homes, dignity, reasons to smile—but they didn't have to lose each other.

"I want to show you something," Riku said. The whisper of adventure was hiding behind his smile now.

Sora easily grinned, tightening his hand around Riku's. "All right. You lead."

So Riku did. He seemed to know exactly where he was going now, so Sora suspected that Riku must have done some exploring this morning before he had woken Sora up.

The farther they traveled, the rockier the terrain became, and at first Sora mistook the rubble polluting the sand and bedrock below as just trash. The more he looked, however, he realized it was debris: barrels and stray pieces of wood and sail and rope, with the occasional trace of human possessions. All had an array of sea life thriving on them, from shellfish like the clams he and Riku had shared, to colorful sponges, wiggling anemones, and no doubt a variety of creatures hiding amongst them all.

Then he saw the "something" Riku had brought him here for.

Out of the shadowy abyss emerged not just one sunken ship, but countless remains of vessels. Broken masts protruded at every angle from the wreckage, some hulls split in two, others still whole but littered with hollows and cracks, even a few stripped completely with nothing remaining except their skeletal frames. It was a ship graveyard.

"W-Wow..." was all Sora uttered as Riku continued onward, still holding Sora's hand. Sora could only swim and gape at the sight—it was like something straight out of a fairytale, and everything a hopeless explorer could want. What he wouldn't do for a camera right now!

"You said it," Riku agreed.

"I wonder if there are any pirate ships around here," Sora said eagerly, and Riku laughed in response.

"Maybe."

In unison, they headed for a ship perched on a rocky ridge at a precarious angle. Out of all of the wrecked vessels here, it seemed to be the most intact, either because it had sunken in a more recent year or because the catastrophe it had gone through hadn't been enough to tear it up as much as the others.

As they approached astern, Riku released his hand to peek into the ship. Windows stretched across the stern but were missing only a few panels, none of which were large enough for him or Riku to pass through. They decided to check out the deck and were pleased to find an open scuttle.

Sora inspected the stairs leading downward, commenting, "Kind of dark down there..."

When Riku didn't say anything, Sora glanced at him in question, noticing that Riku was staring back the way they had come. Sora got the nagging sensation that maybe this wasn't exactly a safe place to be, but he brushed it aside and reminded himself that it wouldn't be an adventure without risk of danger.

"Riku?" he prompted.

Riku blinked and returned his attention to Sora. "Sorry. Thought I heard something," he explained, then gave a reassuring smile. He nodded to the open hatch. "You first."

Surprised that Riku was letting him go first, Sora hesitated, his uneasy feeling returning. It wasn't that he was scared of the dark; he just didn't know what he'd find down there. He really wanted to explore, but something seemed... off. What had distracted Riku?

"Go on," Riku encouraged somewhat playfully after seeing Sora's uncertainty. "I'll be right behind you."

If Riku wasn't that worried after all, maybe he shouldn't be, either. "Alright," Sora said, his smile returning, and he drifted inside with his guard up.

The interior wasn't as dark as expected, but a rippling glow blanketed everything, giving him some light to see by. Debris was scattered about, most of it useless junk now, and a school of pale fish fled as he moved further below deck. Across the way, he could just barely make out a figure hunched against a wall—a skeleton, and it had a sword stuck through its chest. It even still had its hat on. Sora shuddered and averted his gaze, noticing more descending stairs.

"This place is bigger than I thought... How many levels do you think it is?" he said in a whisper so as to not disturb the dead, and he turned to see how Riku was reacting to the dead guy.

But Riku still hadn't followed yet.

A chill swept through him when he realized how far he had come by himself. Sora immediately started back towards the deck, not wanting to be alone down here. "Riku?" he called nervously.

"Stay where you are!"

Sora brought his tail forward and slowed to a stop. His apprehension grew as he waited, not liking the tone that had been in Riku's voice. "What's wrong?" he called again after a few seconds.

"Just stay where you are! There's something..."

Something? Something what? Something outside? Heartless?

Dozens of unpleasant images ran through Sora's mind, most of them ending with Riku getting maimed or _worse_. This was how horror stories went, right? He'd been subjected to too many of those to let Riku wander off by himself—or let _him _wander off either!

Then again... if he outright disobeyed Riku, Riku might get mad. Deciding to improvise, Sora did ignore Riku's warning, but instead of returning the way he had come, he swam up through a hole that had been created by a collapsed beam.

He entered into what seemed to be the captain's chambers, recognizing the row of windows in the back of the room and realizing that this was the stern of the ship. Beyond the windows, the sea was a dark hunter green, and faint rays of light spilled into the cabin, revealing little of interest except a fork.

If his sense of direction was accurate, then right behind him should be a door that led out onto the deck. Sora had planned to use that door to see what Riku was doing out there, but almost the entire wall was blocked by debris.

With a sigh, Sora folded his arms over his chest, considering going back after all. "Riku? What's going on!" he yelled, hoping Riku could still hear him.

He waited. Listened. When no response came, Sora's patience crumbled, and he turned towards the hole.

Behind him, a shadow passed the windows, casting the room in heavier shadows. Sora paused to look back in case it was Riku somehow coming to meet him, but what he saw almost made his heart stop.

There, just outside the thin panes of glass, loomed the silhouette of a gigantic shark. Enough light remained to allow Sora a hazy view of the shark's serrated teeth and the direction its tiny eyes were focused, but any hope he might have had that it hadn't seen him yet were smothered at once.

It was already watching him.

Sora's eyes locked with the shark's, and in that instant, its tail gave a powerful thrust, propelling it forward. Before Sora could even think to scream for help, the shark burst through the windows, shredding the frame and glass like paper, and shot right towards him, jaws open.

Sora's instincts kicked in before it was too late, his dolphin flukes whipping forward to send him into a backwards tumble just as the shark passed over him. The miss was so narrow that Sora literally felt the water rush past, his hair sweeping into his eyes from the momentum, but he wasn't going to stick around and count his blessings. Before the beast could turn back towards him, he turned tail towards the hole in the floor, ready to dash to safety...

But Riku's silvery form suddenly flashed past him, flying straight towards the shark.

"Get out of here!" Riku cried, and a burst of light indicated the summoning of his weapon.

Sora gasped and spun around just in time to see Riku meet the shark head-on, driving the keyblade between the monster's closing maw before it could tear his arm off. Several of its jagged teeth pierced Riku's forearm from below, immediately drawing blood as the beast thrashed, but Riku held onto his blade, desperately striking at the water with his tail to hold his own against the shark. Sora knew Riku's strength wouldn't be enough to hold it back for long, and even now it was quickly driving Riku into a corner. When that happened, Riku wouldn't have room to protect himself!

Sora wanted to help somehow, yet he had nothing but his bare fins! He wasn't like Riku, who could just summon a weapon at will. Maybe if Sora had something to work with, he could—

Oh, wait!

An idea in mind, he darted through the hole, heading below deck to find the skeleton he had seen. The sword stuck through the poor soul was shaped like one of the scimitars he had seen on Agrabah. "Sorry about this!" he said, his hands clasping around the hilt. He jerked the blade clean out of the skeleton, disturbing it so much that its skull fell off and several fish scattered to find other hiding spots. He hardly had a second to inspect it, but the blade wasn't exactly sharp—not that he needed it to be sharp, with what he was planning.

Sword in hand, Sora whirled and raced back to the captain's quarters, moving so fast that he almost hit the ceiling as he flew into the cabin. He spun around and barreled towards the fight where the shark had Riku pinned against the back wall and was overpowering him.

It was striking hard at the water, writhing from the force it was exerting against Riku, who was losing his grip on the keyblade, no doubt because of the pain. More sawlike teeth had cut into his skin, deeper than before, and the water was thicker with red around him, his arm straining so hard that the muscles were trembling. Riku was gritting his teeth and bearing with it, but his green eyes were sharp with fear and determination.

Keyblade master or not, he was just a teenager facing off against what they had called the terror of the seas back home. But even though Riku was so small compared to the beast, in that moment of reckless courage, he looked nothing short of heroic.

That was all the incentive Sora needed.

He crashed into the shark's gills, aimed the sword high, and called forth his powers.

"THUNDER!"

Electricity crackled to life around the shark, then exploded outward in an intense shockwave, stunning the creature long enough for Riku to extract his arm and roll away to freedom.

"Again!" Riku yelled. He summoned his keyblade back to his right hand, even though his arm was almost lacerated. He kicked off the ceiling and swam right for Sora, the shark recovering just in time to snap at the water inches behind Riku's tail.

"Thunder!" Sora cried, and again lightning struck through the cabin, consuming the shark.

Riku's good arm streaked through the water towards Sora, his hand snatching Sora's into a firm grip, and before Sora could see how much that spell had damaged the shark this time, Riku was jerking him towards the hole in the floor. They zipped straight through the ship, up through the scuttle, and fled into the open sea.

They heard a splintering and cracking, then a loud slam, and Sora glanced back to see the shark tear right through the hatch after them.

"How can it be that _smart_?" Sora demanded in disbelief. "It's a _shark_!"

"It's my blood!" Riku shouted without looking back, his voice cracking. "He's following the scent!"

Oh great.

Clutching Riku's hand more tightly, Sora swam faster so as to not drag Riku's pace, but the shark was still gaining on them.

"Faster!!" Sora screamed, not that willing his muscles to work harder would help them escape with all their limbs—and their lives. He felt Riku's hand squeeze around his in return, a fierce grip that spoke volumes without Riku having to utter a word. Sora understood.

The shark lurched forward, snapping at Sora's flukes and scarcely missing them as Riku pulled him ahead out of harm's way, then dove to the side with Sora to avoid another assault. There was a split second in which Sora's thoughts caught up with him with the realization that this thing was too fast for them to outrun—then something sandpapery slammed into his side, knocking the breath out of him. As he was thrown from the momentum, pain lanced through him, igniting stars behind his eyes. He was almost torn from Riku's grasp, but their hands somehow remained locked. That viselike grip was his one anchor in this chaos.

In an attempt to collect himself, Sora sucked in a sharp breath, inhaling something with an acute metallic tang...

And realized it was Riku's blood. His arm was still freely bleeding, creating a cloud of red around the two of them. Sora was terrified to look at the wound up close for fear of how severe it might be.

"Riku..." he started in a worried tone, but they didn't have time to concentrate on injuries when their lives were still at stake.

"Stay behind me," Riku commanded. His voice was rough, quaking with tension, probably from pain.

His white form slipped in front of Sora as the shark came full circle to charge again, a wall of gray launching towards them with impossible speed. Riku's keyblade flew from his hand and spiraled through the water, a blur of black that struck the shark's snout, but even the force of that was hardly a deterrent. Sora felt Riku's good arm wrap around his waist to pull him to safety, but not fast enough to evade the beast's wrath as it lashed out in pain.

Its teeth clamped around Sora's sword and began dragging him away from Riku, trying to escape with its prey. Riku's arm slipped, and Sora heard his panicked shout somewhere behind him. All Sora had to do to get away was release the sword, but he didn't, both hands keeping a firm grip around its hilt as he was hauled alongside the shark.

He knew Riku wouldn't be able to catch up with them, but it didn't matter. He didn't need Riku's constant protection, and he especially didn't need Riku to risk his own safety to do it. If anyone needed protection, it was _Riku_.

Motivated by his concern, Sora focused on the sword in the shark's mouth, hardly recognizing his own voice as he called out to his powers. At once, another thunder spell crashed into the enormous fish and flared outward, dazing it for a second. Sora reacted without hesitation and jabbed an elbow into the shark's gills as he released his sword. The shark veered off course as if distressed and shook its head, but then continued to swim off without him.

Now that its attention wasn't on him, Sora doubled back to meet with Riku, whose uninjured arm was bearing the keyblade. He was holding his other arm close to his chest, and he looked even paler than before. Sora took that moment to think—albeit, it was panicked thinking, but he needed to help Riku—and his gaze landed on the keyblade again, giving him an idea.

He swooped through the water, grabbed the length of the keyblade, and used it to pull Riku along behind him as he fled, not wanting the shark to renew its interest in Riku or his blood. As he swam for the light above, he squeezed his eyes shut, drawing deep into his magic.

There, beneath his fingertips, he felt the keyblade's strength connect with his like it had before, and he understood what he had to do.

"Hold on, Riku!" he cried, turning to meet Riku's eyes.

The power sprung up inside of him and shimmered to life, surrounding Riku in a yellow-green halo, phantoms of flowers hanging brightly above him for a split second before they vanished. Sora didn't have to ask to know if it had worked—Riku's arm wasn't bleeding anymore.

"Thanks," Riku returned, sounding relieved now.

Sora let go of the keyblade and made a move for Riku's hand instead, and Riku seemed to understand what he wanted. The keyblade dispersed into fragments of magic as it was released, and Riku caught his hand again, squeezing it tight.

Neither of them slowed down. Whether or not the shark had been deterred by Sora's attacks or the lost trail of blood, they didn't know, but they left the ship graveyard without its pursuit.

Still, Sora's heart kept racing long after they had left the shark behind, and even after they had stopped swimming like their lives depended on it. Riku's grip on his hand never loosened, reminding Sora of just last night when Riku had admitted to being scared of Sora leaving him. Sora didn't need Riku's words to know that Riku did love him. It had shone through his actions ever since, from the simple act of trusting Sora with his keyblade, to throwing himself in front of the shark just to protect him, and even the way he held his hand now...

Sora believed Riku.

Maybe Id was right, too, and Riku had only said it out loud to make Sora stay with him—but Sora now knew that at least the emotion behind those words had been real. And when he thought about what he and Riku had already done for each other today, his heart soared, filling him with an old but familiar giddiness.

Together, they passed the rocky terrain leading out of the ship graveyard and approached a kelp forest. Ribbons of green stretched high towards the surface to soak in the filtered sunlight, which grew more intense the higher they ascended. It was probably well into the afternoon by now, just a few hours before nightfall, but Sora wasn't deterred by the silent countdown.

He was quickly coming to a decision. He knew he wanted to be with Riku, no matter what stupid things Riku had done. After the time he had spent here, he didn't think he could return to Hollow Bastion alone. He didn't _want _to return.

If he could, he wanted to prove to Riku that he was staying with Riku because he wanted to, not because he had been pressured to.

"Hey Riku!" he called, pulling his hand free. "See if you can catch me!"

He grinned, and without waiting for Riku to react, he kicked forward, darting swiftly into the watery jungle to hide.

"Sora!"

He heard Riku's voice chasing his back, but he didn't sound annoyed or even deterred. Sora hastily wove through the kelp, making dizzying patterns to lose Riku. At first he wasn't too skilled at maneuvering around the stalks without disturbing them, but he caught on fast, soon sweeping through them with hardly a graze. With the water brushing past him like air, and the scenery blurring by, this almost felt like their races back home. If they had time, Sora decided it would be fun to race Riku later to see who could swim faster. Right now, he just wanted to play.

When he thought he was deep enough into the forest, he slipped between two stalks of kelp and hid amongst their silky fronds to wait for Riku to pass by. With his heart racing even now, seconds seemed to crawl by as he lied low, anticipating any sign of Riku's arrival—a flash of silver perhaps, or maybe the stirring of kelp around him.

Nothing came.

Seconds ticked past, and Sora began to grow restless.

Maybe Riku wasn't going to come after him? Maybe... something had happened? But Riku hadn't sounded distressed... Then Sora thought about how much blood Riku must have lost, which was followed by the fear that maybe his cure spell hadn't been enough to help him. What if Riku had passed out without him there?!

Good humor gone, Sora shoved through the kelp to find Riku.

"Gotcha!"

—only to have Riku pounce on him from above, the force from his tackle sending Sora right back into the kelp with a cry of surprise.

Riku's arms circled his waist, and Sora pushed silver hair out of their faces to get a good look at him, still worried. "You okay?" he asked.

Riku was grinning. "Yeah," he said, then quirked a brow. "I'm fine. Why?"

"Nothing, I just thought..." Thought what? That Riku had passed out because of blood loss? Sora realized how stupid he would sound if he admitted that out loud. Even if it was a realistic fear, Sora knew that Riku never wanted to be seen as that weak. He'd probably be offended if he knew Sora had been that worried about him. "Never mind," Sora said with a shake of his head, deciding to forget about it. But he couldn't let Riku get away with that triumphant look he was still wearing. Trying to look angry, Sora playfully pushed Riku. "Just don't scare me like that!"

Riku's grin widened as he pinched Sora's nose. "Stop pouting, you jellyfish."

"I'm not pouting!" Sora returned, even though he really was. "And whaddya mean _jellyfish_?"

"Because you're spineless," Riku said smugly. He poked Sora in the chest. "Scaaaaredy-cat."

"I wasn't scared!" Sora shot back.

"You just _said _you were!" Riku pointed out, and when Riku laughed again, Sora reacted in defiance and dove at him, only making Riku laugh harder when he managed to dodge Sora's grabby fingers.

Trying not to join in with his own snickering, Sora made a grab for him again. "Shut up!"

Tackle successful, Sora latched onto him as they collided and somersaulted through the water together in a grapple. It was tail versus tail, hands versus face as Sora attempted to tickle him and Riku shoved at his face, a finger even making it up Sora's nose—but that didn't stop him from digging his hands into Riku's sides to begin his assault.

"Gah—Sora!" Riku gasped, immediately squirming to get free. He twisted around in Sora's grasp, his body slick despite his scales, and he slipped away from Sora with ease, making a break for the shadowy bottom.

Sora took chase without hesitation, calling after him. "_Now _who's the scaredy-cat!"

He spoke too soon.

Riku did an abrupt one-eighty and doubled back towards him, and Sora saw him too late to escape the attack. As they plowed into each other, they both burst into laughter and began wrestling, aiming for each other's tickle spots as they wriggled and writhed and yelped whenever one of them managed to gain the upper hand.

They play fought until they reached the bottom, a grassy bed sandwiched between two large kelp holdfasts. After scaring away a large school of fish, Riku pushed Sora into the short sea-grass. Sora struggled for control, bucking against Riku and kicking up sand, but Riku was still older and stronger than him, and it was no use. Sora was still squirming when Riku finally pinned him.

It wasn't the most comfortable position, not with the way his dorsal fin pressed against the ground, but Riku's hips ground against his, and all complaints fled Sora's mind. Riku had only been adjusting his weight, but that light grazing of scales against his underbelly was... interesting.

Still breathing heavily from their brawl, Sora lifted his gaze to meet Riku's. In his eyes, there was a familiar spark of excitement, a sharpness to the sea green that made Sora's heart thump even faster. Right at that moment, he wondered what was going through Riku's mind and if it was the same thing going through _his_ mind.

Sora slid his hands up and curled them against Riku's arms, liking how the muscles grew taut under his simple touch, and how Riku's eyes searched his as if waiting for something. Permission, perhaps.

This Riku was so different. The old one would have gone for the prize without his go-ahead, not that he had needed it anyway. Sora smiled at the thought. Even though Riku had lost his memories, maybe their time apart had actually changed him—at least enough to consider Sora's feelings before initiating anything. It was kind of cute.

Sora grabbed a silky clump of Riku's hair and tugged his face closer. He met his lips with a lingering smile and felt Riku form one in return before he kissed back, keeping it gentle and sweet at first as if testing Sora's preferences. Sora's dorsal fin was beginning to hurt now, but he found that he didn't mind it so much because Riku kept finding ways to distract him from it—like when his hand folded over Sora's hip and squeezed just as his lips parted against Sora's, enticing Sora to do the same. They shared a few slow kisses, each only a little deeper than the last, but they were enough to reacquaint Sora with the art of kissing.

Their mouths moved together with a familiarity that almost hurt, reminding him that even if the witch had taken Riku's memories, she hadn't been able to take what rested beyond those memories: instinctual reactions, conditioned responses, the things Riku had subconsciously learned because of Sora. Their bodies still remembered each other well, though Sora was the only one who knew.

Attempting to feed his nostalgia, Sora tightened his fingers in Riku's hair and shifted beneath him to get more comfortable, and Riku complied with ease by rolling onto his side, pulling Sora with him. Sora offered him a grateful sigh as his fin was released and then eagerly deepened the kiss to show Riku he wasn't as shy as Riku probably thought he was.

To his delight, Riku responded with a quiet "Mn..." as Sora took control. His tail flukes curled lazily against Sora's, and Sora, encouraged by his reactions, lightly guided his tongue over Riku's bottom lip, feeling Riku's mouth open further.

Sora tilted his head more, ready to test his boundaries by finding Riku's tongue, but his plan came to a sudden halt when Riku's fingers slipped from his hip up to the small of his back, stroking just above his dorsal fin.

_Oh._

Sora inhaled sharply and froze.

That felt...

_Wow._

...dangerous.

Riku must have felt his reaction because he tried to do it again, but Sora very carefully pulled back and pushed Riku flat on the sea bed. Their eyes met again, and this time Riku's were dilated. Sora was pretty sure he was wearing the same look.

Neither of them said anything for a long moment as they studied each other, both at a loss as to what to do next. Then...

"Marshmallows..." Riku said as if coming to realization.

Sora's headiness was beginning to clear, but even then he wasn't sure he had heard Riku correctly. "Marshmallows?" he asked.

"Your lips. That's what they feel like," Riku clarified. "Soft, supple, and plush." Then he smirked again. "But you taste like clams, not sugar."

"Clams?" Sora laughed, shoving Riku again. "That's _your _fault!" Riku made a grab for him, but Sora kicked his tail, dancing upwards through the water. "Too slow!" he teased, and before Riku could prove otherwise, Sora darted through the kelp to make a run for it.

The problem with under the sea racing was that the water made it very difficult to hear if Riku was pursuing or not. This wasn't at all like the thundering of feet on land; fins hardly made any noise in water, not even when moving quickly. For Sora, part of the fun of racing was being able to hear where the competition was, but at the same time, not being able to hear Riku's approach added a whole new level of suspense. He didn't want to glance back to see if Riku was there, yet he _did _want to, but he couldn't... though technically he _could_. That ping-pong feeling was even more distracting than not being able to hear Riku.

Still, Sora loved it.

He wove through the towering stalks, aiming for the shimmering surface above, and he found that the more carefully he listened to his surroundings, he was able to discern the sloshing and swishing of water somewhere close behind him—

No, to his side?

The current around him changed, cooler water surrounding him from his right, and before he could escape, Riku was suddenly on top of him. Arms hooked around his waist, and the two of them went rolling through the water again, Sora trying to kick away from Riku, only to have Riku's hands attack that sensitive area above his fin.

"Ah—! Cheater!" he half cried, laughing at the same time. "Stop it!" He writhed in Riku's grasp, needing to escape that extremely weird thrill he got whenever Riku teased that spot—like a thousand tiny bubbles erupting inside of him. He knew exactly what it meant, though he suspected Riku didn't know what exactly he was doing.

He managed to twist around and slip out of Riku's arms, narrowly avoiding a grab at his dorsal fin as he swung upward through the water. He felt Riku's fingers graze his flukes, and he slapped them away with his tail before bolting for the open sea again.

This time a swoosh of water told him Riku was following, but Sora didn't bother trying to lose Riku in the kelp forest again. From what he figured, Riku's tail made him better at maneuvering through obstacles, like the kelp. But Sora had a dolphin's tail, and dolphins were built for something else.

He made a beeline for the rippling glow above, swimming as fast as he could, and already he could taste the freedom as he streaked through the sea, untouchable. Water breezed past him as if as weightless as the sky, and he was the boundless bird.

The surface rushed towards him, enveloping him with the sun's warmth, and all at once—

Light.

He broke free of the water, showering the air with glistening beads, and he flew. The cold breeze tickled his senses and the sunlight kissed his skin as he hung suspended above the sea, free for that one perfect moment. No thoughts, no memories, no obligations, no restrictions, nothing to pretend or fight for...

Then gravity took hold and pulled him back to the waves. He twisted in the air, arched backwards, and met the water in a backwards dive.

The sea swallowed him, welcoming him again with its warmth, and he lightly flicked his tail to reorient himself. One by one, his senses and thoughts returned. He almost expected to feel sad when he returned to reality. Instead, a happy energy bubbled inside of him, and he kicked upward to surface again. He threw his head back and took a deep breath of salty air, smiling wide.

Something exploded out of the water right next to him, and he threw an arm up to shield himself from the water's spray as he turned to watch. It was Riku, of course, and he had decided to try his hand at flipping, too.

He swept through the sky, a silver spiral with glittering scales, and he too made a complete circle before diving back into the water, his tail slapping the waves as it disappeared from sight. Just as the water settled again, Riku's head reappeared nearby, and he swept his hair out of his eyes, looking pleased with himself.

"Ohh, you're _on_," Sora grinned, catching onto that challenge.

Riku flashed him a smirk before they dove back into the water to try jumping again. Sora shot into the air first, but Riku was right behind him, and the two of them performed near perfect pirouettes in sync before dropping into the sea. As they leapt out of the water, back and forth, testing each other, Sora realized his assumptions had been right. Sora was the faster swimmer, but Riku could easily outmaneuver him.

When he told Riku this, Riku only showed off more, but after that, things became less of a challenge and more of a game. As they flew through the air and sea together, Sora soon lost track of everything that had been plaguing him, as if flitting along the waves with Riku somehow lessened the weights on both their shoulders. He felt like a kid again, and not even Id's subtle presence deep in his mind could distract him.

Their splashing, laughing, and playing attracted the attention of other sea animals, a team of dolphins joining in with their leaping game. Their gray forms came gliding through the blue, and within moments of their arrival, the boys were racing with the dolphins and trying to see who could jump the highest. The dolphins always won, but it didn't matter because everyone was having fun.

And because Sora was the one with a dolphin tail, they accepted him easily, though they seemed more interested in Riku. _Really _interested. The largest dolphin started acting a little too friendly and rubbed up against Riku to get his attention, and Sora couldn't help bursting into laughter at the wide-eyed look Riku gave it.

Sora cupped his hands around his mouth. "I think he likes you!" he called.

"Shut up!" Riku returned, but he was trying not to laugh.

The other dolphins tittered as if also laughing at Riku, who looked increasingly unnerved as the large dolphin nuzzled his side with its nose and then rubbed in front of him like a big cat. That only made Sora roll over and crack up more. Finally Riku just grabbed hold of its dorsal fin, and, to both his and Sora's surprise, the dolphin shot off like a rocket through the water with Riku holding onto it.

"Whoa!"

That cut Sora's humor short. "Hey, wait up!" he yelled, immediately chasing after them. The other dolphins fell into line beside him, clicking and chittering as if enjoying themselves, and that was when Sora realized the large dolphin was probably just helping Riku since he couldn't swim as fast the rest of them. Deciding to try it out, Sora slipped close to one of the dolphins at his side and took hold of its back. As soon as he did, it sped up in pursuit of Riku's, powering through the water, just like a trusty steed charging headfirst after the damsel in distress.

Not that he'd tell Riku that.

Sora and his dolphin caught up with ease and raced along the surface beside Riku, who glanced at Sora with a look of pure exhilaration on his face as he clutched his own ride.

Sora's heart gave a little start.

That expression was exactly what he had been waiting for all day. That was _Riku_, simply Riku. His best friend. Whatever burden Riku had been shouldering all night and day had finally left him, at least for now.

Sora returned the look with a happy grin, and the dolphins swam onward, heading toward the shoals. The sun was finally reaching the horizon, casting a ribbon of light across the water as if pointing to their next destination. In the distance where the sky was still a brilliant blue, Sora could see land, lush with greenery and rocky cliffs, with a white castle overlooking the sea. Stretches of beach sorely tempted Sora, who had been haunted by fragments of home ever since being brought here—the sea, the breeze, the gulls, the shark, the clams, everything. Now there was the beach. What he wouldn't give to dig his feet into that warm sand...

He may not have had feet at the moment, but the thought of having soft sand against his back again was more than inviting. With Riku there with him to watch the sunset, he couldn't think of a better way to end their day together.

"Hey, Riku!" he said, pointing ahead. "Let's go check it out!"

Riku was already staring in that direction, a smile lingering on his face. "Yeah."

"Alright!" Sora cheered. "Maybe we can explore the coast a little before it gets dark!"

And just like that, Riku's happiness fled. His eyes widened with sudden dread, and he turned to look back at the sea—

No... the sun?

It was hanging low in the sky, staining the horizon a beautiful, hazy peach. Soon, that peach would deepen to orange, signaling the onset of nightfall and the end of their day together, yes, but... Why did Riku look so scared?

"We have to go back!" Riku cried, releasing his dolphin. "I have to go find Ariel!" He dove into the water, and his tail gave a powerful kick, turning him back in the direction they had come.

Sora had a really bad feeling about this, but he knew when to follow without hesitation, and now was not the time for him to reminisce about beaches and sunsets. He let go of his dolphin as well and sunk below the waves, spotting Riku already racing away.

"Riku, wait for me!"

He started after him, but not before one of the dolphins shot past him and darted in front of Riku, making clicking noises. Another one nudged Sora's arm to get his attention. Riku caught onto the dolphin's dorsal fin again, and Sora did the same, surprised that the dolphins understood what they needed so well. With their speed, they'd be back in no time.

The dolphins moved as one and dove deep with the two boys, swimming as if _they _had a shark at their tails, and Sora held on tight. They passed the kelp forest in a blur and, within minutes, reached a series of underwater caverns that could have been where he and Riku had spent the night. The journey was made in silence, but it was the kind of silence heavy with tension. Like before, questions burned inside of Sora, reminding him that as much as he wanted to pretend everything was okay between them, they weren't.

Riku didn't panic like this for no reason, so there had to be something Riku wasn't telling him about nightfall. Now that Sora thought about it, Ursula _had _mentioned something about sunset, hadn't she? And all this time Sora had been assuming _he _had set the time limit, not that it had already been set for him… What was going to happen when the sun set? Maybe the spell that gave him a tail only lasted until that long? Though if that was the case, Riku would have probably told him or kept him near shore.

Then what was it?

"Riku?" he hedged.

Just like last night, Sora couldn't see his face, didn't know what expression he was wearing, or what emotions were reflected in his eyes. His silver hair swept behind him from the current, but all Sora could see was his pale shoulder, which rolled upward as he leaned forward to see where they were going. Only then did he glance back at Sora to acknowledge him.

Gone was that open happiness from minutes before; Riku's expression was guarded once again, and Sora could only have a bad feeling about whatever it was he had hidden there.

"I know where we are now," Riku informed him. He stroked a hand along the dolphin's back and spoke to it. "Thanks for the ride. I know the way from here." Whether or not the dolphin understood, it did slow down, and Riku let it go. Sora patted his dolphin and also released it, shouting his thanks before the team of dolphins turned and swam onward without them, disappearing behind a sprawling reef.

Riku wordlessly took his wrist and began leading him through an underwater valley teeming with life. Even now, Sora hadn't gotten used to how beautiful this world was. Every turn Riku made, a multitude of creatures and plants splashed their cerulean backdrop with a myriad of colors, from the blue-green sea grass and algae, to the pink, orange, and yellow sponges, and everything in between. Even groups of multicolored fish swirled in front of them, their scales creating brilliant kaleidoscope with every shade of the rainbow, before they darted away as the boys swam through them.

Their destination was only known to Riku, whose fingers were unyielding around Sora's wrist once again.

In terms of the situation, they were exactly back where they had started last night. Riku was silently leading him by the wrist to who-knew-where and Sora was wondering what the heck was going on. Riku was still not providing any answers, and Sora still felt like he was treading dangerous waters by letting his nostalgia make his decisions for him.

Sora shouldn't have trusted Riku as much as he did after the blunders Riku had been making recently, but... Maybe some of that old, innocent loyalty to his best friend still persisted, even after what Riku had done to him. Sora could still follow Riku headfirst into trouble if that was what Riku wanted.

Yet one thing had definitely changed.

Sora was no longer the _blind _follower. If his misadventures had taught him one thing, it was that bad things happened when he didn't speak up.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" he asked in a stern tone. "Why did you freak out back there?"

In terms of the situation, maybe they really _were _exactly back where they had started last night. In terms of their relationship, however, everything had changed. Right now, it didn't matter to Sora who had the keyblade or who was working for what side or what either of them had done prior to last night and today that had hurt their friendship—and beyond. What mattered to Sora was so much simpler than any of those.

He just wanted Riku to be safe. And when Sora thought about things that way, he understood why he would still want to follow, not lead. If Sora was the one leading, no one would be there to watch Riku's back... which was something Riku needed a lot more than Sora did.

"I want to tell you," Riku admitted, but Sora knew what that tone meant.

"But you can't," Sora finished for him. He was half tempted to pull his wrist out of Riku's grip to get Riku to pay more attention to him, but he didn't. Riku was in a hurry for a reason. Besides, he had other ways to play with Riku's conscience. "You know, I'm giving you another chance, Riku. That's why I'm staying. The least you can do is trust me with the _truth_."

Riku's fingers tightened around his wrist. "I _want _to," he insisted, and he glanced over his shoulder. A hint of worry shone through that mask of his. "But it's complicated."

Sora's bad feeling returned. "Complicated... or do you mean you did something stupid again?" he asked.

Sora watched as that touch of worry quickly became irritation, and Riku returned his attention forward. Sora had his answer.

"Like I said, it's complicated," Riku continued, this time curt. But then he paused, and Sora felt his fingers loosen their grip. When he spoke again, his tone had softened considerably. "I promise, when I get this done, I'll explain everything to you. Anything you want to know. But... I can't right now, and I can't tell you why." He looked at Sora again, his expression grave. "I just need you to trust me."

Their eyes met, and without either of them uttering another word, a hundred different apologies and promises were exchanged between them. It felt like Agrabah again. Sora had no way of describing how he felt in that moment, somewhere between trapped by Riku's expectations and liberated by them, or maybe both. Did it matter? Sora already had his answer, though it took him a few tries to swallow the sudden knot in his throat before he could say it out loud.

"I trust you."

Relief and gratitude passed through Riku's eyes, and Sora could only hope those hadn't been his famous last words.

Riku's destination turned out to be quite a treasure trove of human trinkets. It was located behind a large flat boulder that Riku eased out of the way to let Sora through first. Sora wasted no time in admiring the circular nook and all of the knickknacks it showcased along its smooth stony ledges.

"Wow," Sora awed, wanting to inspect up close, but he minded where he was and turned back towards Riku for an explanation.

He had already eased the boulder closed and now appeared distraught. "She said she'd be here," Riku said. When he began swimming restlessly around the enclosed space, Sora knew for sure he had bad news coming.

"Who?"

"Ariel," Riku said, but that didn't help much. Sora recognized the name from the mermaid Riku had mentioned a few times, but what did she have to do with Riku panicking right now? Riku made slow laps with uneasy movements, making zigzags past Sora as he muttered. "She said she'd be here... What am I going to do?"

Sora watched as Riku glanced up at the hole far above them, which allowed the lingering sunlight to cascade through the tunnel. It reflected off the many antiques gathered there, sending light dancing everywhere, and it cast Riku in a surreal pale glow. Sora couldn't take his eyes off Riku for the longest time, mesmerized both by Riku's apprehension and his haunting figure.

But minutes passed, and Riku only grew more agitated. Long gone was the cool, calm best friend Sora remembered. He couldn't recall the last time he had seen Riku like this, but what was worse than that was that he didn't know what to do to help him. Riku didn't want to tell him what was going on, so all Sora could really do was go along for the ride...

Trying not to let Riku's nervousness infect him any more than it already was, Sora decided to distract himself by studying the cavern's collection. Countless little trinkets littered the stone shelves, and some bigger objects were propped against each other. Sora spotted the most random things like swords, a lute, a hat rack, a globe, several mirrors, a hanging lantern, and even a tall clock. Interested, he opened one of the smaller chests and dug through a few sets of pearls, also spotting more than one pocket watch and compass. This really _was_ a treasure trove.

A growl of frustration echoed through the chamber, drawing Sora's attention back to Riku, who had finally lost his patience. He was swimming for the exit.

Sora pushed off the shelf he was at and went to meet him at the boulder. "Where are you going?" he asked. "I thought you were waiting for that mermaid?"

Riku was purposely avoiding his gaze. "I was, but—I'm running out of time!" He pushed the boulder open enough to let him through, but he hesitated before leaving, his shoulders tense. "I need you to stay here just in case she—"

Riku didn't have a chance to finish his sentence because the boulder suddenly opened farther and a face appeared outside the cavern, blue eyes wide with wonder.

"Oh!" the newcomer gasped. "You're here!"

All fluid movement, she swam through the crack and circled Riku, carrying a glowing golden... spear? Wait, it had three prongs at the end... What were those prongy things called again? Pitchfork?

Sora frowned as he studied her, knowing this must be the mermaid Riku kept mentioning.

She was definitely pretty, her long vibrant hair spiraling around her slender body as she came to a stop beside Riku, red streaks of hair sweeping past her as if they had a mind of their own, revealing her full figure. If not for her purple shell top, she would have been as bare as himself and Riku. Her green tail was long and lithe with semi-translucent flukes, which were curling in an awkward way as if she were nervous.

Her willowy fingers clutched the glowing pitchfork close to her chest, and Sora noticed how intensely Riku was staring at the thing. What _was_ it? He really hoped it wasn't another genie-in-a-lamp repeat and wound up being some sort of magical device that could let someone take over the world...

Then again, if it was, Sora wouldn't be surprised with the way Riku was eyeballing it. "Is that it?" Riku asked, finally lifting his gaze to meet the mermaid's. Even then, the golden glow from the pitchfork was reflected in his eyes.

She nodded, and her fingers seemed to tighten around it. "I'm sorry it took so long, but—"

Riku gave her a relieved smile and reached out to take it from her. Sora was surprised to see her actually let him take it, though she looked reluctant to do so. Obviously whatever it was, it was really important. Sora had a feeling that wherever this was going, it wasn't going to end well... And there was that bad feeling of his again.

"Thanks," Riku said. He glanced up at the fading sunlight, his expression grew grim again, and he turned to leave the cavern with the pitchfork in hand. "I'll be right back! Stay here and _don't _follow me!"

Before Sora or the mermaid could get a word in, Riku ducked past the boulder and disappeared into the open sea. Sora had to fight back the surge of emotions he felt as soon as he lost sight of Riku and Riku's words had a chance to sink in. Don't follow him? Why _not_? That told Sora more than anything that Riku was swimming straight into danger.

Well, Sora wasn't about to let him have all the fun on his own! He had already decided he would stick with Riku no matter what.

The mermaid was already making for the exit as if to follow him. "Wait, Riku—!" she cried.

Sora was right behind her, and he grabbed at her arm to stop her. "Hey, hold up!"

She turned, her blue eyes wide with her own mix of feelings. She looked conflicted and scared and like she wanted to help but didn't know how yet wanted to try anyway. Sora knew that dreadful combination well.

"You must be Ariel," he said, forming a friendly smile despite the circumstances.

She hesitated, glanced down at Sora's hand around her arm, and then met his gaze again, her lips parting but no words coming out. For a second she looked embarrassed and even began worrying her bottom lip, and Sora realized this probably wasn't the best time for introductions for either of them.

"I'm Sora," he offered. "Riku's best friend." He gave a sheepish laugh and released her arm to rub the back of his head. "Do you have _any _idea what's going on?"

Ariel's expression softened as she examined him, and then, with a little giggle, she smiled. "Come on," she said, holding her hand out. "I'll explain on the way."

Sora took her hand, though he wasn't sure what she meant at first. "On the way?" he asked for clarification.

Ariel had started to turn to leave, but she paused at his question, a mischievous curl to her lips. "After Riku," she said. "Or do you have cold fins?"

Something about the way she said that distinctly reminded him of Riku. Sora tightened his grip around hers and grinned.

"No cold fins here," he assured.

"Good," she said, returning his grin for a moment. "Now let's go before he finds himself at the end of really big hook."

She swept her tail back and kicked forward, leading Sora by the hand much like Riku had done twice before. As Sora swam along behind her, he noticed how her red hair swept over her shoulders kind of like Riku's did, but Sora could actually see her face. Her grin from seconds before was now fading back into a grim, determined expression, reflecting how Sora himself felt. She too knew she was heading into possible danger, but she was willing to risk it for Riku—or at least the greater good.

Because of that, Sora couldn't help liking her already.

-o-o-

Sunset was rapidly approaching.

Riku swam close to the surface to keep track of the remaining light, the details of Ursula's contract etched into his mind and repeating over and over like a cruel taunt. Sunset, she had said. Sunset.

He was swimming as fast as he could, faster than he had when fleeing from that shark, faster than he had when racing with Sora. The adrenaline poisoning him probably had something to do with it. His heart was hammering so hard that he could hardly breathe, but he couldn't stop to catch his breath, he didn't have the time.

He'd been so caught up in his fantasy world with Sora that he had forgotten to keep track of the hour, and _now_... He didn't know what was going to happen, but he knew it wasn't good. He couldn't fail. He _couldn't_. He would get the trident to her in time. He _had _to.

Gritting his teeth, he clutched the trident even more firmly and drove himself harder, trying to will his fins to move faster. His body ached all over from exhaustion, his muscles burned from overuse, his stomach was gnawing into itself from hunger, and he felt dizzy from everything that was happening to him. He couldn't think straight, couldn't concentrate on what he should do, only on what he _had _to do. He knew he was a mess, but none of that mattered.

He had gotten himself into this mess, and he would get himself out.

"Riku!"

"It's Riku!"

Dread twisted inside of him, but he didn't slow down, knowing he couldn't afford any distractions right now. He kept close to the surface and tried to ignore the familiar voices calling to him from below.

Goofy's carefree timbre: "Riku, down here!"

Donald's demanding squawk: "Where have you been! We've been looking all over!"

Flounder's innocent hesitance: "Have you seen Ariel at all?"

"Dat girl took off with da king's trident!" And even Sebastian and his eccentric accent.

Riku could have given them the time of day considering he knew exactly what it was, but there was no way he was stopping to chitchat with them. Especially when he was one of the culprits involved with the trident theft.

"Hey," Goofy started thoughtfully, "isn't _that _the trident?"

Riku was passing over them now, and he glanced down to acknowledge them at least. Though the sun was fading, the moon was rising, and through the lingering light he saw Flounder's eyes fill with fear and, beside him, Sebastian's jaw dropped open in shock. He knew they could see him perfectly because of the triton's soft glow.

"Where are you going!" Donald demanded. He was already trying to chase after him, but there was no way he'd be able to catch up to Riku with just his wings and tentacles.

Riku felt a little bad for leaving them behind, but he had no choice. He kept on swimming, quickly passing them by as he shouted back, "I'm going to take care of Ursula and find the keyhole!" Then he faced forward again so he couldn't see their reactions, already knowing what to expect. Donald and Goofy would likely come after him, Sebastian would report to the sea king, and Flounder would probably continue looking for Ariel.

Behind him, he heard their fading voices.

"Uh oh, Ariel's dad is not gonna like this!"

"Dat boy is mad! He's swimmin' right into hot water! Da sea witch is a _monster_! Ohh, what a mess...! I gotta tell da king—!"

"Riku, wait up!"

"Come baaaaack!"

Riku clenched his jaw and didn't look back.

_Sunset_, he reminded himself. _Sunset. _

In his hands, the triton faintly hummed with power. Beyond the surface of the water, the indigo of night was stretching over the deepening red of sunset, and Riku knew he was swimming to meet his fate.

-o-o-

Ariel was true to her word and did explain on the way.

The pitchfork was actually a triton and belonged to her father the sea king, and it was, as he had feared, an object of great power. Sora tried not to think about the genie's lamp and how similar this situation was to Agrabah. If this triton went the same way the lamp had gone, and Ursula got her hands on it like Jafar had, all of them were in big trouble.

One of Sora's few comforts was the fact that the heartless were unheard of on this world, which meant they were safe from the world caving into darkness. At least for now. Another small comfort was that Ariel had told him that Riku had said he wanted the triton to find the keyhole on this world, which meant Riku wasn't planning on letting anyone just take it from him.

Sora's last comfort was actually a surprise.

He swam right into it by accident, just like he had bumped into them on Agrabah.

"Sora!"

"It's Sora!"

Even though they were no longer a mere dog and a duck, Sora recognized them immediately as he and Ariel drew close through the encroaching twilight. "Donald! Goofy!" he cried, releasing Ariel's hand to dart up to his friends.

He crashed into them and threw his arms around them, laughing. Riku hadn't even mentioned them, but Sora should have realized Riku couldn't have wound up on this world without them or the gummi ship. They both awkwardly tried to embrace him back, and he grinned as he pulled away to get a good look at them in the dim light. Half dog, half sea turtle, and half duck, half octopus.

"You guys look so weird!" he said, and behind him, he heard Ariel giggle.

"But funny," she said. "I guess I had gotten used to you two."

"Aw, shucks," Goofy laughed. He rolled sideways, and Sora wondered how his hat managed to stay in place so well.

Hey, wait a second... "You guys know each other?" he asked, surprised. What else had he been missing out on?

"Yup!" Goofy replied. "Me 'n Donald have been hanging out with these folks for, uh... about two days, I think." He lifted a flipper to his mouth in thought, which looked entirely odd. "Yup, two days."

Donald's wings folded as he gave Sora a scrutinizing look. "How did _you_ get here?" he wondered.

Sora immediately thought about Riku and his memory loss and his pact with Ursula, and he realized that they were wasting time chatting here. Sora still didn't know what was so special about sunset, but it _was _sunset right now, so they had to hurry!

"I'll tell you about it later," he said, turning back to Ariel. "We gotta go find Riku."

"Right," she agreed. "I think he's heading to the sea witch's lair, and he has my father's trident!"

"Ahyuck, and we just saw him," Goofy said helpfully.

To which Donald added, "Yeah, right before you showed up."

"We were goin' after him!"

"That means we can still catch up to him," Sora said, and the others nodded.

With Donald and Goofy here, Sora felt more confident about this. He didn't know what to expect when he swam back into Ursula's lair to protect Riku, but whatever it was, Riku had seemed so frantic about it earlier... And a frantic Riku never spelled good news.

Ariel took the lead again, but this time Sora didn't let her take his hand. He followed close behind her with Donald and Goofy flanking him, and they did provide him with silent comfort as they headed deeper into the sea, past familiar territory. Soon, the colorful undersea roads tapered off into rockier landscape, which then flanked a dark volcanic valley.

The sunlight may have faded, but a new illumination allowed them to see where they were; Sora recognized that eerie magenta glow spilling out of fissures in the ground.

They were close.

And when Sora spotted the enormous fish skeleton that Ursula lived in, he swallowed past his sudden trepidation.

Okay, _very _close.

"We're here," he announced.

Ahead of them, only about a minute's swim away, they could see a silvery figure.

Riku.

And he was already swimming into the maw of the sea witch's lair.

-o-o-

The polyps were more aggressive than last time, stretching high to hook onto Riku's fins as he passed by, and he had to use the trident's shaft to roughly push them away. As soon as he was free, he kicked hard at the water, flitting forward past the throat of the leviathan, heading right into the chamber where he had first met Ursula.

She was waiting for him.

Her cauldron was closed, and she was resting against it, two long tentacles folded across her stomach as if displeased. She was tapping impatiently against the cauldron with one of her hands, creating a hollow rhythm that Riku could practically feel at the base of his spine as he drew close with the trident.

If she was unhappy, he had won.

He had made it before sunset.

Riku couldn't even begin to describe the relief that blossomed inside of him and trickled through his weary body. He paused in front of Ursula and dutifully held the trident out for her.

"Here," he said, narrowing his eyes at her. "You got what you wanted."

She was silent as she took the trident, whose glow subsided as soon as she touched it. She lifted it in front of herself, running a tentacle along its polished length, and her impassive expression very quickly shifted.

First it was the thinning of her eyes. Then it was the curling of her painted lips. When her deep chuckle began rumbling out of her, Riku cautiously backed away, his hand itching to summon his keyblade at a moment's notice.

"_Thank you_, angelfish," she practically purred. She slid off her cauldron and rolled towards him, perfectly casual, but Riku suddenly did not want to be here anymore, trident be damned.

Just as she reached a tentacle out to curl into his hair, he whirled around to flee, his tail slapping her away as he kicked out, bolting for the exit.

Streaks of gray intercepted him—those eels!—and their slimy bodies snapped around his arms to tug him back towards Ursula. He struggled against her pets, trying to work a hand open to summon his keyblade, but their jaws closed around his palms. Sharp spindly teeth sank into his hands, searing pain lancing up his arms, and he bit down a cry.

Ursula pushed through the water, spinning around him with a sharp laugh, and she landed before him, trident in one hand. Her other hand snapped out, summoning a familiar golden scroll with a flash of light. The contract. Riku's name was scrawled at the bottom where he had signed it.

"See this, sweetcakes?" she asked, sounding completely vainglorious. "See your signature down there?"

One of her tentacles shoved at his chest, and another one snaked up his neck, cupping the back of his skull to shove his head forward to get a better look at the contract. Fury boiled up inside of him, and the throbbing in his hands only aggravated him more.

"Yes," he hissed, glaring at her. "I did what you wanted, didn't I? I got you the trident, just like you said!"

Her deep chuckle resonated in the chamber again, beginning to rise, then quickly became a high-pitched cackle that send shudders down his spine. Two tentacles reached up, latched onto the edges of the contract, and ripped it clean in half right in front of him.

"By _sunset_!" she crowed, leaning close, her eyes wild with madness as her mouth split into a sinister grin. "You're _late_."

Riku's heart almost stopped when he realized what he had just done.

He had failed...

And he had still given her the trident without knowing.

"Late?" he uttered carefully. An ice-cold fear was spreading through him. His entire body went rigid as she pressed the sharp prongs of the trident under his chin as if reading his mind and wanting to gloat about his ultimate mistake.

"_Three _minutes late," she returned, and her grin was perfectly malicious now. "And you will make a _charming _new addition to my little garden, mmhmhm..."

Riku's eyes widened when he realized what she was inferring.

When she pulled the trident back to aim at him, he summoned all of the strength he could and thrust his tail forward to knock the weapon out of her hands. He felt the kick connect, and he twisted his head around, biting down on one of the eels. It made a shrieking sound and released him, freeing a bleeding hand.

With a quick flick of his wrist, he was suddenly holding his keyblade, and he turned to face Ursula. She wasn't there.

Instead, what he saw was Sora rushing into the chamber, Ariel and Donald and Goofy right behind him.

"RIKU, _LOOK __**OUT**_!"

And what _Sora_ saw was Ursula perched on the ceiling above Riku, the trident aimed right at his silver head. All thoughts fled Sora as he flew through the water, weaponless, ready to attack the witch with everything he had—

"You're too late!" she shrieked with laughter.

Just as Riku looked up and spotted her, green eyes wide, the trident's power surged forward, and Sora slammed into Ursula. As light pierced the chamber, Ursula howled, and Sora, momentarily blinded by the trident's power, felt her tentacles crash into him. For a moment he was dazed by the heavy blows, but the screams of his friends helped him focus, and he managed to twist around in the water and kick back towards Riku, his vision beginning to clear.

"Riku!" Donald and Goofy were crying.

Sora's blood ran cold when he saw why.

There, where Riku had been just moments before, was now a tiny gray-green worm curling out of the floor, and the keyblade rested right in front of it. The worm was looking sadly up at him, its mouth parted, and Sora knew in his heart that what he was seeing was true.

"_RIKU!_" he wailed, tears springing to his eyes. Without thinking, he snatched the keyblade from the ground and whirled on Ursula, who was already directing the trident at him. He shot towards her, keyblade gliding through the water with deadly force—

Then Ursula's laugh rang in his ears as light suddenly enveloped him—

And Sora abruptly found himself stumbling, _stumbling_, soaked and buck naked, across the floor of a room he instantly recognized. The foyer of Hollow Bastion.

Disbelief struck through him.

His feet tripped over each other, sending him crashing onto the cold floor in a dripping wet mess. He wasn't a merman anymore, that was for sure. But that was the least of his problems.

"R-Riku..."

Sora shakily picked himself up, his nude form shivering in the cold bastion, and he tried to concentrate through his panicked thoughts. What could he do? Riku was back there, he needed his help, but Sora couldn't... He couldn't...

...or could he...?

The darkness.

He _could_.

Hope rekindling, Sora got to his feet, trembling all over. He had to be strong. He had to concentrate. He _had _to go back!

He squeezed his eyes shut, silently calling for Id and his power, and immediately he felt Id's presence sweep over his mind, greeting him. Id didn't take over, but rather guided him without words and eased the cold darkness through him. For once, it wasn't particularly uncomfortable. Considering the circumstances, the familiarity was comforting, and Sora welcomed the power, not feeling as helpless anymore.

Like he had done on Agrabah, he summoned a portal of darkness in front of him. He felt the tug of power as it formed, and he slipped his eyes back open to study it. The swirling darkness looked inviting, but Sora knew exactly where it led.

Behind that portal was water. He was _human_ again and could drown if he went back. But Sora remembered what he had promised himself earlier, and he knew he had to stay with Riku, no matter what the risk. Right now, Riku needed his help more than ever.

Clutching the keyblade tightly at his side, Sora set his jaw as he stared at the dark portal. In that moment, all he could hear was water dripping to the floor and his own pounding heart. His bare feet shifted against the puddle of water forming beneath him.

Then, taking a deep breath, he plunged into the darkness, and back to Riku's side.

-o-o-

* * *

Cliffhanger, sorry. But... hurrah for Riku and Sora interaction! Who missed it? The challenge of this chapter was building the characterization while trying to keep the changes subtle. These next few chapters are crucial in the development of their characters before the big finale. We still have quite a ways to go before the end (I'm aiming for 8-10 more parts), but I'm really looking forward to pulling it all together because it will be AWESOME and it will make up for the utterly craptastic first half of the story (which I could write so much better now!). 

So, here's to **FIVE YEARS** of writing Stygian Solace! Hopefully I can get this story done by year six!

**Review?** Your words mean way more to me than you'll know, and they mean WAY more to me than favorite/alert numbers. I'm honored to have so many returning readers and _new _readers providing me with such amazing feedback. I really do learn something new from you every time I update. Your critiques help me grow, so please don't forget to leave some. Thanks so much!


	38. Ch 22: With Wayward Valor part one

_Author Notes: _

Optimistically, I'd say to expect updates to start picking up, but... you know how that goes, especially with these huge chapters.

HUUUUGE thank you to Jess for still being the best beta reader ever, and thanks to Ashanti again for being an amazing help. Also, happy birthday, V—you're an amazing inspiration!

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-two: **__With Wayward Valor _– part one

-o-o-

Pressure.

A deadly, freezing weight that swallowed him on all sides.

No air. Senses smothered.

Only a pitch black void of pressure and terror, and the hollowed rush of his own pulse.

Was this what it was like to drown?

Had he even made it back to Atlantica, or had the darkness finally consumed him? Would Riku be okay if he died right here, right now? What would happen to the worlds if Sora couldn't save their keyblade master?

No.

He couldn't give up here.

He wasn't going to let the scary octopus lady win, and he definitely wouldn'tlet her keep Riku like that! After everything they had been through, this _couldn't_ be the end.

The keyblade in Sora's hand hummed to him, and he clutched its grip with every last ounce of strength he had. Lungs aching for air, muscles straining under the crushing weight of the water—_not_ darkness?—he called out to the weapon's power in his desperation for help.

Like a wash of sunshine, he felt its strength softly connect with him and filter through his body, and he opened his eyes against the stinging sea to take a first look at his surroundings.

He'd made it back. The once magenta glow had changed, but everything else was the same within Ursula's lair.

And there they were—

The sea witch with the trident, her cauldron open, its magic spilling into the water—Ariel and Goofy evading two gray eels while struggling to get to the trident—and Donald, aiming his staff directly at _him_.

A flash of blue light blinded Sora, then he felt a _whoosh_ as a cocoon of warmth enwrapped him, and all of a sudden—

"Sora!!"

He could breathe again.

Donald's shrill cry echoed within him as the mage's spell transformed his human body: respiratory system first, legs next, and blue skin spreading along his own. He felt the bones and muscles in his feet tingle as they melted away into the flat, sturdy flukes of his tail; then with a painless pinch of his spine, the cartilage of his dorsal fin formed, his dolphin skin solidified, and he was a merman once again.

It had been nothing short of a well-timed miracle, and duck-made or not, Sora wasn't going to waste his luck.

As soon as he could kick his tail, he burst out of the dissolving cocoon of magic and barreled right towards Ursula, who had been too busy fending off Goofy and Ariel to notice his swift return. He thrust the keyblade high as he summoned a high-level thunder spell, remembering how it had affected the shark.

"Eat _this_!!"

Electricity crackled around the sea witch before engulfing her and billowing outward in a small shockwave, stunning even her pet eels.

Ursula bellowed in pain and whirled to face him. Apparently she hadn't known he could world-hop using darkness, which made him wonder just how much Maleficent wasn't telling her wicked little buddies. When she saw who had attacked her and with _magic_ of all things, Ursula's eyes grew wild with outrage.

"Why you _little_—"

Sora slammed the flat side of Riku's keyblade into her big face.

"Missed me!"

And boy, it felt good to get that little taste of revenge.

He kicked upward and narrowly avoided her tentacles as they shot out to ensnare him.

"Ahyuck, _Sora_!"

At Goofy's warning, Sora somersaulted around, and a searing power grazed past his face and hit the fibrous cavern wall beside him where he had been just a nanosecond ago. Boy, Ursula sure wasn't kidding around with that trident, was she?

A burst of magic from her cauldron shook the lair, and Sora took advantage of the opportunity to catch her off guard. He brought the keyblade forward and aimed right back at her. "Let's see how those tentacles of yours like _ice_!"

His blizzard spell caught her dead-on, temporarily crystallizing her, and when he heard Donald laughing, he felt a surge of pride for his magic; he may have been taught by Maleficent, but his powers were meant to _fight_ people like her.

He felt a searing cold as another blizzard spell flashed past him, and he heard the telltale hardening crunch of ice as Donald's magic froze one of the eels. Right then, Ariel placed a fierce kick into the other eel's side and sent it bouncing off Goofy's shell.

Goofy got Ariel to high-five him, and Sora grinned because in that moment, with all of his friends working together, it almost felt like one of the play fights back home. Even though he knew the danger was real, Sora had missed being a part of this kind of teamwork. That, and usually Riku had been the hero, not him, and this time _Riku _was the damsel in distress.

If they got off this world alive, Sora wasn't going to let him live this one down.

The ice around Ursula and her pet shattered, freeing them but leaving her even angrier than she had been before. She shook off the icy shards and leveled the trident at Sora, murder in her eyes, but he was undaunted. He flicked his tail and rushed through the water back towards her, keyblade already aimed to strike.

But that was when the tides turned against them.

"Donald—behind you!" Ariel cried.

Suddenly worried about Donald, Sora forgot his own attack and rolled away to avoid another surge of power from the trident. He turned in time to see a large tentacle thwack the back of Donald's head and send him face-first into the side of the cavern. Before he could even check if the duck was still conscious, two gray figures flew forward—the eels!—and he heard Goofy's own call for help. And when he spun around to help Goofy instead, the knight was already hiding inside of his shell and being batted around by Ursula's pets like a ping-pong ball.

"Sora!" Ariel cried again, and Sora twisted around at once. Panic coiled in his gut as Ursula bore down on him too quickly for him to evade in time. He braced himself for a painful collision—

But a blur of green and red streaked past him and intercepted the homicidal octopus, and Sora froze, stunned that Ariel would tackle Ursula with her bare hands. Then he saw her trying to grapple the trident away from the sea witch and realized that she had the right idea in mind. Ursula was far less dangerous without the trident, so getting it away from her could end this fight quicker than anything else.

Sora's gaze flitted from Donald's floating, unconscious form, to the eels playing bat-a-Goofy, to Ariel and the sea witch wrestling for the trident, and finally focused on the gray-green polyp sitting near the base of Ursula's cauldron.

Riku.

Sora was the only help he was going to get.

Tightening his grip on the keyblade, he shot forward just as Ariel was violently thrown backwards. She slammed into the witch's vanity hard enough to knock several bottles off the shelves, and Sora tried to push his concern aside as he flew past her to meet Ursula head-on.

The sea witch spotted him in time to block his attack, and the keyblade struck the trident with an almost explosive force. The intense energy simmered between their faces as they glared at each other over their weapons. The trident had caught the key between two of its prongs, and Sora knew if he tried to pull back, she would have it with very little effort.

Trying not to let her ugly smirk get to him, he shoved the blade against the trident with fierce determination. "Give Riku back!"

"Forget it, loverboy," she snapped, "he's _mine_! He knew the details of the contract when he _signed_ it."

A thick tentacle wrapped around the base of his tail and easily jerked him backwards before he could do anything, and the keyblade left his hands, caught there between the trident's prongs like dessert on a fork.

"Gah!"

Without warning, Ursula hurled him towards the cauldron, and the backlash of magic barely missed him as he spun in the water to right himself. He felt the power sizzling around him and knew instinctively that he didn't want to stick around and see what would happen if he got hit by one of those rogue spells.

Crowing with laughter, Ursula reached up with her free hand to grab the keyblade's hilt.

"No!"

Sora dove towards her to reclaim it, but he saw her fingers descend around the grip and knew he wouldn't make it in time.

Yet as Ursula's hand closed around it, the keyblade suddenly shimmered and dissolved into fragments of light.

"_**What?**_"

Her expression rekindled with anger, especially as she saw the keyblade reappear with a flash, now clutched in Sora's hand again. Another small miracle that he wasn't going to question. He closed in on her instantly, the blade singing through the water as he drew it to her large neck.

Pressing the tip against her purple skin, he narrowed his eyes in warning. Her chin lifted to avoid the keyblade, but Sora pressed it closer. "Let Riku go."

"Not so fast!" she sneered, to his surprise. She was the one with the weapon at her neck, so why was she trying to call the shots?

That was when he saw which way she was aiming the trident: directly at _Riku_.

Sora tensed.

She definitely noticed. Her lips pulled into a big, smug smirk. "That's right, sugar. Better think twice about where you point that thing. You _might_ get someone _hurt_." She jabbed the trident in Riku's direction with emphasis.

The worst part about it was that he knew she wasn't bluffing. On the other hand, Sora wasn't even sure _he_ had the guts to hurt her with the keyblade, not this close.

Destroying heartless and fighting giant genies were one thing, but staring face-to-face with a witch and killing her? He remembered how it had felt to defeat that three-headed dog in one of the coliseum's tournaments. All that blood... Maybe he had unknowingly been under the darkness's influence at the time, but Id wasn't influencing him right now.

This was Sora's decision.

Kill the witch and risk having her fry Riku? Or pull back and find another way to win?

He knew what he had to do.

Beginning to withdraw the keyblade, Sora silently asked for Riku to forgive him for being such a chicken-wuss.

But then Ariel came at Ursula from behind, her fingers clutching the witch's hair and sharply jerking her head back. Ursula howled as chunks of her hair were ripped free, and Sora quickly ducked out of the way as the trident, glowing with the witch's fury, released a jet of energy that hit not Riku, but the base of the cauldron.

Almost immediately, the power that had been spilling out of the cauldron turned into something else entirely. When Sora glanced back to make sure little wormy Riku was safe, he saw the energy within the claw-like structure blacken and boil. Within moments, it was no longer magic that streamed out of Ursula's cauldron—it was darkness.

Another scream returned his attention to the scuffle at hand, and he was surprised to find Ariel wrestling with the witch for the trident again.

"Let go, you little _brat_!"

"Sora, _do_ something!"

He didn't have to be told twice. Gathering courage, he arched his arm back and swung hard, the keyblade slicing in a clean angle through the water. It struck Ursula's cheek and collarbone and snapped the string to her necklace. As the shell dropped from around her neck, Ursula shrieked and clutched her cut cheek. A hint of red seeped out from beneath her fingers, evidence that Sora had more than just nicked her.

"My necklace—" she gasped, and then pure fury darkened her tone, "my _face_—!" She forced Ariel back again and gripped the trident with both hands. "_Enough_! Flotsam, Jetsam!"

The two eels gave Goofy's shell a final thwack before they answered her beckon. They streaked downward, gliding towards the falling shell, and one of them caught it in its mouth before it rounded back to deliver it to her.

What was so special about that shell? Maybe it was important somehow...

With the eels no longer harassing him, Goofy dizzily spiraled through the water without aim. His flippers flailed in an attempt to recover his balance, but he still bumped into Donald, who awoke from unconsciousness with a startled squawk.

Then the eels deposited the necklace in Ursula's outstretched hand, and her fingers closed around the shell as her pets began to circle her once again to await her orders. A flash of fear moved through Sora as she whirled at him, her eyes blazing with murder.

"_You!_"

Sora's first instinct was to turn tail, but he kept his position and faced her, the keyblade held at the ready. He felt the water shift around him as Ariel came to his side, also ready to fight. Below Ursula, the cauldron continued to bubble and emit darkness, the shadows snaking along the lair's floor and seeping between the bones and tissue of the leviathan skeleton.

As she released a low, resonating chuckle, Ursula's lips pulled into a grin so sinister that she even put Jafar's to shame. "Let's show these _clownfish_ exactly why they call Ursula the _sea witch_."

The trident took aim.

Sora tensed, not liking the sound of this—

And there, amongst the bubbling darkness and the pounding of Sora's heart, he heard the angrily determined cry of a duck seeking justice.

"_Gravity!_"

It couldn't have been more perfect. The dark spell swallowed Ursula and pulled her downward, right into her cauldron.

A look of panic crossed her face when she realized what was happening, but by then it was too late. With a scream of disbelief, she thrashed as she began to sink into the heavy darkness issuing from the cauldron, but she was caught by gravity's invisible fingers and no amount of struggling helped her conquer Donald's magic.

"_NO!_" she howled, her eyes wide as the darkness surged up around her. "This can't _**be**_!"

Flotsam and Jetsam wrapped themselves around her arm and tried to pull her out of the living shadows, but their struggles came to an abrupt end when a large turtle shell came launching at them. Goofy crashed into the eels from above and bounced off, knocking them both and the trident away from her.

Sora knew that was his opening.

He and Ariel darted towards her at the same time, two pairs of hands and a keyblade driving Ursula's head down into the bubbling darkness before Donald's spell could wear off.

"_**NOOOOooo!**_"

As if in response to Ursula's screams, the shadows lurched upward over her face and swallowed her completely.

Her eels glanced at each other in silent shock and, apparently coming to the same conclusion, they turned and hightailed it out of there before they could become the darkness's next victim.

The glowing trident twisted lazily in the water, prongs first, and sank into the shadows. As it stabbed into the floor of the skeleton lair, the weapon's power purified a patch of the darkness, and there, curled at the base of the cauldron was the small gray-green worm Sora had almost died for.

"Riku..."

Ursula's necklace had landed next to him. Sora looped through the water towards Riku, who lifted his small head to watch him approach. Keyblade still in hand, Sora scooped up the witch's fallen necklace by its string and held his other hand out for Riku.

"Come on, let's get out of here. Can you move?"

A despondent look filled Riku's eyes, and he lowered his head, his seaweed-like hair falling into his face. Sora took that answer as a no. By then, Ariel had joined his side and had taken hold of the trident's length, but he held an arm out to stop her before she could pull it out of the ground.

"Wait..."

The mermaid paused to glance at him. "We should hurry. I have a bad feeling..."

"I know, but—" Sora met her gaze and gestured back to the throat of the lair. "You saw all those worms when we came in—those are people too, right? But if the sea witch hadn't had the trident until Riku had given it to her, then she must have used her own power to transform _those_ people. But she used the trident on Riku..."

Donald swam up to them, Goofy at his side. "Yeah, so?" the duck asked. "We'll have to take him to Merlin to see if he can help."

Goofy lifted a flipper to his mouth. "Ahyuck, I think Sora's trying to say that if the trident thingy did this to Riku, then maybe it can turn him back. Right?"

"Yeah," Sora said with a nod.

Narrowing his eyes, Donald released one of his contemplative hums.

"Now that I think about it, didn't she say something about a contract?" Ariel pointed out. Her fingers tightened around the trident but didn't pull it free. "I mean, I don't know much about magic, but..."

That was true. Ursula _had _made it a point to mention some contract that Riku had signed for her. "Oh—yeah!" Sora turned to Donald expectantly. "You're a magician, aren't you? What do you know about magical contracts?"

"A _magician_?" Donald demanded, affronted.

Oops. Maybe that hadn't been the right title. Even though now wasn't the ideal time to lay on the flattery, Sora gave it a shot. "Oh, my apologies," he said in a saccharine voice, and he batted his eyelashes for good measure. "I meant—Donald Duck, the great _sorcerer_, could you please tell us about magical contracts?"

Appeased, Donald crossed two of his tentacles. "Hmph. That's better." Then he lifted a wing to stroke his chin... beak. Whatever. "Hmm, magical contracts..."

Sora leaned towards him, growing hopeful. "Yeees?" he prompted. He was silently praying for a simple way to save Riku from his wormy fate. Surely Donald knew of some useful magic that could help them out here, or at the very least how to break something as simple as a contract...

But Donald simply shrugged. "Don't know."

"Wah—!" Sora's jaw dropped. "_Donald_, we don't have time for you to play around like that!" he cried, now incredulous. He grabbed Donald by a shoulder and shook him. "You don't know _anything_?"

Squabbling, Donald tried to brush Sora's hand off. "Well, I _do_ know that if the contract maker goes kaput, the contract goes kaput, too!"

Sora released him and contemplated that piece of news; something didn't sound right about it. From the way all four of them exchanged glances and then simultaneously looked at little Riku, it seemed Sora wasn't the only one who thought this situation was more than just fishy.

"Gawrsh, but if that sea witch is already kaput," Goofy chimed in, "why isn't Riku Riku yet?"

Why not, indeed.

Their answer came from the still bubbling cauldron of darkness. As the shadows grew thicker along the lair's floor, a deep chuckle began to fill the chamber, softly at first, until out of the darkness reached two pudgy purple hands with fingers that now tapered into blood red claws. They clamped onto the edges of the cauldron, and Ursula's head appeared amongst the shadows a moment later, eyes stark yellow and slanted with anger.

"You're not getting away _that _easily!" she crowed.

Triumph laced her voice as she hefted herself half out of the cauldron. Darkness spilled out around her and clouded the water like ink. Her tentacles sprawled out from her dark throne, now three times as long as they had been before, and Sora instinctively wanted to back away. But he knew he couldn't, not with Riku still in the line of fire.

"Time for Plan B!" Sora cried. "Do it, Ariel!"

Not needing to be told twice, Ariel plucked the trident from its resting place, ducked to avoid the witch's immediate reach, and then aimed the weapon right at Riku. The way she squeezed her eyes shut didn't encourage Sora at all, but the weapon's glow sparked back to life, and a gentle stream of energy shot forward and enveloped the little worm.

Sora drew back in surprise—and hope—as the power blossomed and branched outward, trailing through the water to surround the witch's other wormy victims in the garden of the leviathan's entrance. As Ursula herself cackled and grew out of the darkness, no longer the sea witch they had come to know but a half-breed of darkness or heartless, Sora watched the trident's golden power swirl around Riku and spiral upward.

And there, a blink of an eye later, a boy grew out of the worm, the power dispersed, and Riku was Riku once again. Sora heard both Donald and Goofy's excited cries before he realized it had actually worked. Part of him still disbelieved his own eyes—but there Riku was, perfectly human and as pale as a ghost amongst the dark water.

And he was drowning.

Sora had a firsthand view of the pure panic that crossed Riku's face as he choked on water and began to thrash against the surrounding darkness. Sora knew exactly how it felt, but this time he wasn't going to wait for Donald's miracle transformation spell. He'd lost sight of Donald and Goofy amongst the thickening shadows, and there was no way he was going to risk taking the time to look for them.

"Sora—_go_! Get him out of here!" Ariel called somewhere to his left. He glanced in her direction, catching sight of not just Ariel, but dozens of merpeople crowding the lair's entrance, some of them fleeing, some of them lingering with Ariel. Then the darkness covered her as well, and Sora knew it was time for him to go. Donald and Goofy could back her up if she needed the help.

His sense of duty taking over, Sora snatched Riku's arm with his free hand and kicked upward. He flew past massive tentacles in the darkness and headed straight towards the cavities between the leviathan's ribs. The racing pulse of the wrist beneath his palm was Sora's only concern in those few moments as he streaked through the water to the surface, Riku in tow.

Somewhere far below him, Ursula's maniacal laughter grew, followed by a heavy rumble, a nerve-splitting crack, and an unearthly wail of _something _coming alive. It took every ounce of Sora's willpower to resist looking back. Whatever was happening, it would have to wait.

He broke the surface and struggled to keep Riku there above the water, but Riku did nothing to help Sora. He was already unconscious. He tried not to panic as he slipped Riku's arm over his shoulders and grasped him around the waist, making sure his grip was secure before he glanced around to make sense of his position.

The sky had grown almost completely dark, leaving just a shred of dark blue on the horizon. Sora wasn't sure which direction led shoreward, but the sun had been at their backs when they had been close to land, so he used that hint of blue as his guide as he began to swim carefully towards the shore.

The journey wasn't likely to be easy. The waves were choppier than they had been earlier when he and Riku had been racing. Sora knew he would have to hurry if he wanted Riku to survive this, but Riku's dead weight and the keyblade still clutched in his other hand easily dragged his pace down to the mermaid equivalent of a doggy-paddle. He was just grateful that the water wasn't freezing up here, otherwise he'd have an even bigger problem on his hands.

_Come __**on**__, Riku, cooperate with me! _he silently screamed, but fate only offered him another wave in the face.

Sputtering, he carried on and tried to ignore his straining muscles and the deep-seated fear that he was going to lose Riku for real. It occurred to him that they were perfect prey for passing sharks, and thatwas the _last_ thought he needed festering in his mind at the moment.

That was why, a few seconds later when he saw a dorsal fin break the surface close by, he knew someone was out to get them. Oh no, _no_ way! He hadn't come all this way just to get eaten by a shark!

"Give me a break!" he yelled and fought to swim faster.

Then he heard the happy chirrup of a dolphin and realized that maybe luck was on his side after all.

Three other dorsal fins appeared beside the first, and he wanted to cry with relief as the dolphins glided forward to flank him. He had no idea if these were the same dolphins as before, but he wasn't going to question the extra help, not when he needed it the most.

He didn't say anything—he doubted the creatures would have even understood him if he'd tried—he just let his desperation make his statement for him, and the dolphins did the rest.

One of them surfaced enough for him to slip Riku onto its back, and another dolphin nudged Riku's lifeless arm to draw Sora's attention to it. Sora fought back sudden tears as he fixed Riku's arm so he wouldn't topple off the side of the dolphin's back.

"Hold on, Riku... we'll get you somewhere safe."

The first dolphin chirped in response, and Sora wiped an eye before taking hold of the creature's dorsal fin. Another nuzzled his waist, and he managed a grateful smile as he rubbed its slippery side.

"Thanks, guys..."

With a playful, keening sound, the extra dolphins submerged, and Sora held on as he and Riku were carried above the surface towards shore, safe in the company of providence.

-o-o-

Waves crashing against a shore.

Soft lips pressing to his.

Riku knew this had to be another dream, except he couldn't remember the last time he had had one this muddled. Darkness slowly crept away from the edges of his mind and left it swimming in a slow, churning ocean of its own.

Something lingered there inside of him—a black breeze that swept away his thoughts and threatened to carry them back into an undertow of nothingness. He struggled against it and mentally grasped onto what he could.

Air rushing into his lungs.

The taste of the sea on his tongue.

The pit-pat of water falling onto his cheeks, and the path each drop took as they slipped into his wet hair.

A shuddery inhalation against his ear, then a stifled sob.

"W-Wake up..."

Pain.

It started as a deep burn within his chest and then gradually spread—a tingling sting along his feet and wrists to the base of his spine and focusing in his shoulders, then the sensation of thousands of prickly feet crawling beneath his skin. And finally—

His stomach lurched, and he heaved water, his lungs and ribs aching like a whale had landed on them. Rolling onto his stomach, he coughed and gasped for air and collapsed against the ground.

His fingers met a grainy warmth, and his racing heart gave a tremble at the unexpected familiarity.

Sand. _Beach_ sand.

Releasing another hoarse cough, he buried his face in the remnants of his childhood, and he tried to pretend he was home. He could even feel the fragments of shell, smell the fishy salt...

A cold hand rested against his bare shoulder, reminding him he wasn't alone. Then the hand became a chest against his back, two arms that clenched around him, a face that pressed to his neck, and a voice with a name saying _his _name with so much concern and relief that he knew, just knew, he really was dreaming.

"Riku..."

_Sora..._

He felt the tears burn beneath his clenched lids as unbridled emotions fought their way out of him. He didn't dare open his eyes for fear of waking up. No, he wanted to stay home just a little bit longer...

Here he didn't have to worry about keyblades or heartless or sea witches or what memories he may or may not have lost or what exactly he had done to hurt Sora's feelings... and didn't have to acknowledge that knot of sweltering guilt deep in his heart.

"R-Riku, stay with me, stay awake, don't—"

Fingers ran desperately through his tangled hair, touched his face, lightly slapped his cheeks. _I don't want to wake up, not yet... _But the dark breeze from earlier swept through his mind again, carrying his thoughts away into the comforting shadows of unconsciousness.

"—don't—!"

"...m'sorry..."

Sora held onto Riku's head as he passed out again. His body relaxed into the sand, but his pulse remained strong, and Sora let that steady beat reassure him. At least Riku was alive.

With a loud sniff, Sora curled his tail beneath him and reached for the keyblade, resting it over Riku as he continued to cradle his unconscious body. "Hang on, Riku," he whispered and focused on the highest cure spell he could manage.

Moments later as the green and gold light faded from around Riku, Sora felt the body in his arms grow listless, and he allowed himself to relax as well. Now that Riku wasn't near death, he would be fine after some rest... hopefully.

He knew he needed to get back to Donald, Goofy, and Ariel to help bring Ursula down for good, but he couldn't just leave Riku like this. Drawing the keyblade and Ursula's necklace close, he reassured himself that his friends would be fine. After all, so many mermaids had been freed thanks to Ariel and the trident—as evil as Ursula was, she wouldn't be able to stand up against that many fins.

Satisfied with that mental image, Sora concentrated on Riku again. He rolled him onto his back and settled down against him, lying there with his head on Riku's chest to listen to his steady heartbeat. He thought about that drowsy apology Riku had uttered moments ago and wondered what exactly he had been apologizing about. He couldn't have gotten his memory back, could he?

He curled his sandy fingers over Riku's heart. He still wanted to be upset about everything Riku had screwed up, but after what they had been through together today, and especially since he had almost _lost _Riku, Sora didn't think that dwelling was going to be worth it. What if Riku never got his memories back?

Man... he wasn't sure what to think anymore.

"You're so stupid," he murmured. Closing his eyes, he tucked his face against Riku's neck and tried to fight off the worry of what Id had said.

_Still in denial, huh? _

Sora tensed as the familiar voice washed over his mind and sent a cold sensation trickling down his spine. Once again, he instinctively tried to close himself off to Id's influence, but the dark presence lingered as if Sora had no power over it.

_**Someone **__is being feisty. Trying to push me away so soon?_

"Go away," Sora grumbled.

_Still caught up on that silly confession like a love-struck fool, I see. I told you, he only said it because it was his way of staying in control._

"Go _away_," Sora repeated, this time snappier. "I don't need you."

Id was silent for a long moment, so long that Sora might have thought he had left if not for the cold weight remaining inside of him. Then, finally:

_You don't __**need **__me?_

He didn't sound pleased, but Sora wasn't in the mood to care. He was tired of Id trying to manipulate him into distrusting Riku even more. "I was fine without you before," he remarked, and he _had _been fine before. He didn't need Id making commentary in his head at every opportunity.

_Alright, fine!_ Id said with all the flair of a petulant child._ See what happens when the darkness is no longer on your side._

And like a light switch being flipped to off, Id's presence vanished.

Sora had the distinct feeling Id wasn't gone for good but had rather just stormed off like a five-year-old throwing a temper tantrum. Despite what had been said—the darkness was no longer on his side?—Sora wasn't worried. If worst came to worst, he still had Riku.

Sora settled beside him again and breathed in the scent of the sea around them. Riku's skin was still cool to the touch, but the weather here was warm enough that he wasn't at risk of hypothermia or anything. He wondered if he should try to gather some wood or something to make a small fire for him anyway... Lying wet and naked on a beach after nearly drowning couldn't be too healthy.

Sora could make a fire with the keyblade, but the problem was gathering wood to fuel it. As much as he wanted to explore nearby, he didn't exactly have feet at the moment...

Not that firewood would have made much of a difference. No more than a minute after Id's disappearance, Sora heard thunder rumbling in the distance.

It came softly at first, a low purr that reminded Sora of the summer showers back home; but then he saw the black clouds quickly building on the horizon—unnaturally fast—with colored lightning flickering amongst the anvil-tops, and he was suddenly reminded of something else entirely.

The storm that had swallowed Destiny Islands.

Sora felt the chill of the darkness long before he saw the shadow heartless climb out of the sand. Its antennae twitched as it danced in place, as if hesitating, and Sora pulled Riku's body even closer to himself before speaking to the heartless.

"You can't have his heart."

Another pool of darkness appeared, then another, and a few more shadows crept out of the sand towards Sora, who was beginning to have a really bad feeling about this. Id had said the darkness was no longer on his side... Did that mean...?

He silently tried to command the heartless to go away, and when nothing happened, he took hold of the keyblade again, shifting forward through the sand to put himself between Riku and the heartless. He knew he probably didn't look very intimidating half lying on the ground, but there was only so much a beached merboy could do.

"Go back to your master!" he yelled.

No response.

When the heartless began to creep too close, Sora lifted the keyblade into the air and connected his powers with it once again. After so long of having the creatures on his side, he couldn't help the small pang of guilt for destroying them now, but... he didn't see much of a choice here.

"Thunder!"

Electricity shot out of the sky and crackled around the heartless, which were instantly reduced to black wisps from the spell's force. No sooner than he had finished those few off, however, just as many began climbing out of the ground towards him.

Great. He couldn't keep casting magic forever!

He lifted the keyblade again, preparing another thunder spell.

"Hya!"

But his concentration shattered as a sharp cry rang through the air, and a dark figure fell from the cliff above. Its black wing spread out as it landed, a giant sword slicing clean through the heartless nearby. Another figure dropped next to the first and shot a ball of fire into one of the shadows looking to pounce Sora during his distraction.

Feeling the heat from the flames flying past him, Sora shuddered at the close call and turned his attention to the people who had just helped him. When they stepped out from the rock overhang into the remaining moonlight, he gaped as he recognized them.

"Leon!" he called. Then, in confusion: "..._Cloud_?"

Leon and Cloud looked perplexed to see him as well.

"Sora?"

"You're... a fish."

That last comment had been Leon's. Sora fell into a grin and lowered the keyblade. He had a feeling that this was going to take a lot more explaining than they had time for. "It's a long story."

"I'm sure," Cloud replied.

"At least you're okay," Leon sighed as he approached Sora and Riku. His eyes scanned Riku's unconscious form, and Sora protectively shifted to cover Riku with his tail, definitely not forgetting that Riku was naked at the moment. If Leon noticed the defensive gesture, he didn't comment on it. "How's Riku?"

"Alive..." Sora's fingers delicately traced through the tangles of Riku's damp hair, and his heart clenched as he realized that, with Leon and Cloud's arrival, he didn't have a reason to stay here with Riku. Ursula was still on the loose... and _he_ was the one with the keyblade.

And in that moment, Sora knew his decision had been made for him. Though Ursula was working with Maleficent, and Maleficent was probably expecting him to work under her, and though fighting Ursula meant turning Maleficent against him, Sora couldn't let Ursula win, not after what she had done to Riku. He had to fight her, and when he did, he knew he would be going with Riku when they left the world. He wouldn't let Riku's sacrifice go to waste.

"Sora—"

Drawn out of his thoughts, Sora glanced up just in time to see Leon's gunblade aiming right at him.

Sora's eyes widened, and before he could even blink, there was a sharp burst—a bullet zipped past his head—and he whirled around to see a heartless dissipating into darkness. Had that thing just been about to attack him? Gah, he was going to have to start watching his own back now.

Despite his pounding heart, Sora glanced up at Leon with a sheepish laugh. "I thought you were going to shoot me."

"They're attracted to the keyblade," the older man said by way of explanation, then slipped his gunblade into its holster on his belt.

Leon was right, and Sora knew the heartless would be returning soon. Above them, the clouds continued to build, the thunder intensifying as the storm slinked across the water towards their empty beach, ever closer. This world really was in danger, and he had to wonder if it had anything to do with Ursula and the darkness from her cauldron.

Cloud stepped forward and stabbed his sword into the sand. It stayed upright, and he knelt beside Sora now that he had his hands free. "How long has he been out?" he asked as he began to take off his mantle.

"Oh... uh... ten minutes?" Sora estimated as he watched the man spread out the red cloth. He shifted off of Riku to let Cloud drape the mantle over him like a blanket, but as soon as Cloud was done, Sora moved close again to nestle against Riku's side.

Maybe it was the protective, worried way Sora continued to hold onto him, or just plain curiosity as to what Sora was doing as a half-dolphin with an unconscious Riku, but the question finally came.

"What... _happened_?" Leon wondered.

And so Sora took a deep breath and backtracked, attempting to make sense of the situation as he explained it to the older men. Though he left out most of the details, such as waking up to a clam lunch, getting attacked by a shark, racing through the kelp and ocean and playing with dolphins—he remembered all too well the details of his adventure with Riku leading up to that point. He focused instead on retelling what had happened with Ursula, the deal Riku had made with her, and how they had wound up stranded on the beach like this.

Though he had spoken for only a minute or two, the thunder had now grown into a continuous growl, a stomach-deep reverberation that put his nerves on edge. He sent Leon and Cloud an apprehensive look, and they exchanged grim expressions.

"Things are beginning to make more sense," Leon sighed. He plucked a small gadget off his belt that looked like a cross between a walkie-talkie and doomsday device, and he glanced at it. "So if this reading is the keyblade, the one we read earlier must be that trident you mentioned."

Sora studied the machine in confusion. "Reading?"

"Cid made us this ETD—an energy tracing device." He hooked the machine back to his belt. "When we got here, we used it to track two high energies, but one of them was underwater, and the other was towards land—here. So... we checked here first and found you." He lifted a brow. "We hadn't been expecting this, though."

"Merlin did mention that we would run into a few surprises here," Cloud noted quietly.

At the mention of the old wizard, Sora glanced between the two of them with surprise. "He did?"

"Yeah," Leon replied. "Apparently he can read the future."

"Sometimes," Cloud added.

Leon smirked at that. "He wasn't exactly clear about that part. Anyway..." He dragged a hand through his hair and sighed. "We were supposed to be here earlier, but Merlin wouldn't let us leave until Cloud mastered some adaptation spell. Said we'd need it."

Adaptation spell? Sora couldn't help recalling Donald's miracle magic earlier. "Is that the transformation magic that Donald can use?" he asked.

Cloud nodded, and his wing shifted against his back as he rose to his feet and folded his arms. "Yeah. Morpha. Now I get why Merlin was so adamant about it..." He glanced down at Sora and his dolphin tail as if to make his point.

Sora wondered if that meant Leon and Cloud were going to take an undersea plunge as well, and he smiled at the thought of Leon having to take off his jacket just to get wet. He didn't seem like the water type.

And Cloud... Well, Sora wasn't even sure what Cloud was doing here. The first and last time he'd seen the man had been at the coliseum before he, Riku, and Yami had gotten stranded at Hollow Bastion. Had someone gone back to the coliseum and picked Cloud up? The way he and Leon kept adding on to each other's sentences, they seemed a lot closer than they had been before... But then, the last time Sora had seen them interact, they had been trying to kill each other in the tournament, and that had been weeks ago. Just how much had he missed while he had been at the bastion?

Curling his fingers into Cloud's mantle, Sora sat up a little more. "I have a lot to catch up on, don't I?" he asked with a sad smile. This time when Leon and Cloud exchanged glances, Sora got a bad feeling. "What? What's wrong?"

Leon's solemn expression did nothing to reassure Sora. "You're planning on coming back with Riku to Traverse Town?"

"I'd been planning on it, yeah," Sora replied hesitantly. He had to force himself not to pout as both of them avoided meeting his gaze. "Can't I? What's _wrong_?"

Cloud's wing shifted again, this time as if he were uncomfortable about something, but he looked as stoic as usual and said nothing.

Expectant, Sora then turned to the other man. "Leon?"

He met Sora's eyes finally, briefly, then released a heavy sigh and pressed a hand to his forehead. "You really don't remember it, do you?"

"Remember _what_?" Sora demanded, unable to hold back his pout any longer. "Tell me."

Now Cloud was watching Leon again, and for what seemed like minutes, neither of them responded—almost like they didn't want to be heralds of bad news. Then, finally, in a voice so low it sounded as though it should be reserved for a cemetery, Cloud spoke.

"Tell him."

Sora almost didn't hear it over the encroaching thunder. He swallowed against the sudden knot in his throat as Leon crossed his arms and regarded him, his tone just as grave as Cloud's and even more distant.

"A few days ago, you attacked the town," he explained. "Rather, the people think you did. Only a few of us know that it was actually Dark Sora."

Dark... Sora?

Those words sent a chill right through him that had nothing to do with the storm or the eerie calmness that had swept over the dark beach. He felt his stomach tighten as he mentally repeated the statement and tried to understand how it could have happened. He had attacked Traverse Town? Well, not _him_, but a _dark _Sora? How...?

"I don't understand," he said, sounding shaken. "A dark... _me_?"

"He called himself Id," Leon added solemnly.

And that's when it all fell into place.

With a gasp, Sora pressed a hand to his forehead. He remembered exactly when it could have happened—when Yami had spoken directly to Id, and Sora had blacked out and then woken up hours later in the library all exhausted, and Yami hadn't wanted to tell him anything. So _that's _what was going on during Sora's blackouts? Id was taking over his body and attacking innocent people!

Horrified, he curled his fingers into his hair, half expecting Id to show up and tease him about having no control over his own body. He didn't. No, after plaguing his mind for weeks, Id really _had_ left Sora's head for now—and what a spot to leave him in!

Cloud's cold eyes narrowed at him in suspicion. "You recognize that name."

Before Sora could explain, there came a rush of cold air at his back as the storm arrived, all air and no rain, and he glanced up just in time to see the dark clouds swallow the pale face of the moon. The keyblade resting on top of Riku released a calm glow, but its light wasn't enough for comfort. Shadows stretched across the shore, broken only by the constant flash of lightning above, and Sora suddenly no longer wanted to be on the beach, but back in the safety of the sea.

The whisper of shifting sand behind him alerted him to the approach of nearly silent footsteps, and with a shiver, he drew closer to Riku and reached for the keyblade to dispose of the sneaky heartless.

"Sora has grown quite familiar with that name recently. Right, Sora?"

The hair on the back of Sora's neck stood on end as he instantly recognized the voice. Okay, definitely _not _a heartless! He twisted around in surprise, his eyes wide as lightning streaked through the clouds again and illuminated the beach long enough for him to spot Yami—_Yami?_—stepping toward him. The dissolving swirl of shadow behind Yami explained how he had gotten to this world, but Sora was more shocked that Yami had been able to find him _here_ of all places.

Yami took one look at Sora's stunned expression and offered him a faint smile. "This world is beginning to perish, and the three of you are chatting here amongst the shadows?"

For a second, Sora was simultaneously filled with relief and dread—relief that Yami had found him and seemed okay after all, and dread because he was right. With this world in danger, they really had no time to talk, let alone time to resolve their problems...

"_Ansem_!"

...which seemed to keep multiplying. Apparently not everyone was going to take Yami's appearance well.

Cloud drew his buster sword from the sand and brought it forward as if preparing to attack.

Yami came to a stop beside Sora, and even through the darkness, Sora could see his face flicker with annoyance. "Do _not _call me by that lunatic's name," Yami responded in a frigid tone without even sparing Cloud a glance.

Another chill crept through Sora at the sound of his voice, but that was nothing compared to the hollow fear he felt when he heard Leon's low, dangerous growl and realized he had no idea what was going on anymore. He glanced from man to man with a complete sense of bewilderment, hushed by the sudden tension in each of them. Both Leon and Cloud looked ready to pummel Yami into the ground, but _why_? And why was Cloud calling Yami _Ansem_?

But even though he was the source of all this tension, Yami was the only one who remained unruffled by the situation. "Save that fighting spirit for someone else," he said as he cast a pointed gaze in Leon's direction.

Over the sound of thunder, Leon's growl only deepened, and when Sora saw him lifting that gunblade of his, he decided to intervene before Yami got into real trouble.

"Guys, it's okay!" he called from his resting spot against Riku. "He's with _me_—" He paused for a split second to glance at Yami, seeking his approval. "Right?"

Cloud nor Leon backed down, but they also didn't advance, which was good enough for Sora. He kept his focus on Yami and tried to remain hopeful.

Yami calmly met his gaze, a hint of gratitude in those strange eyes. He said nothing in reply, but Sora took that look as confirmation anyway. A lot of stuff had happened in the past day, but Sora hadn't forgotten what had occurred right before he had been abruptly snatched into this world.

He remembered everything—Beast's anger and his warning about Yami's screams, and what he himself had seen there in Ansem's old study: Yami curled up on the floor clutching himself in anguish, his eyes a strange brownish-gray and wild with panic. He also remembered how Yami had tried to grab him away from the spell that had taken him through the portal into Atlantica...

It was like, despite how much he and Yami should have been enemies, somehow Sora kept wanting to look out for him, and he was beginning to think Yami felt the same. Yami must have followed him to this world because he had been worried about him—why _else_ would he have come all this way?

As the air and sand trembled around them from the advancing thunder, Sora studied Yami expectantly now, forgetting for a moment that the world was in danger and that their history with Riku still put the two of them at odds. After what he had seen yesterday, he wanted to ask Yami if he was okay, or at least ask him what had happened that had made him act like that, but as he propped himself up on Riku's chest to begin his interrogation, neither was the question that actually came out.

"How did you find me anyway?" he wondered. It had taken Yami a day to show up... but maybe that was because this was the first time Sora had been on land in all that time. Leon and Cloud had only found him because of that E..T... whatever device that Cid had given them, and he doubted that Cid and Yami were buddy-buddy enough for a repeat of that.

Yami hesitated at the question before slowly averting his gaze from Sora's. "Bright hearts are easy to find," he said, then tilted his head and frowned down at Sora. "What is this...?" Another crack of thunder resonated around them, and the only reason Sora had heard him at all was that he wasn't standing too far away.

Spotting what had caught Yami's interest, Sora realized Ursula's necklace had fallen into the sand on the other side of Riku, outside of Cloud's mantle where Yami could see it. It was still glowing, softly pulsating almost as if it were somehow alive.

And in that moment, as Yami crouched to retrieve the necklace, Cloud sprang forward to attack. There was no notice—no yell, no rustle of sand—just a branch of light piercing the clouds above, and Sora spotted Cloud's dark form closing in on them.

He cried out in warning just as the buster sword swung right for Yami's head.

Yami dropped to the ground, and the thick blade grazed past so close that its momentum swept his pale hair aside. As lightning illuminated the beach again, Sora saw Yami's dark sword swirl into existence, clutched in his hand, just in time to swing up and block Leon's gunblade as it too came cutting through the air.

Inches away from the fight, Sora winced at the sharp clang of the crashing weapons. The sparks gave him a snapshot of Yami crouched low on the other side of Riku, holding Leon and his gunblade back, but only barely. Sora instinctively pulled Riku farther away from them, never mind the effort it took, so long as Riku wouldn't get trampled by their careless egos.

The sky erupted with a series of rapid flickers, like multiple cameras firing one after the other, and Sora caught glimpses of the fight—the flat side of Cloud's buster sword slamming into Yami's shoulder, then Yami landing sprawled in the sand a few feet away, and finally the gleam of Leon's gunblade as it aimed directly at Yami's head. When the next strike of lightning hit somewhere down the beach, he saw Cloud's boot planted over Yami's neck to keep him pinned.

Scared now, Sora shifted through the sand towards them, already shouting, "What are you guys doing!? Yami didn't even do anything!" But his tail was too cumbersome to move, and with a frustrated sound, he curled his hands into the sand and raised his voice even louder. "Let him go!"

But either they weren't listening or they didn't care.

Cloud's voice was tight, unyielding—almost resentful. "Alright, _Ansem_..."

Sora couldn't see much except their silhouettes from here, but he heard a heavy exhalation in response to the use of that name—most likely Yami being exasperated again.

"What was your _real _mission for Id?" Cloud demanded. Gone was the subtle playfulness Sora had seen within Cloud just a few minutes ago; it was like he had reverted to the Cloud he had first met at the coliseum. "_Why_ mess with my memories of Sephiroth?"

Thunder rumbled loudly around them, reverberating so heavily that, even through the sand, Sora could feel the vibrations against his stomach. He grabbed the keyblade before he pushed towards Yami and the others again, advancing a few inches by coiling his tail like a snake.

"Cloud!" he cried. "Cut it out!"

Yami's own voice had gained a venomous edge. "My name is _not _Ansem, and I am not permitted to—"

_Ka-chik._

Another stream of lightning. Sora saw Leon releasing the safety of the gunblade's barrel.

"You're _going _to answer our questions," Leon said in a dangerous tone, right before thunder drowned everything out again.

Yami's eyes sharpened, focused on that gunblade, which Leon had leveled only inches away from his grim expression.

Lightning was a constant streak now, its jagged intensity leaving afterimages in Sora's eyes, and with each strike drawing closer, he felt his heart fluttering in his throat. Didn't any of them care that they could die out here?! _He_ was worried, beyond worried—for Riku, for Yami, for the world, for Leon and Cloud—

"_Guys_, let him up!"

But his words faded beneath the rising thunder.

Again, the sky split into two, the light rendering the world as bright as day in that one split second—and it was in that moment that Yami's gaze caught Sora's, and those amber eyes widened.

"Sora—_behind you_!"

Only then did Sora recognize the cold tension that had been creeping into his bones. Darkness!

He twisted around without thought, Riku's keyblade already swinging to attack. The heartless that had been crouched beside Riku banished into shadow as the blade swiped right through it. Lightning illuminated the beach again, and when Sora saw how many heartless were climbing out of the sand around them, the reality of the danger struck him again.

Yami was right! Here they were on a dying world, and they were just talking and fighting instead of acting!

Sora moved faster now that real danger was here, and he pushed through the sand back to Riku's side to protect him. The keyblade sliced clean through two more shadows and cleared them from around Riku, who was still unconscious but thankfully untouched.

He heard the cushioned footfalls of someone—Leon—rushing through the sand, and felt the sudden breeze as the man leapt past them to take care of the rest of the heartless. The gunblade's strikes punctuated the silence between the swells of thunder, reassurance that Sora had his back covered now.

He returned his attention to Yami and Cloud, but the next burst of lightning revealed the unexpected: Yami was disappearing into melting shadow, right from beneath Cloud's foot.

He reappeared close to Sora in quick swirl of darkness, only visible because of the keyblade's soft glow. "What happened to your powers?" he asked Sora in a rushed whisper, and Sora's initial response was to draw a blank.

He squinted at him through the dark. "Huh?"

"The heartless," Yami clarified, "were they not under your command before?"

Half expecting Cloud's giant sword to come swinging towards Yami's head again, Sora glanced in his direction and saw nothing, but from the sound of it, Cloud had become too preoccupied with heartless to pursue Yami right away.

Sora thought about the question, then about Id and what his disappearance meant. "Well, Id was being stupid, so we had a fight, and Id took off—like a big baby!" he said. At first, Sora had figured Id had been a piece of him, like a darker half or something... but if Id could just leave like that and actually take powers away, then he seemed more like a separate person who just happened to have a link to Sora's body, mind, and heart. Creepy.

The crackle of flame again drew Sora's gaze to Leon, who was throwing a fire spell into the advancing heartless. He backed towards Sora without looking, his voice rising above the thunder. "We need to get off the beach!"

Then Leon turned, and both he and Yami looked at each other through the faint glow of Riku's keyblade. Sora half expected Leon to attack again, but instead the two men seemed to come to a silent understanding. Interrogations could come later; right now, there were more important things at stake.

Yami's dark sword returned to his hand, and he leapt over Sora's tail and rushed past Leon towards the heartless. "You have Riku! I will take care of the creatures."

If Leon disliked being told what to do, he didn't argue about it this time. He slipped his gunblade back into its holster and knelt beside Riku and Sora. "Cloud!" he called. "We're moving to the ship!"

"Gummi ship?" Sora asked. "Where is it?"

Leon scooped Riku into his arms, keeping Cloud's mantle carefully wrapped around his listless form. "Not too far down the beach, beneath an overhanging cliff."

In other words, much safer than here.

Cloud joined his side, buster sword in hand, and took one look at Yami fighting the heartless before dismissing him, as if deciding he wasn't worth the aggravation at the moment, to Sora's relief. Cloud focused on Sora instead, and through the keyblade's glow, he could see Cloud's lips form an amused half smile. "Need a lift?"

After thinking about it, Sora shook his head. "If the ship is by the water, I'll just swim there." He plucked Ursula's necklace from the sand and offered it to him. "But take this, okay? It belonged to the sea witch."

Cloud took it from him with a lifted brow but nodded. "Don't lose sight of us."

A swirl of flame appeared close to them, hovering obediently over an outstretched palm, and Yami met Sora's gaze. "I can lead you. Hurry and get to the water." He didn't even glance at Leon or Cloud to see it was okay for him to accompany them, but Sora was glad for his cut-to-the-chase.

As Sora worked his way down to the water alone, he looked over his shoulder once in a while to see the fire spell trailing along through the dark farther and farther down the beach as Yami followed close behind Leon and Cloud; and once in a while, as lightning flickered and filled the landscape with its snapshot flash, he saw all three of them in mid-run, Riku securely cradled in Leon's arms. That was enough reassurance for him.

He made it into the shore just as the men disappeared around the bend. The water flowed up around his sides and lapped along his tail and flukes in velvety licks as if welcoming him back, and he was glad for the rehydration—he hadn't noticed how dry he had become until he felt the low waves breaking against his sandy skin. The water was colder now that he had been out of it for so long, which couldn't have been more than a half hour since he had dragged Riku onto the beach, though Sora had no real way of knowing the time.

Still, however much time he wasted here was time spent leaving Ursula unattended.

He slid through the shallow water past rocky breaks in the waves, and when he crossed the first sandbar, he submerged. The waves here were more violent because of the storm, so he only resurfaced every minute or so to make sure he could still see Yami's signal fire. He caught up to them quickly despite their long head-start, and he swam along the shoreline towards the stretch of cliffs where they were headed.

The gummi ship was exactly where Leon had said it would be—resting on a tiny beach beneath a cliff face that had been worn away over time by wind and water, creating a perfect hidey-hole. The best part was that the water was relatively deep right up until the patch of sand, so as Leon, Cloud, and Yami reached the ship, Sora could linger in the water nearby and still talk to them.

The interior of the ship lit up as Cloud activated its ramp to lower it, and its light softly illuminated the surrounding area. Riku was still unconscious when Leon lowered him gently onto the ramp of the ship, but even from where he was, Sora could see that he was still breathing. At least he was in safe hands, now.

The uproar of the storm still hadn't subsided, but Sora kept picturing that same ball of darkness from Destiny Islands suddenly forming above them to swallow the world whole... The storm then had been like this one—sudden, fierce, without rain. Worst of all, he knew it was possible for it to happen here, if Ursula really had gone off the deep end. All that darkness, all those heartless... He didn't want a repeat of Agrabah.

Sora tightened his fingers around the keyblade. "I want to go fight," he announced. Another peal of thunder chased his voice, but he knew he had been heard when he saw the three men turn towards him. "I _have _to go fight."

Cloud nodded. "You have the keyblade."

_You have the keyblade._

Those words, more than anything else, strengthened his resolve. Just because he hadn't been picked by the keyblade didn't mean he couldn't use it in Riku's stead. He had proven to himself that he could still be a hero despite Riku's position or situation. Sora had helped save Agrabah, hadn't he? So whether Riku realized it or not, he was counting on Sora.

"That's right." Sora lifted his chin. "I have the keyblade." And it was his turn to use it. Holding it close beside him, he glided back through the waves towards deeper water and shouted over the rolling thunder. "When Riku wakes up, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid!"

"Wait—!"

At the sound of Yami's voice, Sora paused before submerging and glanced back in his direction, wondering what was wrong. Had he forgotten something? Sora relaxed his tail and let the waves carry him back to the gummi ship. He came to a stop in the surf and propped himself up in the wet sand to better see the men. "What's up?" he asked.

Yami now stood at the waterline. "You're going alone?"

He sounded surprised, which struck Sora as unusual. But then... Maybe it was weird that Sora had been about to swim off straight into danger all by himself. That was more of a Riku thing to do—and if Riku had taught him anything from all of this, it was that acting alone probably wasn't a hot idea. That had gotten _him _turned into a little worm for Ursula's collection.

"Well... unless you want to come?" Sora said with ill-disguised hope.

The suggestion seemed to put Yami on the spot. He hesitated and glanced out into the dark sea, a frown weighing his expression. Sora could only guess as to what was so hard about making the decision—after all, Yami had followed him this far, so what would another adventure cost him?

Yami seemed to think the same. "Very well," he said at last, then knelt to begin unbuckling his boots.

Then Leon stepped forward. "You're not going alone." With a hand resting on the grip of his gunblade, he gave Sora a look that Sora recognized—the authoritative "listen to me 'cuz I know what's best" parentally-challenged look—except Leon wasn't his mom, and Sora was too old to need a babysitter. Besides, hadn't he been paying attention?

"Um... I'm _not _going alone," Sora pointed out. "Yami just said—"

"I meant, alone with _him_."

He couldn't be serious, could he? "I've _been _alone with him," Sora countered, not seeing the big deal, "for the past few _weeks_." And during those few weeks, Yami'd had plenty of opportunity to do awful things to him. As nice as their concern was, he didn't need their protection from _Yami _of all the forces out there. Plus, after what Yami had done with Riku, Sora knew better than to trust Yami with certain things. If Riku was going to stay behind, Sora wanted Yami to be in his sight.

Yami himself was barefoot now, his boots set side-by-side at the base of the gummi ship. His hands paused in the middle of gathering his long hair behind him as he glanced from Sora to Leon, silent for good reason.

Cloud, on the other hand...

"Leon's right."

All three of them focused on Cloud, who had taken perch on the ship's ramp, his elbows on his bent knees and his wing folded behind him. The unconscious form within his red mantle still hadn't stirred.

Once he had everyone's attention, Cloud sat up straight. "Besides, you might need his help."

The suggestion didn't go unnoticed. Leon suddenly didn't appear so sure anymore. "Wait—_me_?" he said, not a shred of happiness in his tone. He seemed downright cross now, but Cloud simply lifted a brow in challenge.

"I need to stay behind with Riku," he said, nodding to the motionless bundle beside him. Then a faint but roguish smirk pulled at his lips. "Who else knows the right spell to transform him?"

Touché.

From the looks of it, Leon knew there was no talking out of this one. He glanced from Cloud to Sora to Yami, then to Sora again and sighed. "Whatever. I'll go."

Sora still didn't think he'd need the help, but he decided not to argue lest he make Leon even grumpier. Besides, Cloud was right... an extra hand or two in bringing Ursula down couldn't hurt. "Alright. Then I'll wait for you guys past the second sandbar!" With a wave, he turned to slip back into the deeper water.

"Sandbar?" Leon asked. He was already pulling off his jacket, though reluctantly.

Oh, right. Not everyone had grown up near water. Traverse Town wasn't exactly beachy. Sora pointed out towards the bigger swells. "See where the waves are breaking? Around there, the water will get a lot shallower. I'll be waiting right past that, okay?"

Leon and Yami didn't respond to him but rather glanced at each other, Leon with his eyes narrowed and his jacket slung over an arm—not making a move to continue undressing, as if daring the other man to make a remark. Yami only averted his gaze and went about removing his own clothes. At least they weren't fighting anymore.

Cloud nodded to him, and Sora took that as his cue. He slipped back into the sea and didn't surface again until he was in position.

The waves here were deafening as they broke around him, louder than the thunder itself as the storm continued to split the sky with its formidable strikes. He managed to stay above the waves as he turned to check on Yami and Leon. From here, he could only see their silhouettes from the light of the gummi ship.

Yami's form was tall and lean as he stepped into the surf and started to wade into deeper water, and it took Leon a few seconds more to finish undressing before he followed after him, slightly taller and more muscular and still carrying his gunblade—and definitely keeping his distance from Yami.

On shore, Cloud stabbed his sword into the wet sand and waited for the other two men to reach a chest-high depth before he began the transformation spell—Morpha, they had called it? But—and maybe it was just him—Sora had been expecting something more impressive. All he saw was a shimmering orange light surrounding Yami and Leon, and then a large wave swallowed them before Sora could see them finish transforming.

That was when Sora remembered how abrupt his own transformation had been and realized that they might not even make it to the second sandbar without him. He dove underwater and used the keyblade's light to see ahead as he returned to his new companions. The glow didn't penetrate the churning water very far, but it did so well enough that, when he found Leon, he was able to get a clear look at his tail as the orange magic dispersed.

Leon's taut abdomen faded from peach to white, the white trailing down the front of his entire tail to the flukes, which were a dark charcoal fan that bled into fiery orange. From his hips downward, Leon's back and sides were also that deep charcoal, a sleek design faintly speckled with black. His dorsal fin was a rectangular flare of black ribbon tipped in orange, and he had a similar but fleshier fin below it, which Sora recognized as a distinctive catfish trait. How fitting.

With a laugh, Sora grabbed Leon's arm to help right him, because judging from the panicked flail he gave as the strong current knocked him backwards, he already wasn't doing too well on his own.

"Steady!"

"_Trying_," Leon snapped, but he let Sora help him, his other hand too busy clutching his gunblade. For someone who spent an awful lot of time in the secret waterway, Leon definitely didn't seem to like the water much.

Their mission momentarily forgotten, Sora turned his gaze towards Yami nearby, who was discernable enough through the water for Sora to make out his form as well. His was much simpler to distinguish than Leon's because Sora knew that a second dorsal fin and a vertical tail usually meant _shark_—except, even as a shark, Yami didn't look very dangerous.

His tail was a shade of chocolate darker than his own skin, with a stretch of white down his frontside that tapered into his fins, which then gently tilted into a L. They were solid brown except for their white tips, much like Yami's white-tipped dorsal fin. What made him seem less threatening than a real shark was how all of his fins sported a round edge, even rounder than a whale shark. Nope, not scary at all.

Especially when one push of the powerful current sent Yami tumbling back towards shore. His tail and arms thrashed at the water as he, like Leon, tried and failed to balance himself.

Mission to save the world or not, they wouldn't get _anywhere_ until they learned how to swim properly. Sora supposed he was lucky that Riku had just sorta dragged him into learning, but even then, he had way more experience with water than either of these two. They probably didn't even know the difference between a rip tide and an undertow—either of which would be handy right about now. Deeper water would be easier on their untrained fins, and where there was a storm, there was probably an undertow that could drag them out to sea. He just needed to find it.

He gripped Leon's wrist harder and let the flow carry them to Yami, where he hooked his arm against Yami's before they could sweep past him.

"Gotcha!"

Yami's arm tightened against his with a silent but clear message: _Don't you dare let go. _Sora tensed his arm back in reassurance.

Then he caved into the urge to tease. "Guess you guys'll need some help, huh?"

Leon's withering look and Yami's averted gaze were all the answer he needed.

He couldn't hold back a grin at both of them. Keyblade in hand and two clumsy mermen at his side, he laughed and turned parallel to the current. "Just follow my lead, and you'll be experts in no time!"

Hopefully.

He kicked out, feeling them do the same right after, and together they awkwardly but surely made their way through the rolling sea. Though they had been fighting minutes before, Leon and Yami moved in harmony at his sides—silently, but Sora wasn't going to complain that they were quiet so long as they were actually working together.

He would find that undertow and get back to Ursula, and together they'd bring that witch down for good. And if Riku wasn't awake by then to fix the world, then...

_Then..._

He clutched the keyblade harder.

_Then it's up to me._

-o-o-

The cold weight on his chest had changed. It no longer felt like a watery abyss pressing down on him or the tides threatening to sweep him away. There was something else there. Solid. But cold.

Very cold.

**So weak...**

It shifted against his chest, a caress of material against skin, and through the haze of his waking mind, Riku recognized the separate pressures of someone's fingers and palm centering over his heart. A glove. His pulse was strong beneath that hand—even _he _could feel it.

He was alive, somehow. And warm.

Something soft and worn enveloped his body tightly, smelling of dust and sweat, with just a faint trace of sandalwood beneath it. He deeply breathed it in and turned his face to the side, feeling more fingers slip slowly through his tangled hair and brush it out of his closed eyes. Somehow, it was a familiar touch. Comforting. Without words, it almost seemed to whisper promise of sanctuary.

The hand against his chest slid away from his heart and out of the cloth wrapped around him, and as it skimmed up to trail fingertips against his bare shoulder, goosebumps prickled along his arm and he shuddered. He curled himself into his makeshift blanket (whatever it was) and shifted onto his side away from the hand.

Instead of sand, his cheek met a plastic chill. Not what he had been expecting.

But then... he wasn't sure what he _had_ been expecting.

His mind beginning to clear now, he cracked his eyes open and groggily focused on where he was.

The black tread of a ramp beneath him. The lit interior of a ship above him. A dark stretch of sand... and beyond that, the gray foamed surf of a stormy sea. Lightning flickered across the sky, and there—far away above the churning waves—a sphere of chaotic energy, an electric purple cloud growing within.

Darkness. It seemed to be the center of the storm.

And for just a moment, he thought he was dreaming of home again. The sea, the islands, the storm and the darkness and his desperation and Sora's fear... but the gummi ship's presence shattered the illusion. Sora must have brought him to shore. He was still near Atlantica...

Was this world dying? There hadn't been any heartless before, so _why_...? And why was there a gummi ship?

He sat up to ask Sora, but the movement sparked a sudden throbbing behind his temples and a deep ache within his bones.

"_Agh_..."

He clenched his eyes shut and rubbed at his forehead to try to ease the piercing pain. What the heck had happened to him...?

The crunch of footsteps against sand made him glance up again, and though his vision was swimming, he could have sworn he saw _Cloud_ step into the ship's light.

"Cloud...?"

He didn't believe his eyes until the older man offered half a smile. "Thought I heard you. Guess I was right." He rested his buster sword against the side of the ramp and moved forward. For a second Riku was confused as to what was wrong about this picture—aside from Cloud being here in the first place—but then he spotted Cloud's wing folded behind his back where there was usually a cascade of red covering it.

That was when he recognized what had been covering him: Cloud's mantle. Oh man... He had the growing suspicion he didn't want to know what had happened for him to end up here like this.

Relieved either way, Riku swallowed against his dry throat and cracked a small smile back. If Cloud was here, so was Leon. They could save the world and finally go back to Traverse Town.

With Sora.

Who was being awfully quiet...

Riku pressed a hand to the ramp and glanced over his shoulder at Sora to see how he was fairing.

Only, no one was behind him. He was alone in the ship.

He fell still, bewildered at first, but then a deep chill washed over him as he thought about _why _he had thought Sora had been here. That hand on his chest, those fingers against his hair... The touch to his shoulder. He hadn't been imagining those, had he?

Unsettled, he looked to Cloud in question, who had drawn closer to him as if to check his forehead—but stopped. Cloud's hand froze in midair, then pulled back, his head tilting to the side and one of his brows furrowing like he could smell something Riku couldn't.

Riku stared at him, already apprehensive enough without Cloud's weird behavior. "What?"

Cloud hesitated, gaze distant for a few seconds. Then, with a dismissive shake of his head, he reached past Riku to rummage in a cargo sack right behind him. Even his tone seemed distracted. "How are you feeling?"

Riku's headache responded to that by pounding harder. "Could be better..."

"Which means you could be worse." Cloud dropped a blue vial into his lap. "Here."

A hi-potion.

A sigh of relief left Riku before he realized it. "You're a life saver..."

With a soft laugh, Cloud returned to rummaging. Riku drank the potion a few sips at a time, the pounding in his skull easing away and leaving his mind room to wake up, like a cat stretching after a long nap. Once he felt oriented enough to think straight, he turned his gaze out to the darkness swirling above the sea and knew this peace wouldn't linger very long.

How long had he been passed out? Too many questions, not enough time... That ought to be the story of his life.

He especially wanted to ask where Sora and Leon were, but he had a feeling he already knew the answer. They were off fighting without them already, probably. So... it was just him and Cloud here?

He finished the potion and nudged the empty vial against Cloud's arm, and as Cloud took it from him, Riku caught a glance of the man's hand. Even now, Riku imagined he could feel the remnants of a glove pressing against his chest. Cloud had a brass claw... but his other hand wore a fingerless glove.

"Cloud," he said without thinking, "were you..."

But when the man turned to him, he stopped himself. Cloud had been outside the ship when he had woken up, so it couldn't have been him, right? Maybe it had been another one of his vivid dreams...

Cloud's blue eyes were sharp, calculating. "Was I what?"

Riku shook his head and turned away. "Never mind." The chances of it happening again were slim, but if it _did _happen, he'd try asking about it. He didn't want to cause them more stress than what he already had.

Gathering the mantle closer around his hips, he prepared to stand when something fell from the bunched material and clunked against the ramp next to him. His heart jumped at what he saw starting to slide down the ramp.

Ursula's necklace!

He snatched it before it could escape too far and, his pulse now racing with anticipation, he lifted the shell to study it. It was lukewarm and emanating softly. He stared into its golden light, the rest of the world fading to the back of his mind as he thought about what he had sacrificed to bring Sora here.

These were his memories. Something so simple, yet had caused so many problems... Maybe Sora had been right. Maybe he _had_ been too reckless and stupid.

But he'd had his time with Sora, and he was safe now. If he could just fix this world, maybe things could go back to the way they used to be, just him and Sora—this time the _right_ way.

Giving up that string of memories, whatever it consisted of, had given him this chance with Sora, and for that, he wasn't so sure he wanted those memories back. What if he regretted all of this when he could remember what had driven him and Sora apart in the first place?

He closed his other hand over the shell to smother the light. Its faint glow seeped between his fingers, almost in reminder that even if he tried to bury the truth by keeping it forgotten, there was no telling if or when it would begin to trickle out again. Sora might not let him live this pleasant lie forever...

Besides, Sora may not have realized it, but Riku could tell the difference between Sora's genuine smiles and the smiles he gave only because he wanted to hide how hurt he was. He didn't want to see those and always wonder what Sora could remember that he could not that had hurt them so badly.

Deciding to keep the shell for now, Riku tied the black string around his neck.

When he glanced up again, he saw Cloud finishing off a heartless, and he realized he hadn't even noticed the heartless approach _or _Cloud retrieve his sword to dispose of it. Wow, he was still out of it...

Cloud slung the buster sword up and rested it against his shoulder. "Hm. They must be looking for stray hearts now," he said as he crossed the beach back to the ship.

Riku drew his hair out from beneath the necklace. "What else would they be doing?"

"Following the keyblade." Cloud rested a hand on his hip, casual as if the world _wasn't _dying and full of heartless, and when he saw Riku's frown, he explained. "Sora has it. Said something about a sea witch. Leon went with him." Then his voice darkened. "And Yami."

_Yami_...

The sound of his name made Riku's stomach clench.

Why would Yami be here? Something about that bothered him, like he should be mad or upset that Cloud would let Yami go with Sora, but he couldn't figure out why. Yami was working with Maleficent just like Sora was, right?

Wait, no... Sora had denied working for the witch. Then what did that mean about Yami...?

And since when could Sora use _his_ keyblade?

Cloud must have recognized the confusion there on his face because a thin smile pulled at his lips. He didn't look too happy, but he seemed amused enough. "We have a lot to discuss," he commented as he stepped closer. Riku was about to agree, but Cloud continued. "But first—"

He suddenly grabbed hold of the mantle wrapping Riku and, with a fierce jerk, stripped it right off of him. The momentum of Cloud's yank sent Riku off balance, and with a cry and a flail, he rolled off the ramp and into the sand naked, his ass in the air.

"_HEY, _what the—!"

But Riku's angry outburst was cut short when Cloud plunged his sword into the sand and quickly summoned a spell. A very familiar spell. In fact, Riku had only been aware that Donald could use transformation magic.

Riku sent Cloud an incredulous look as the orange magic surrounded him. Then it kicked in, and he felt his body seizing as his bones painlessly began to shift inside of him, popping out of place, some dissolving, and more muscles developed in his legs as his skin began to meld together. Silver scales ran down the length of his new tail, and his feet tapered off into his translucent flukes before he felt his dorsal fin pierce his back, followed by his other fins along what used to be his thighs.

When the change was complete, Riku stretched his tail in the sand, feeling even more out of place than he had when just naked. He propped himself up to give Cloud a piece of his mind—that he should at least give Riku a _warning _next time—but his words died in his throat when he saw Cloud slipping out of his shirt and working his wing through the slit in the back. His armor and claw were already in a pile on the ramp where Riku had been sitting moments before.

Was he coming _with_ Riku?

Cloud paused with his glove dangling from his mouth to meet Riku's stare. The question didn't even have to be asked. Taking the glove out of his mouth, Cloud dropped it and his shirt into the pile before he reached into the ship and retrieved a thin scabbard. So _that's_ what Cloud had been rummaging around for a few minutes ago. Riku recognized it as Sora's sword, Einlanzer—he felt like he hadn't seen that thing in ages, which made him wonder how Cloud could have known it would be needed. While Riku could just summon his keyblade, Sora didn't have a weapon available...

"Merlin said that we might need this," Cloud sighed. "Now I get why." He tossed the sword into the sand in front of Riku. "You're going to need it, especially if Sora has the keyblade right now."

Not liking the idea of letting someone else use his keyblade, Sora or not, Riku began to protest. "But I can just—"

"What?" Cloud challenged, his dark wing spreading behind him. "Call it back to you and leave Sora defenseless out there? That's a sure way to get him killed. Or worse."

Riku fell silent.

He tried to be angry or think of a good counterargument, but... Cloud was right.

As if letting Riku contemplate the truth of his statement, Cloud resumed undressing. The clinking of his belts could be heard beneath the rumble of thunder, which had remained a consistent growl since Riku had woken up. The storm of darkness would probably spread soon, maybe even begin to consume the world... like Snow White's. Like Agrabah. Like Destiny Islands.

Right now, Sora was the one out there fighting for this world. Didn't he need the keyblade more than Riku?

That thought in mind, Riku closed his hand around Einlanzer's scabbard and drew the sword out of its sheath, meeting his reflection in its fine blade. He didn't look like much of a hero, but... neither did Sora. Yet Sora's instincts had always been faithful. He followed his heart, and always had, even back home...

The one who was inclined to take that one step too far or get them into trouble or somehow hurt... That had always been _Riku_. He would never admit it to Sora, but Riku knew that Sora was probably a far more reliable hero than _he _ever would be.

Duty versus Happiness. Riku wanted to choose both, but in the end, he always seemed to lose both. Sora would want to choose both as well, but unlike Riku, he would probably make the right decision.

Maybe it was time Riku got his priorities straight, too.

-o-o-

When they reached deeper waters, Sora hadn't been expecting much light to see by. It must have been a few hours since sunset, but with how the storm raged on above, he knew there would still be no moon, not after how it had been smothered by the clouds...

Yet the farther they traveled from shore, the more visible things became. After a while he was able to see Leon and Yami clearly even when they strayed several meters away. Somewhere, _something_ was giving off a lot of light.

It wasn't until Sora surfaced to find their bearings that he noticed the ball of darkness hovering almost directly above them.

As it turned out, the darkness itself was that source of light—not the usual kind of _light_ light, but a surreal purple glow. With its crackling lightning, it almost seemed like the storm itself had been drawn into the darkness or was growing within it. Storm clouds had been covering the dark sphere before, but now it hung in the margin of clear sky like a dark moon had descended upon the sea. The eye of the storm. Just like Destiny Islands... He had been afraid of this.

He had a feeling this darkness would lead him straight to Ursula.

Yami and Leon had surfaced beside him, near each other without realizing, and both of them observed the darkness above—Leon grim-faced, but Yami calm and guarded, as usual.

His amber eyes, tainted by the purple aura of the darkness above, turned to regard Sora with purpose. "If the heartless reach the keyhole, this world will begin its degradation, and you will be unable to help it."

"Then we better hurry," Leon noted, but spoke to Sora instead. "Are you up for this?"

Sora nodded. "Yeah..." Then he glanced back up at the darkness with a frown. "I don't get how it can give off so much light. It's... _darkness._"

"Darkness is energy," Yami explained. "Just like fire or magic. If it is concentrated enough, it will give off an aura. ...I have also heard that, even in the deepest darkness, there is always a light within."

If light could exist in darkness that deep, Sora wondered if that meant heartless had some light inside of them, too.

As if recognizing the saying, Leon narrowed his eyes in Yami's direction, and that was when Sora decided it was time to move on. He didn't need the two of them to start another fight with each other when there were heartless and a sea witch to take care of.

Sora turned, only pausing to glance back at his companions. "Let's go."

Averting their gazes, Leon and Yami silently moved to follow.

The three of them submerged and continued deeper into the sea, this time with the darkness as their guide.

-o-o-

* * *

Please, if you've read this far, don't be shy. Review? I pour my heart into this story more than any other, and your words encourage me to continue trying my absolute best, especially now as we draw closer and closer to the end after years of hard work.

This chapter took so long because I had to solve dozens of tiny little problems I had accidentally created for myself. Thanks, self. I had sorta forgotten that Leon and Cloud wouldn't accept Yami very easily, haha. After a while it felt like I was manipulating pawns on a chess board.

To satisfy curiosities, Leon's fish form is a redtail catfish (I was going to go with lionfish, but it was too flashy), Cloud will be sort of a plecostomus algae eater (thought it would go well with his wing), and Yami's is an oceanic whitetip shark (with colors to match his hair and skin).


	39. Ch 22: With Wayward Valor part two

_Author Notes: _

I know Ursula technically has only six tentacles in her usual design, but I took creative license with this chapter and went with eight instead.

Big thanks goes to Ursula102 for being a huge help in the early development of this world's plot several years ago, as well as providing me interesting little tidbits about one of Disney's most awesome villain divas. :) Ursula's been a blast.

And thanks to Ashanti for always being there for me, and Jess for being such a patient beta.

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-two: **__With Wayward Valor _– part two

-o-o-

When the heartless returned, Sora didn't recognize them for what they were at first.

He was so used to the plain shadow heartless that he had almost forgotten certain kinds could adapt to worlds. _Emblem heartless, created by Ansem's machine, _Yami had explained when he'd asked about it—and that the machine was deep in the bastion.

Did that mean Maleficent had created them? Somehow, he didn't think so. Whoever had designed _these _heartless must have had a sense of humor.

They reminded Sora of underwater cows. Big, balloon-like turquoise cows... with blue zigzag stripes, anglerfish antennae, and green torpedo-headed scuba divers attached to their bellies.

Okay, so maybe the only likeness they had to cows was how lazy and docile they seemed until Leon attacked one. Then it released its divers, and chaos ensued.

Sora hadn't noticed it before—mainly because Riku had always been the one with the keyblade, not him—but, thanks to the magical weapon, heartless narrowed in on him like children to free ice cream. Every time he knocked one away, another was suddenly there and stabbing at him with its mini-trident.

He twisted away from them with a surprised cry as one of their weapons nicked his side. Then he saw the thin trail of his blood clouding the water, and that was when he was _really _glad Yami and Leon had decided to come along with him.

At the sound of his voice, both men flew through the water to protect him. With the sharp fluidity of a quickly mastered tail fin, Leon shot forward and cleaved the heartless in two, and Yami was right behind him with his dark sword to fend off the others. After that, they were always there at his side.

Sora was surprised at how easily his friends had gotten the hang of swimming, both of them now darting and spinning in the water around the creatures as if they had been practicing for months. They moved so smoothly even with their weapons that Sora felt clumsy and slow in comparison, yet hewas the one with a dolphin tail _and_ more experience.

Still, he didn't do too bad himself; he was able to finish off the blimpy heartless on his own before helping Leon and Yami with the faster scuba divers. And just when he thought he was done, new ones popped into existence: another blimp with green leeches, but also a series of small jellyfish heartless surrounding a larger one. Gah.

"These guys are pushy!" he shouted as he plunged into the swarm of jellyfish, set to get through them quickly.

Then he realized how dumb of him that had been. He knew jellyfish well; why had he expected heartless to be any different?

As soon as his hip brushed against one of their fat tentacles, a tingling, searing sensation built along his skin until it was a steady throbbing pain. The all-too-familiar kiss of a jelly's sting.

He jerked away from the creature with a yelp, only to back into another one, more tentacles brushing against the back of his neck and setting his skin aflame.

"_Ah_—!"

He whirled around and smacked the heartless away with the keyblade, but two more closed in to surround him.

Somewhere behind him he could hear Leon and Yami wrestling with the other heartless and knew that they wouldn't be coming to his rescue this time. He needed to get out of this on his own.

Swinging the blade up, he summoned an aero spell, and though relying on his powers was beginning to tire him, he still felt the warm current of magic spring to life as if its wealth were never-ending. The warm eddy swirled around him, steadfast despite the watery environment, and it easily knocked the advancing heartless back.

With a determined cry, he charged at them with relentless strikes until three more clusters appeared in front of him, a whole mix of blimps and divers and jellyfish and—_whoa­!—_squid things spinning right towards him!

Sora somersaulted through the water, narrowly avoiding the tentacled heartless as they spiraled right into each other. Feeling the flood of adrenaline, he twisted back around and slapped the heartless with his tail, sending them both twirling into a brood of jellies—and grinned at the sight of them all getting tangled.

"Serves you right!"

But his victory was short-lived when his momentum sent him crashing backwards into one of the big blimpy heartless. Disturbed, it immediately released its attached divers, which pedaled towards him with their tridents at the ready.

"W-Wah!"

With a flail, he caught his balance and kicked away again, twisting around with unfaltering resolve with the keyblade—

"WAK!"

—and froze at the sound of that distinctive cry. That definitely hadn't been Leon or Yami!

A shower of light magic that was nothis own suddenly came raining down on the heartless, colorful flickers of confetti and fireworks erupting around the creatures, just as a green and orange missile shot right through them and spun rapidly like a top first let loose from its string.

A surge of relief filled him as the lights faded and revealed Donald wielding his staff. Goofy was the green and orange blur ping-ponging from heartless to heartless and knocking his shield into them with impressive force. With their joint attack, most of the creatures dispersed into shadow and left only a few stragglers.

Sora swooped forward to finish them off now that he had plenty of room to move. He saved the one closest to Donald for last, striking through it before pouncing Donald right afterward, surprising the duck with his excitement.

"You guys are okay!"

With a squawk, Donald pushed against Sora's head as the boy clung to him, but he didn't have to fight long because Sora released him to grab hold of the still-twirling Goofy. Laughing, he spun around with the knight before pulling him into a hug, too.

"I was worried the sea witch might have gotten you!"

Donald harrumphed. "Like she stands a chance against _us_."

"Gawrsh, Sora, you were that worried about lil ole us?" Goofy asked, sounding happy.

Sora let him go and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Well, I mean..." He gestured widely, excitement tumbling out of him. "She seemed _really_ scary right as I was leaving with Riku, and I couldn't turn around and help you guys out because I had to help Riku, and then we took _forever _on the beach 'cuz—"

"Sora."

Oh, right, they were still in a big hurry. Story cut short, Sora glanced over his shoulder. Yami, weapon still in hand, was eyeing Donald and Goofy strangely—most likely because of their current forms. Leon was just now swimming up behind Yami to catch up, so Sora assumed he had been taking care of the rest of the heartless.

"Well whaddya know, it's Leon!" Goofy said with a cheerful laugh.

"The king's clowns," Leon returned with a hint of amusement as he paused in front of them. "I see you let the keyblade master get himself into trouble."

In defense, Donald folded his front tentacles and lifted his chin. "He was the one who ran out on _us_!"

"Gawrsh, is Riku okay?"

Even though he wanted to get through this reunion before more trouble showed up, Sora found himself getting sucked into the conversation with ease. "Yeah, he's with Cloud."

"Recovering," Leon added.

"And the sea witch?"

Everyone turned as one as Yami spoke in that low-key tone of his.

"Ahyuk..." Lifting a flipper to his chin, Goofy studied Yami in confusion. "Ya know, you look sorta familiar."

Donald also studied Yami, his eyes thinned at him with distrust. "Hrrmmm..."

Sora gasped. "Oh, right! Guys, you remember Yami, don't you?" He'd almost forgotten how much Yami had sprouted like a daisy during their time at the bastion, so no doubt they'd be confused. Still, it was best to have them all get along. With a grin, he swam between Yami and Leon and threw his arms around both men's shoulders. "Now we can all fight together!"

A ponderous silence spread among Leon, Yami, and Donald as if Sora had just opened the floodgates to Awkwardville. Goofy was the only one who shared Sora's enthusiasm.

He spread his flippers in surprise. "By golly, if it ain't Yami all grown up!"

"Not quite," Yami said with a lifted brow. He then gently removed Sora's arm from around him. "Reunions can wait. Where is the sea witch?"

At least someone was keeping them on track. Sora looked to Donald and Goofy for an answer, but seeing the two of them alone somehow nagged at him. But why...?

And then it hit him. "Ah—!" Sora scanned the surrounding sea as though expecting someone else. "And where's _Ariel_?"

She had been with Donald and Goofy when the darkness had begun to fill the witch's lair. But if they had made it out alive, where was _she_?

Donald and Goofy exchanged glances before speaking up again. "We _tried _to go with her," Donald explained.

"But she said you'd need the help more!" Goofy added.

Donald nodded. "We're supposed to follow the key anyway."

"So then where is she?" Sora asked again in hopes that the bad feeling growing inside of him was just him being paranoid. She had the trident, which was part of what had started this mess in the first place, so if Ursula had gotten ahold of her...

"Gawrsh, she gathered up all them merfolk and said she was gonna take them home!" Goofy explained. "Isn't that sumthin'?"

"Was gonna give that trident back to her dad, too," Donald added. "Said she knew how to get home okay." He shrugged, then, and gestured over his shoulder towards their destination. "The sea witch is stuck inside that big fish. Dunno what the darkness did, but she didn't come after us!"

"Except all these heartless," Sora pointed out. "And the big ball of darkness in the sky!"

Leon folded his arms over his chest and nodded. "Apparently she didn't need to go after you. Somehow, she seems to have enough control over the darkness to put this world at risk."

Though he couldn't say why, Sora had a feeling that Maleficent also had something to do with the attacks on this world. He hadn't forgotten how he had seen her conspiring with Ursula a few hours before being dragged here. Even though he didn't understand why she would have chosen to help Ursula yet condemn Jafar, he was determined to help protect the world either way, even if doing so was against her interests. He wasn't planning on going back to the bastion, or to her side.

"Indeed," Yami said. Falling into thought, he curled a hand against his chin. "Which is worrisome. We should move on."

Sora had to agree with that.

With Donald and Goofy now in tow, the five of them sought out Ursula at her lair.

Or what remained of it. As they entered the glowing terrain, it was evident to them that not all was as they had left it.

Swarms of heartless now congested the cragged valley. Though they floated docile for now, Sora remembered how one accidental brush had sent them into chaos. He could still feel the tingling burn from the jelly's stings.

As he and the others began to maneuver through the creatures, careful not to disturb as many as they could, goosebumps ran down his arms at the thought of how much trouble they could have been in if these heartless hadn't been so lazy and stupid.

Whatever was waiting for them at Ursula's lair, Sora got the distinct feeling they'd need to conserve their energy to face it.

Somewhere beyond the silhouettes of the heartless resounded an unearthly wail: an unsettling crossbreed between the metallic scream of a train and the mournful song of a whale. Something _alive_.

Something that wasn't Ursula anymore.

And when the five of them cleared the throng of heartless, they froze at the sight of what had once been the sea witch's lair.

The darkness had infested the leviathan carcass and transformed it into something not quite alive, but also no longer just a shriveled fish skeleton. Leathery skin and tendons stretched across the gaps of the large bones in shades of black and acid purple, and for what cavities the growing skin didn't cover, darkness poured out like dark tendrils of hair.

Massive tentacles had split out of its sides, almost as though Ursula herself had merged with her lair into some hideous monster partway between a fish and an octopus as big as a small submarine. Though it was still resting where it had been a few hours before, it had begun thrashing against its plateau where darkness had surrounded it in a semi-translucent cocoon.

Its once grayed eyes were now an electric yellow, and Sora immediately recognized it for what it was. Somehow the darkness from Ursula's cauldron had mutated the leviathan into a _heartless_.

Still a distance away from the plateau, Sora came to a stop and studied the creature with bleak determination. If that thing got free, they'd have to fight it. Somehow.

First the heartless dragon in Mulan's world, then genie Jafar, and now this freaky fish? It made him wonder why evil things always had to be so... _big_.

Beside him, Goofy also paused to survey the sight before them. "Gawrsh, he's an ugly fella."

"I think that's _Ursula_," Sora said as the others drew close around him.

"I'm guessing she doesn't always look like that," Leon said in a dry tone, which surprised Sora. Wasn't he worried at all about this? The world was still dying, and now they had to deal with _this_.

At least Yami shared his grim expression. "She has become a heartless? Then the darkness must have taken hold of her heart by her own desire."

Donald huffed and pointed his staff in her direction. "Which means we can beat her! Let's go."

"But how are we supposed to beat _that_?" Sora asked, disbelieving. Even with the five of them, what were the odds of being able to beat Leviathan-Ursula up enough to defeat it? It wasn't like there was a lamp to trap her in like with Jafar, and so far he couldn't see any big weaknesses...

Once again, Goofy provided him with an answer. "All ya need is teamwork, Sora! Ahyuck, with that keyblade and all of our help, that big ole fish won't stand a chance."

It was his carefree optimism that reminded Sora why he had chosen to stay here and fight.

Scary or not, this was the right thing to do. Wasn't this what made people heroes? In all of his adventures with Riku when they had been little, using sticks against imaginary monsters, even _then_ they had been against impossible odds. Riku had never been scared back then, even when Sora had found reasons for them to be, like the howling wind and the big creepy shadows in the secret place back home...

He wondered, if Riku were here with the keyblade in his stead, would he have hesitated right here like Sora had?

Sora's fingers tightened around the keyblade again, and he nodded. "Alright." He focused back on the thrashing leviathan as the darkness slowly continued to stretch across its bones and knit together into new flesh. "Let's show that giant hunk of ugly what we're made of!"

"Not without us."

Sora had half been expecting Riku to show up at the last minute, so when he turned around to face the interruption, he was disappointed to find some beefy old merman instead. Granted, with the dozen soldiers the old man had brought, maybe this was a good thing.

Eyeing him with a level of skepticism, Sora wondered, "Who _are _you?"

He seemed pretty powerful somehow, plus he had a yellow crown circling his white head. That long white beard reminded him of Merlin. Maybe he was some sort of fish wizard.

"Another overconfident keybearer, I see, and even more troublemakers," came the stuffy response as the merman crossed his arms over his broad chest. "I'll ask you once, young merman, and only once. Where is my daughter?" The team of soldiers he had with him swam forward and flanked his sides as if to look even more imposing.

Sora was more concerned with the leviathan and the hordes of heartless around them, but he decided to play along for a moment. "Your daughter?"

"He means Ariel," Donald explained shortly, to which Goofy added:

"This is King Triton! He's the one who owns the trident."

"Ohhhh." Okay, so not a fish wizard at all, but a _king_. Sora eyed him with a whole new light. "Ariel's dad..."

"Hi, yer majesty!" When Goofy took control of the conversation, Sora let him. Goofy had that amiable way of explaining things to make them seem less severe than they really were. "Ahyuck, Ariel saved bunches of merfolk from the sea witch! Ya know, she said she was leadin' them home and takin' that trident back to the palace to give to ya." Then he paused, his expression falling. "Gawrsh, but if you're here..."

"Ah—!" Sora swam forward and clamped a hand over Goofy's mouth, remembering that Goofy also had a way of elaborating too much. "Ariel helped us save Riku and beat Ursula! So I'm sure she's fine!"

Triton's stern expression softened somewhat. "_My_ little Ariel did that?"

Sora, Donald, and Goofy nodded in unison.

It was then that Yami decided to try cutting in. "Sora, the heartless..."

For a second, Sora thought he was talking about the group of heartless behind them, until he actually heard the slick tear of membrane, like the shredding of old elastic. He turned his attention back to the leviathan right as he heard Leon's sharp warning of, "It's free!"

The sickening noise had come from the creature ripping free from the cocoon of darkness. Its tentacles sprawled outward and coiled into the fiery fissures of the wasteland in front of them, and it shook itself free from the remaining dark tendrils as it turned in their direction. Its yellow eyes shone through the disintegrating darkness like twin moons.

Sora felt a shiver tickle up his spine as its mouth parted to show off its double rows of mermaid-sized fangs, and another metallic shriek split the water right as the leviathan launched itself from its resting place and flew through the water towards them.

For something so big and seemingly unwieldy, it moved with shocking speed, bearing down on them faster than they could react.

Sora cried out as slender arms caught his waist and yanked him out of the way right as a giant tentacle with suction cups bigger than his head swung at him. He sent his quick savior a grateful look, but Yami had his eyes trained on the leviathan.

"Scatter!" Leon barked to their left, and Sora grabbed Yami's arm to jerk him into motion, the two of them shooting off through the water in the same direction as the rest of them began to scatter.

With more agility than Ursula herself had had, the leviathan darted between the mermen with its tentacles snapping outward to catch them, quick and fierce like a lizard's tongue snatching unsuspecting insects. Sora's heart caught in his throat as he spotted two of the tentacles ensnaring King Triton and five of his men.

"Your majesty!" Goofy called, but it was too late.

Even as the remaining soldiers rallied together to try freeing Triton, more tentacles swooped them up without warning and then curled inward with their captive prey.

The skeletal belly of the leviathan split open, and as darkness issued out of the black cavern of its gut, the tentacles slung each of the imprisoned mermen into its gaping stomach. Then ribbons of darkness stretched across the ribs and solidified into a transparent fleshiness, leaving Triton and all his soldiers trapped within.

Sora suddenly felt very small, even with the keyblade clutched beneath his fingers. He swallowed hard and tried to think of a way to free all those mermen without getting himself captured, too, but the leviathan released another piercing shriek and scattered Sora's thoughts into pure mayhem.

Leon came flying past him, gunblade at the ready, and struck the beast's flank. A brief burst emitted from the end of his weapon, most likely the trigger muffled underwater, and the leviathan released a howl before it jerked around to meet him. It lunged through the water with ease, its maw opened to swallow him whole.

Sora panicked, way too far to help Leon get away in time. "Leon, look out!" he cried, aiming the keyblade to send a thunder spell at the heartless.

Someone else was faster. Centimeters away from Leon getting chomped, something gray slammed into the leviathan, and it took Sora a second to realize what he was seeing.

Cloud's buster sword was now rammed right at the hinge of the leviathan's jaw, keeping the beast from closing its teeth over Leon, and Cloud was steadily holding his weapon there, kicking his tail against the monster's force. Sora didn't have the time to inspect Cloud's form too closely, not now when everyone was about to get eaten, but his tail was sleek and angular, speckled with a black and brown pattern. Though he probably hadn't had much time to learn how to swim, either, Cloud already moved like an expert as he kept the leviathan at bay.

Cloud's gaze shifted to Leon as he darted to safety, and a smirk pulled at his lips. "That's one for me." Then he jerked his sword free and spun away to avoid the creature's grabby tentacles, which interrupted whatever comeback Leon might have had.

Not wanting to get caught, Sora fled as he simultaneously looked for an opening, ready to kick some giant heartless butt.

A streak of silver caught his attention, and that was when he realized that if Cloud was here, so would—

"Miss me?"

_Riku._

Relief washed through Sora and completely overwhelmed any fear he might have had moments ago. Riku's smile was playful despite the situation as he fell into line beside Sora, easily keeping up with his quick pace as they circled the leviathan.

Sora just sent him a happy grin. "Not anymore!"

"Good." With a laugh, Riku extended his arm, and Sora spotted what he was carrying. "Brought you something."

"Einlanzer!" he gasped, then—"Whoa!"

Riku tossed the sword at him, and Sora swooped in to catch it with his free hand, just in time to meet the giant tentacle that was bearing down on them. Kicking forward, Sora struck the rubbery flesh with both his sword and Riku's keyblade. The impact was so heavy that he could _feel_ the shudder of the limb beneath the weapons before the tentacle abruptly pulled back.

Free to swim now, Sora tossed Riku's keyblade at him to finish the exchange of weapons, and flashed him a thumbs-up. Smiling, Riku returned it.

A blur of brown shot past them, along with Yami's teasing: "Nice of you to join us!"

Both Sora and Riku turned to watch Yami's retreating back as he headed straight for the leviathan. His dark sword swung forward and aimed.

A golden-orange light shimmered into existence, forming the faded image of a clock in front of the heartless, and the slender hour, minute, and second hands slowed to a crawl before the magic faded again.

And when it did, the leviathan itself seemed to slow to a crawl as well, moving with only a fraction of the speed it had displayed moments ago.

"A slow spell," Sora realized. Maleficent hadn't taught _him_ any of those spells... Then again, he wasn't sure where Yami had learned all his magic.

Riku looked irritated. "Show off." Turning away from the fight briefly, he met Sora's gaze.

Though Riku seemed better than he had earlier, the shadows beneath his eyes were still noticeable. When Sora saw him muster a smile anyway, the sight relaxed him even more. They'd been through a lot in the past few days, but here they were, the two of them side by side once again; and despite the hardships that remained between them, in that moment, Sora was just glad to have his best friend there with him.

"How about we send this oversized can of tuna where it belongs?" Sora suggested.

Riku's smile took on a knowing edge. "Stole the words right out of my mouth."

The two of them simultaneously barreled forward to attack, each with a determined cry of his own. Thunder magic rained down around the beast—Donald's magical touch—and Goofy was spinning and knocking into the fish's giant head to stun it. Leon and Cloud worked flawlessly together as they glided through the water in figure-eights around the leviathan and always met each other in the middle to strike the beast's sides at the same time.

Riku and Sora were no different. They fell into an old rhythm with natural ease, darting through the now sluggish tentacles and landing blow after blow against the heartless as if they had been fighting together all along. When Riku shouted, "To your left!" Sora knew he meant that a tentacle was sneaking up on his left; and likewise, when Sora made a scissoring motion with his fingers, Riku knew to cross blades with him against one of the tentacles, slicing it clean in half with their joined effort.

Screeching and twisting away from their assault was useless, because Yami was there at the rear to stop it. His hands stretched forward, he flicked his wrists up, and darkness sprung from the dark wasteland around them. Thick tendrils pierced the belly of the leviathan and wrapped around its ribs before beginning to pry them apart in an attempt to free King Triton and his men.

"Keep going!" Sora cried, ducking a suction cup undulating towards his head.

Leon flew over him to intercept it, another muffled gunshot going off as he struck the tentacle, and both Riku and Cloud met it from the other side, their blades making quick work of it as well. A cloudy darkness poured out of the severed limbs and began to roll through the water like a low storm. It reminded Sora of the struggle they'd had inside the lair after the cauldron had first begun spilling darkness.

Riku was having similar thoughts. If the darkness had caused the lair's transformation in the first place...

"Look out!"

Donald's cry snapped him out of his thoughts, and Riku managed to grab Sora's arm and tug him out of the way as one of the remaining tentacles swiped at them with a sudden burst of speed. Yami's spell must have worn off, but he looked too preoccupied to recast it. Riku hoped that meant that things wouldn't take a turn for the worse.

"Daddy!"

Oh great.

Somehow Ariel had made it through the heartless horde untouched. Her chubby little fish friend floated close at her side beneath her long hair, and Sebastian the crab sat perched on her shoulder. The most important item, however, was _there_—clasped in her hands and softly glowing.

The trident.

And the leviathan had noticed it, too.

Its shrill scream reverberated around them as the heartless lunged for Ariel and came to a dead stop, still snagged on the dark tendrils Yami had laced around its ribs. Yami himself was deep in concentration, most likely to keep the creature trapped as long as he could. They didn't have much time, then.

Riku twisted around back towards the leviathan. "Sora, let's go! She needs to get the trident to her dad!"

He wasn't sure if that was going to work, but Ursula's words about the trident kept running through his mind. It was the only weapon as powerful as the keyblade in this world, and if Ursula had been so determined to get her hands on it, no doubt it had the power to take down this giant heartless and help put an end to the world's decay.

He at least had to try.

"Right!"

Thankfully, Sora didn't have to twenty question him. He instinctively understood.

Not for the last time grateful that Sora was here with him, Riku shot through the water to prepare his attack. The leviathan was an easy target, but Riku was aiming for something a bit smaller...

"Goofy!" he called.

The dog-turned-sea turtle glanced at him just in time.

Riku suddenly threw his tail forward and gave Goofy's shell a hard _THWACK_, sending him torpedoing straight towards the heartless's giant yellow eye.

"Ya-ha-ha-hooooooooooooooey!"

Goofy struck the eye and bounced right off, and the unsuspecting leviathan writhed, howling at the sharp impact. Perfectly distracted. Its tentacles recoiled as if burned, and Riku and Sora made their moves.

Sora darted ahead and struck the first tentacle as Riku angled towards the next, and neither of them were surprised when the others followed close behind them, Cloud and Leon shooting past them to help. And—chest puffed with self-importance, Donald alone took care of the last two tentacles, raining a barrage of spells into them with a strident quack.

Below, Yami continued his silent command over the darkness. The dark tendrils that had sprouted from the ground tightened around the leviathan's ribs and began to pull harder, and the bones gradually shifted outward, trembling hard from the tugging force. The flesh there had ripped and formed a small cavity between two of the ribs—not big enough for Triton or his men to escape through, but that small leeway was all they needed.

Ariel dove into the fray with the trident, her face set with resolve, and Sebastian clung to her hair for dear life.

"_Jump_ing jellyfish—! _Ah-riel_!" the small crab yelled.

Flounder zipped after her, and even from his distance, Riku could hear the fish's panicked cries as the mermaid ducked below Sora and a tentacle, then swerved around Leon, and headed down to the leviathan's stretching stomach. Ignoring her friends' fear, she raced ahead and closed in on her target.

But before she could reach her father to deliver the trident, two gray forms intercepted her from out of nowhere.

Ursula's eels!

One of them snapped around her arm, and the other bit down on the shaft of the trident to jerk it away from her. Ariel gasped as the weapon left her hand, and even though she lunged forward to grab it again, the first eel tugged on her arm and pulled her farther out of reach.

"NO!" she cried.

In a moment of fearlessness, Flounder bolted forward and rammed into the eel holding her captive. "Let her go, you big meanie!"

Releasing a screech, the eel released her, but the one with the trident was already making a quick getaway.

"Yami!"

Sora's yell drew Riku's attention to them. Whatever unspoken instructions had been given, Yami seemed to understand them. He threw one of his hands out and swiped it through the water, and another tendril of darkness sprang into existence, slinging across one tentacle to another.

Sora launched himself into the thick tendril and used it like a slingshot to sproing downward, flinging himself through the water. He crashed into the fleeing eel and knocked Einlanzer's hilt into it as he made a grab for the trident.

Riku was ready to abandon his post to help, but—

"Riku!"

He had his own fight to worry about!

Jerking back to attention, Riku swung around just as a tentacle slammed into him.

Stars burst behind his eyes and seared through his body, the sudden pain leaving him dazed. All sound and feeling trickled away from him, just like his breath, leaving him in a stream of bubbles as the tentacle's force dragged him through the water. When it slowed, he slipped bonelessly away and began to drift like a fallen leaf towards the dark abyss below.

A muscular arm caught him around the waist, and Cloud's familiar voice faded in.

"Hang on!"

Riku breathed. Lifted his gaze.

Cloud used his free arm to swing his buster sword as the tentacle flew toward them for another strike, but the weight of the water slowed Cloud's counterattack, and the massive tentacle slugged into them again. The angle of the blow was so sharp that it knocked the buster sword clean from Cloud's hand, but neither of them was oriented enough to go after it as it twisted away.

Then, Sora's cry: "Guys, look out!"

A second tentacle came from behind.

Riku felt himself being pushed out of the way, and he whirled around in time to see the limb pull Cloud into its coiled grasp.

Still dizzy but not caring about himself, Riku shot after him, set on freeing Cloud before he got trapped like Triton had.

But he wasn't the only one coming to the rescue.

Leon dove deep to catch the sinking buster sword. His free hand wrapped around it, and with a powerful kick of his tail, he soared upward to help Cloud. Just as Riku slammed his keyblade into the tentacle, Leon struck its other side with both the buster sword and his gunblade.

The water around them vibrated with the shriek of the leviathan as its tentacle split like the others had and began spilling darkness into the water, thickening the inky haze around them.

Cloud fought free of the severed limb, and Leon glided up to his side, offering the buster sword with the subtlest of smirks.

"Now we're even."

With a soft humph, Cloud returned the smirk and took hold of his sword, and the two of them turned towards Riku, weapons readied—

No, wait. They were looking _past_ him.

Leon charged forward with a sharp cry, "Riku, _MOVE_!!"

Riku felt the heavy shift of water behind him when it was already too late. He twisted around to meet the leviathan and whatever attack it had in store for him this time, but he wasn't expecting to find himself face to face with the creature's open maw.

_NO WAY—_

His thoughts flew into a panic as he turned tail to flee, but he only met the backs of the leviathan's teeth as its jaw closed around him, swallowing him whole and enveloping him in complete darkness.

As the black closed in around him, frigid like the snow that had been on Mulan's world, he instinctively clutched the keyblade harder. Even here, it gave off a faint glow as if to reassure him of its strength.

He needed that reassurance badly right now, his skin feeling as though it were crawling in response to the darkness's immersion, prickles of disgust running down his body as velveteen caresses welcomed him into the void.

Ursula's shell, still dangling from his neck, emanated as softly as his keyblade did—a reminder of the things he still needed to do. It might have been easy to lose himself here otherwise.

He was in the belly of the leviathan once again, only this time he wasn't swimming to meet with a sea witch. He was about to be dinner.

He needed to find a way out before the cold pressure of the darkness did him in, because even now, he could feel his body growing numb the longer he stayed here.

He strained to swim forward, his eyes scanning the inky void for anything that could help him, but it was already a struggle to _breathe_, let alone concentrate.

Then, like fingers brushing delicately through his hair, that _voice_—

**Why...**

Already pounding, his heart gave a sudden shudder at the familiarity. The pressure around him intensified, choking off the supply of water to his lungs, and he wildly swung his keyblade outward to drive away whatever force this was.

_Why what?! _

But the responding darkness only slid against him like a silent purr. It curled over his tail, tangled in his hair, breathed against his ear, filled his heart with its whisper.

**Why struggle?**

Riku's hand closed over Ursula's shell. He knew the answer to that question, didn't he? He'd had it a moment ago...

_"And I'm not letting you go again, no matter __**what**__, Sora."_

Sora...

That's right, Sora was waiting for him!

He twisted away from the darkness's hold and wormed his way through its thickening depths, searching for something, anything to help him get through this. There had to be a way out, had to be a way through this void, if only he could just _focus_...

A touch of warmth moved against his flukes, and he froze. A warmer current?

Mind spinning, he moved towards it through sheer force of will. His body was a growing leaden weight, a suffocating burden, but he fought forward and followed the current. Swimming through darkness felt like swimming through a heavy oil, only so cold that its enveloping pressure was beginning to feel like knives sinking into him through the partial numbness.

His keyblade was quiet. Everything was _too_ quiet. He wasn't even sure if the battle outside was still going on, but he could only trust the others to keep fighting without him. How long had he been in here already...?

_"R-Riku, stay with me, stay awake, don't—"_

He shook his head to clear his mind. He had to focus. Where was the current? It had to lead to something...

_There._

Ahead of him, the warmth spread out in a small radius, centering on something. He summoned the strength to push towards it. Though his fingers were too cold to tell whether or not he was still carrying his weapon, he saw its light as he drew it forward.

The darkness fled from around it wherever it moved as though a pocket of magic surrounded it. _Focus, Riku._ Why was the darkness so much warmer over here?

A small swing of the keyblade revealed what he had been searching for.

An escape.

Rather, Ursula's cauldron. It was still issuing darkness, though its dim magenta light somehow encouraged him. If Ursula's hateful feelings mixed with the trident's power had created the heartless in the first place, all he had to do was erase her source of power. He didn't know if it'd work, but... what choice did he have?

This wasn't a plan; it was desperation.

Without another moment's hesitation, he lunged forward and thrust the keyblade into the cauldron as he opened himself up to his weapon's powers, his heart crying out for the help.

The darkness billowed outward at the force of the attack, and for that brief second, the cauldron fell stagnant.

Then, straight out of the black—

"_WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!_"

A pale purple hand clamped around his wrist with crushing strength and jerked him forward.

As he swung the keyblade with sheer panic, the darkness cleared enough for him to see what had once been Ursula's face—lips split open with razorlike fangs, a long black tongue curled towards him, eyes a yellow deeper than the sun—

His weapon struck her chest and sank in, and with a shriek that sounded like the leviathan itself, she withdrew her hold on him.

A brilliant explosion burst from below, light showering out from the cauldron and enveloping him.

The shriek grew louder and more shrill, so much that it reverberated through him like an internal earthquake, and all he could do to protect himself was hold the keyblade to him and pray it ended soon.

-o-o-

"RIKU!!"

Sora's throat was growing hoarse from crying his name over and over again in hopes of seeing _some _sign that Riku was alive somewhere inside the heartless. He couldn't believe how easily Riku could just be taken away from him all over again—he _refused _to believe it. Riku couldn't go down, not here!

"_RIKU!_"

"Sora, _focus_!" Yami shouted in his direction. Down below, he was still straining to keep the tendrils of darkness pulled taut so that the cavities between the ribs continued to stretch. If his trembling arms were any indication of how he was faring, his powers looked like they would give out at any moment.

A glance at Donald: he was uselessly beating against the leviathan with his staff, too weary to use his magic anymore. The back of Goofy's shell was stuck to a giant suction cup, putting him out of the fight, too.

Cloud and Leon were doing better, though still in danger of losing the fight. One of Cloud's arms had been injured somehow, so each of his powerful swings was unsteady and forced. As a result, Leon was guarding him a little too closely; with Riku gone and Cloud overexerting himself, no doubt Leon was a lot more worried than he was letting on.

Ariel and her friends were in the middle of fending off the eels again, and she was too busy defending the trident to even use it.

That left Sora on his own for now.

He was exhausted. Not only was dodging tentacles getting difficult, his sword felt heavier and heavier with every blow he landed. After the earlier fight with Ursula, then using most of his magic against the heartless on the beach, _then_ the struggle of getting back here through the hordes of stinging jellies, tonight was proving to be the hardest night of his life—even harder than _last night_. Being a hero was hard work.

He paused in the middle of circling the leviathan, his worry returning full force. He had been looking for another opening to strike the heartless, but it didn't seem like they were getting anywhere. Even with several of its tentacles missing, it was still kicking their butts.

"Riku..."

_KREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!_

Startled, Sora swam back as the leviathan began to shudder uncontrollably, and with another ear-splitting cry, it turned onto its side and crashed into the inky clouds below. The water and land shook around them from the impact, and each thrash of its flailing tentacles against the splintered crags made them splinter even more, spilling steam and magma into the water.

Yami's dark powers finally ripped, but to Sora's surprise, the leviathan's stomach split open anyway. The flesh shredded as the ribs folded outward, releasing Triton and his men.

Wondering what the heck had just happened, Sora glanced at Donald, who was studying his own staff in awe. There was _no_ way that puny little thing had just brought down that big heartless. Right?

"Daddy!"

Ariel had broken free of the eels during the commotion, and she swam for her father at full speed, the trident still clutched safely in her hands. Triton rushed to meet her, and as soon as his fingers wrapped about his trident, he whirled to face the leviathan with vengeance in his eyes.

The trident's glow intensified and grew so brilliant that Sora had to glance away and shield his face.

"_UR-SU-LA—!!_"

As the bellow echoed around them, the pure power in Triton's voice sent a chill up Sora's spine. He wasn't just getting his revenge on her; he was protecting his people.

The trident arced through the water, releasing a stream of simmering energy. Sora saw the flash as the power struck the heartless, then winced at the deafening cries as the defeated creature transformed once more.

The light faded, revealing the leviathan's dark flesh rapidly rotting away. As the darkness disintegrated and the inky clouds thinned into clear water, Sora watched as the carcass settled, unmoving, into its new resting place: a bed of hardening lava. Ursula was nowhere to be seen.

But Riku was.

As soon as Sora saw his small silvery form lying motionless within the skeleton's split stomach, he darted towards him without thought.

"_RIKU!_"

He reached him within seconds and dropped Einlanzer to better grab Riku and roll him over. His fingers were clutched around the shell hanging from his neck, and he was trembling. He felt like an ice cube.

He was still very much alive, though, and that was all Sora cared about in that moment.

He threw his arms around Riku and laughed. "You idiot!"

Riku cracked an eye open. "Th-Then I guess next time... y-you'll just have to watch my back, huh...?" The reply was soft, Riku's quaking voice sounding as relieved as Sora felt.

_Next time... _

Riku wasn't just saying this lightly. Sora recognized the implications there, the silent question that needed to be asked now that the danger had passed and they had nothing to stop them from focusing on it.

_Are you coming with me?_

Sora had decided the answer to that hours ago.

"That's right, who else is gonna keep you from getting swallowed by giant fish heartless?" he teased.

"With tentacles," Riku added with a wry but shaky smile.

Sora returned the smile with reassurance. "Yup."

A happy, relieved expression crossed Riku's face, and he nodded, understanding Sora's underlying answer.

Then the concern caught up to them.

Ariel, Leon, and Cloud crowded close by, and that was when Riku decided it was time to get up. He picked himself off the boney mound he was resting on.

"Are you okay?" Ariel asked as Riku rose into the water.

"I'll be fine," he replied. He summoned his keyblade back to his hand, and Sora followed suit, making sure to retrieve Einlanzer from where he had dropped it.

That was when Sora noticed the sea witch's cauldron nearby—split down the middle as if lightning had struck it. "What... happened?"

Riku dragged a hand through his hair, then followed Sora's stare and frowned. "It was still spewing darkness, so I took my keyblade to it." He lifted his gaze towards Triton, who had joined their group despite still being flanked by his soldiers. "I don't think you'll have to worry about Ursula anymore."

"I-I wouldn't be so sure of th-that."

Everyone turned to Yami, but it wasn't he who had spoken—rather, the quivering yellow fish hiding in his long hair. Yami himself looked like he was torn between letting it stay there or giving it back to Ariel to take care of.

"Flounder!" she gasped, then giggled at how awkward Yami looked. "Come here, you big guppy."

"I'm n-not a guppy!" Flounder retorted. "I s-saw those eels! They g-got loose and swam away l-laughing!"

Sora exchanged glances with Riku, whose expression reflected what he was thinking, too. Amused henchmen was never a good sign. If Ursula was gone, why would those eels have been laughing? It didn't make sense, and Sora didn't like it.

"It is possible that the sea witch herself was not defeated," Yami suggested quietly.

Now perched on Triton's shoulder, Sebastian waved his claws. "Nonsense, His Majesty's command of da seas is absolute."

There was a murmur of consensus amongst the king's soldiers, but they fell silent when Triton held up a hand. "Ariel," he began in a stern tone.

She stiffened in response. "Yes, Daddy...?"

"Tell me _precisely_ what happened tonight."

Ariel gave a short nod and lowered her face, her hands clasped together in front of her. When she peeked at Riku through her red bangs, Sora realized that, even though this mess was mostly Riku's fault, for some reason she didn't want to pin the blame on him. But Triton had a right to know the truth, as he _was _the king, and it had been hisdaughter and trident in the middle of things. Sora didn't want to rat Riku out, either, though... Riku _had _done it for him, after all.

Ariel stalled, foraging for the right words. "Well, see..."

"I went to see Ursula," Riku cut in.

Everyone looked to him, all of the king's men surprised at his sudden confession. The way Riku had said it, though, hadn't been like a confession at all; he met Triton's eyes without wavering, his voice brazen and steady. Unlike his men, Triton didn't even have a fraction of surprise on his face as Riku continued.

"She told me that the trident could show me where the keyhole was, so I made a deal with her and tricked your daughter into getting it for me. I got back to Ursula a little too late, though, so..." Riku paused, his gaze shifting from Sora to Ariel. "I guess I got what I deserved, there. But your daughter—and my friends... They tried to stop Ursula."

"And during the fight, that sea witch used the trident, which is where the darkness came from," Donald explained.

Then Goofy added, "And that's when the heartless started tuh show up!"

"Yeah, but Ariel got the trident back," Sora chimed in to offset the pessimism. "And she freed all the mermaids Ursula had been keeping."

"And mer_men_," Goofy corrected lightheartedly.

Cloud, who had been silent up until then, focused on Riku. "Had all of them made contracts with Ursula?"

Riku glanced at him and Leon, who was also remaining quiet. "Yeah, that's what it looked like."

Cloud's brows drew together. "That's one of the things I don't get. Hades told me that not even a keyblade could break a contract once it was in place. How did the _trident_ free Riku, let alone all those people?"

Though he remembered what he had seen with his own eyes, Sora thought Cloud had a point. "Maybe the contracts that Hades gives are different from the ones Ursula does."

"Contracts are rather universal," Yami said. "And the Lord of the Dead is far more powerful than a witch. From the sound of it, she needed magic to conjure her contracts; Hades has the innate power to do so. But I do have an explanation for your question." He met Cloud's gaze, whose blue eyes narrowed in response. Despite Cloud's lingering hostility, though, Yami remained civil. "Contracts _are _powerful, but they are also very precise, often leaving loopholes. If Ursula indeed merged with the darkness inside of her lair and became a heartless, she was no longer _Ursula_. When she transformed, it was the same as if she had died; therefore, all contracts were void."

Sora got the feeling that wasn't all Yami had to say. "Didn't you just mention that she might not be gone for sure?"

Sebastian harrumphed, but King Triton looked interested—grave, but still interested. "Explain."

Yami nodded. "The source of darkness in this world is gone. Riku saw to it when he destroyed her source of power." He motioned to the cauldron below them. "However, that was only one part of the equation. The heartless was defeated, but _she_ may still remain. If Ursula was as powerful as she sounded, I would expect her return one day."

"Thank you for the forewarning," Triton said with a level of severity that made Sora wish he could help more. If Yami was right, Ursula would be back, and back with a vengeance. "However..."

Uh oh, that didn't sound good.

Sora shifted closer to Riku's side as Triton's posture straightened, giving him an even more regal yet serious air. His stern gaze leveled on Riku. "As the keybearer, you must already know... One must not meddle in the affairs of other worlds."

Riku's jaw set, but he said nothing.

Sora watched as his friends all exchanged glances; Leon looked like he was about to swim forward and take charge of the situation. He, too, felt the need to intervene, but somehow he got the feeling that they weren't needed for this, not right now. Maybe Riku needed to hear whatever Triton had to say.

"You have _violated_ this principle," Triton continued in his commanding voice, which was gaining a bite to it. Sora could tell he was furious but was trying not to let his anger blow out of control. "You were not even _welcome_ on this world, and because of your thoughtless behavior, you not only put yourself at risk, but your companions, my daughter, my people, and my _world_. Single-handedly, you nearly destroyed us all."

Up until now, Riku had kept his gaze leveled with Triton's, but with the harsh yet truthful accusations, he finally looked away, his silver hair hiding his expression from the rest of them.

"It's now clear to me, more than ever, that the keybearer shatters peace and brings ruin," Triton declared.

In one swift movement, Ariel put herself between Riku and her father, her lips thinned with determination. "No, Daddy. Did you forget that he came here to _stop _this from happening?"

"Ah-riel!" Sebastian admonished.

Even Triton looked taken aback. He must not have been used to his daughter standing up to him.

Hands clenched at her sides, she added, "If anything, your stubbornness caused this! He just wanted to help us."

"A-Arieeellll..." Flounder warned, peeking out from beneath Yami's hair.

But she continued on, "If you had just cooperated when Riku met you, none of this would have—"

"No," Riku interrupted. He lifted his face again, his expression somber but accepting. "He's right. I screwed up. A lot of people lost their hearts, and this world almost _died_ because I was stupid enough to go to Ursula, no matter what my reason was." His gaze hardened as he met Triton's eyes again. "Just let me do my job now before anything else happens. Where's the keyhole?"

No matter what Riku's reason had been? Everyone seemed to think his reason had been to get hold of the trident to find the keyhole, but Sora knew the true-truth. The trident had been the bargaining chip for Ursula to bring Sora to him. So, in a roundabout way, wasn't this whole mess part of Sora's fault, too? Because Sora had run off and left Riku on Agrabah without an explanation, and Riku had been desperate to see him again... desperate enough to trust a creepy octopus lady _and _sell away his memories.

When Sora thought about it that way, it kind of scared him. If Riku really had done all of that because he loved Sora, what else was that dangerous love capable of?

"Very well," Triton said with a sigh. He began to turn away but paused to glance over his shoulder. "Stay close; don't fall behind." Then he took off swimming with his soldiers at his sides.

Riku followed quickly after him, and Sora had to hurry to fall into line behind him as the others did, too. And though Donald and Goofy chatted amiably away, it seemed no one else was in a mood to celebrate their victory.

Sora swam at Riku's side in silence, not liking the grave mood that had settled between them. Triton's forceful words had left a bad taste in Sora's mouth, but he couldn't decide if it was because he was upset with Riku or about the situation in general. There was still a lot he and Riku needed to talk about... But they would have time soon enough.

The swim was an easy one. Triton led them through the swarm of heartless with ease, his trident making quick work of the creatures, which was a relief. Sora was pretty sure he wasn't the only exhausted one.

The route they took to the keyhole seemed familiar to Sora, and when Triton came to a stop in front of a flat boulder in front of a small cave opening, he realized why. Wasn't this the place where he had first met Ariel? Right before Riku had taken off with the trident to go meet with Ursula...

Riku was skeptical as well, but he'd trust Triton when he saw the keyhole for himself. When the king excused his men, the soldiers swam off in Atlantica's direction.

Ariel seemed awfully nervous about her father being there. Riku couldn't blame her, though, after what he had learned about him. He knew what she collected in her little grotto, and her father didn't. But why would the keyhole be there? Seemed like a weird place...

"This is it," Triton announced, gesturing to the cave. "Not all of us will need to go in..." He made it a point to scan Riku's friends as if to warn them.

Flounder, who had left Yami's hair to swim at Ariel's side, whispered loudly, "Ariel, what're we doing here? Isn't this your colle—"

"_Shhhh!_" she hissed, clamping a hand over the fish's mouth. Before her father could get too suspicious, she swam forward and lightly grasped his arm. "Daddy, let me do it. I'm sorry for causing so much trouble... I want to do this. I want you to trust me."

Triton seemed to ease up at Ariel's presence, his expression fading from stern to sympathetic, then back to stern again. "Ariel... I'm greatly disappointed in you. I thought I raised you with a good head on your shoulders."

Riku felt guilty about dragging her into this, but not as guilty as he probably should have been. She could have stood up to Riku and made him get the trident himself. She hadn't exactly been perfect before his arrival, either, what with her cave full of human trinkets. Plus, she'd stolen _his_ comlink...

Still, he actually agreed with her about what she had said to her father. If Triton had just shown them the keyhole when they had first arrived, none of this would have happened. Or at least it might not have gotten this bad. Riku had only taken the blame because, if he hadn't, Triton would never have trusted him enough to take him to the keyhole. Ariel had made a good point, and he was grateful for that.

Besides, no one had forced her to stand up for him in front of her father. Ariel deserved his help.

"Your Majesty, Ariel did what she thought was right. I told her the trident would help me protect your world, and she believed me," he explained. "But she didn't do it lightly. I had to do a lot of convincing... and even though she brought me your trident, she came right after me to stop me from going to Ursula. She saved our lives."

He saw Sora nod in agreement. "And like we said before, she saved all those merpeople, too. Plus she came back with the trident when we were all in a tight spot back there."

Ariel smiled, then looked up at her father. Riku recognized the hope and expectation in her wide eyes, and he felt himself smile as well. Sora used that look against him all the time.

And now that Sora was here with him, he was no longer filled with that crushing nostalgia from thinking about it. Despite what he had done to bring Sora here to be able to talk to him and resolve a lot of the misunderstandings between them, he couldn't help thinking that it had been worth it. He didn't care if that was selfish of him.

Triton's tension visibly wilted, and he sighed again. "Show them the keyhole and come right back out here, understand?"

She nodded quickly, and when he reluctantly handed her the trident, Riku felt relieved for her. Her grotto and its vast collection could remain her own little secret.

"Come on," she said as she swam past them. "Stay here, Flounder."

The fish, who had been about to follow, drooped obediently.

She paused at the boulder, and Riku pulled at the rock to create an opening big enough for both of them—but it seemed like they weren't the only ones who wanted to see him seal the keyhole. Sora and Leon were right behind him, and he gave them a small smile. He was glad Yami decided to stay behind.

The four of them slipped into the small opening and into the grotto. The aperture high above them revealed the faint blue glow of the forthcoming dawn, and suddenly he felt very tired. Was it really almost sunrise? He was so looking forward to getting back to Traverse Town and crashing for a day.

Traverse Town...

With Sora.

Ariel headed up to one of the smooth stone shelves and moved something aside. "Here, before I forget..." She picked up a very familiar object, and Riku immediately reached for it.

"The comlink!" Taking it, he triggered it on and released a sigh of relief when the screen flickered to life. "It still works." Turning to Leon, he handed him the device. "Try to get ahold of Merlin or Cid and tell him we're on our way back. No pit stops."

Leon cracked a wry smile at that. "Got it." He swam aside, and Riku turned his attention to Ariel, who looked pleased with herself.

"That was a close one. I thought for sure my dad knew about this place, but I guess not," she giggled, then lifted the trident. "Makes me wonder how long he's known the keyhole is in here somewhere. I've never seen it, that's for sure..."

Riku drew Oblivion up and touched the tip to the trident. "Well, let's see what happens."

They raised the weapons together, and Riku concentrated on what he wanted. The keyhole. Sora. Going home.

A soft shimmer spread from the trident to the keyblade, and there, against the smooth rock in the middle of one of the shelves, the carved indention of a trident transformed into a keyhole.

Riku pointed Oblivion at it and opened himself up, letting his powers flow through it.

A stream of light trickled out and pierced the keyhole, and an outline of a door flashed before vanishing again. The magic dispersed, the light faded, and the resounding _click _of a lock filled the grotto.

Mission accomplished.

"Oh, good," an elderly voice spoke up, "finally found it, did you? Congratulations, m'boy." Merlin's face was peering at them from the comlink. "Oh—_oh_, my, is that—" He paused and leaned closer to the screen, adjusting his spectacles. "It _is_! Sora, my goodness, _well_. Looking forward to your return!"

Sora grinned, and the sight of it was enough to melt away the rest of Riku's anxiety from before. The keyhole was sealed, and no doubt Triton would take care of the lingering heartless. Riku could finally go back with Sora.

"We'll see you soon, Merlin," Riku said, surprised when he detected a touch of warmth there. Maybe he really _had_ started to see Traverse Town as his home. Well, with Sora there, he could definitely think of it that way.

"Right-o! Keep in touch."

The comlink blipped off, and Leon's smirk widened. He slung his gunblade onto his shoulder and motioned with his head to the exit. "Let's get going."

Dismissing his keyblade, Riku glanced at Sora, who nodded in agreement.

Gently pushing the boulder open again, they slipped out of the cave one at a time, and this time the open sea felt like a cage more than ever. It may have felt like freedom yesterday, but right now, Riku couldn't wait to get out of this oversized aquarium.

It seemed that King Triton wasn't done with him yet, though. As soon as Ariel delivered the trident back to him, he faced Riku again for a final word. Riku met his eyes, but with less formality because his patience was thinning.

"Mark me, keybearer," Triton warned. His trident seemed to glow a little brighter as if to threaten him. "Let this world be a lesson to you. If mishandled again, the key may bring unspeakable calamity." His voice thinned dangerously. "Wield with caution."

Riku didn't bother speaking. He just nodded and watched as the king turned and gestured for his daughter to follow. Ariel hesitated a moment, offering Riku and Sora a grateful smile, before she and Flounder flitted off after Triton.

When Riku turned back around, it was almost surreal seeing the faces of Donald and Goofy, Leon and Cloud, Sora, and even Yami there watching him expectantly. They were an odd crowd, but they had worked well together. He smiled at them, though it felt tired, and he decided it was time for them to head back to the ships.

Though... the ships only held three people each. Donald and Goofy would ride together, and Leon and Cloud most likely would want to, so that meant Sora and Riku might get separated for the trip...

Well, he would have to remedy that. Maybe he'd make Leon ride with Donald and Goofy.

But then... what about Yami? Was he coming?

Riku curled his fingers around the shell necklace, feeling uneasy. Something about Yami still rubbed him wrong... but he couldn't pinpoint what.

"You're still carrying the shell," Sora noted with a curious smile.

Right. Sora didn't know what was in it. He hadn't been there when he had made the deal with Ursula, and Riku hadn't told him about the shell. There were a lot of things Riku still needed to tell him, ask him...

Gently grabbing Sora's arm, Riku only offered a short, "Guys, give us a few minutes," as an explanation to the others before he pulled Sora aside.

The shell cast a faint glow between them, almost as though wanting to draw them together again, as it had already done. If Riku hadn't given up these memories, Sora wouldn't have been here with him.

But at the same time, these memories... They were something _important_ to him. He didn't know what they contained, but he knew at least that much.

Though they had drawn the two of them back together, they also had widened a chasm between them—one they both didn't want to acknowledge, and only Sora knew what lay buried in its depths. Riku wasn't ready to see what was buried, but he wanted to at least acknowledge the chasm. It was a start.

"What're we doing?" Sora wondered. His bicep tensed beneath Riku's hand, and his expression had taken on a concerned edge.

"This..." Riku lifted the shell and hesitated, his fingers running over its surface. It was faintly warm. "Well, I think my memories are in here."

Sora's eyes widened, and Riku knew he understood what that meant. And when Sora paused, looking as though he wanted to say something, Riku also knew that Sora had come to the same conclusion he had.

Finally, Sora spoke up, his tone careful so as to not start an argument. "The memories you lost were... really, really, _really _important, Riku, but..."

"They hurt you," Riku inserted calmly.

Sora blinked. "Huh?"

His matter-of-fact attitude must have thrown Sora off guard. Riku released his arm and sighed before backtracking. "I can tell. The way you've been acting... You're trying to pretend something's all right." He lowered his gaze and tried to keep his cool. Best to get this out of the way now. He took a deep breath and lifted his eyes again to meet Sora's. "I... did something to hurt you, didn't I?"

Sora was silent for a few seconds, his gaze steadily locked with Riku's. Then he finally shook his head and, his brows knitting, he finally replied. "It's more than that, Riku. There are a lot of things I want to tell you, but I _can't_ because... you won't remember why it's important." He paused, his fingers fidgeting with Einlanzer's hilt. "You made the decision to give her your memories, so..." His voice dropped, openly reluctant now. "It's your decision to get them back."

So even though Sora obviously wanted him to remember, he was ultimately leaving it up to Riku.

But then, even though Riku had obviously wanted Sora to stay with him, he had ultimately left it up to Sora.

"And you... what about _your_ decision?" he asked Sora, managing a small smile.

He knew what Sora had decided, but he still wasn't sure of the reason behind the decision. Maybe it didn't matter. Maybe Riku needed to have the kind of faith in Sora that Sora seemed to have in him.

All right.

He'd break the shell and get his memories back. As soon as they got back to Traverse Town and rested up, he'd sit Sora down and do it. If Sora was there, he was sure things would turn out okay.

Sora returned the smile. "My decision..."

Riku nodded, his lips pulling into a wider smile. "Your decision."

Then, in a slow, deliberate movement, he held his hand out for Sora. He was aware of the others watching them, and their attention only comforted him. If Sora could freely take his hand now, Riku wouldn't be ashamed of what he had done.

Sora hesitated.

Riku studied his expression carefully as those soft eyes glanced over his hand, no doubt recognizing the gesture. Back to the beginning again. Except this time when he took his hand, they would wind up in a better place.

Finally, with a carefree curl to his lips, Sora reached for his hand.

Riku honestly was expecting it to go smoothly. Just a grasp of two hands, maybe a relieved laugh, and then they'd be on their way. Together.

He hadn't foreseen the interloper.

The movement came so quickly that Riku hardly had time to react, and he was obviously not the only one, because none of the others were quick enough to stop him, either.

Firm arms suddenly grabbed Sora from behind and jerked him away from Riku.

"Wah!!"

Sora struggled, one of his elbows catching his kidnapper in the ribs, and that was enough of a delay for Riku to figure out what was going on.

Yami was taking Sora.

A dark portal had sprung up behind them, and he was already halfway into it with Sora.

"NO!!"

Donald aimed his wand. "Stop!"

But with a simple flick of his hand, Yami sent a wave of darkness out, crashing into Donald and Goofy. Cloud flew out of the darkness with his buster sword already aimed to kill, and Leon was right behind him, fury in his eyes, but with another wave of Yami's hand, the familiar ghost of a clock appeared in front of the men. The hands drew to a stop, and so did Leon and Cloud.

"Ow, _let go_—!" Sora yelled. "What are you doing?!"

"Completing my current mission," was Yami's only explanation as he forced Sora into the portal with him.

Right into the darkness. Probably back to Hollow Bastion, which Riku _still _couldn't reach by gummi ship. But there was no way he was going to let Sora get taken from him again, not like _this._

He had only one choice.

Riku lunged after them, panic fueling his motions as he dove into the portal before it could close completely.

Darkness swept around him like a welcoming embrace, silken and frozen and enveloping him with so much ease that it almost felt like he was returning home. Gone was the pressure of water around him. All he had was silence now. Silence and darkness.

So he closed his eyes, thought of Sora's carefree smile, and let the black current carry him away.

-o-o-

As soon as he felt his feet touch the cold stone of the bastion floor, Sora jerked out of Yami's grasp and shoved him away, already lifting Einlanzer in warning. But Yami didn't seem interested in Sora at all.

His amber eyes focused on the portal of darkness they had just come out of, a hint of hesitance lingering on his face as if he had forgotten something. He didn't seem concerned at all about the sword at his neck or the livid expression on Sora's face. Or the fact that they were both naked and dripping wet and shivering from the cold—but at least human.

Sora wasn't in the mood to care about that, either. He gripped Einlanzer's hilt harder and gestured wildly back at the darkness. "Why did you do that?! Take me _back_!"

As the portal dispersed into nothing, Yami finally turned his gaze to Sora, calm and guarded. "I am afraid I cannot do that," he said patiently. With a turn of his wrist, darkness swirled around his hand like a ball of black flames, then suddenly vanished again, leaving behind two large towels. He offered one to Sora. "Here."

Shaking his head, Sora lowered his sword as anger swelled inside of him. His fingers were trembling, and so was his jaw as he tried to stifle his emotions, but... he had never been great at that. He'd always admired Riku for remaining so cool and composed all the time, not like him, prone to outbursts and tears whenever something hadn't gone his way.

But what had gone wrong this time? _Why _was he back here?

He squeezed his eyes shut and lowered his face, not caring that he was about to be a baby.

He and Riku had finally decided to move on and patch things up, to try being best friends again, to fight together and work out whatever issues they still had with each other. Worst yet, Sora had started to trust Yami. So _why_...?

"Why did you do that...?" he asked again.

The soft weight of a towel draped over his head and bare shoulders. He risked a glance up, but he could only see up to Yami's neck because of the towel in his eyes. He started to pull it off, but when Yami began speaking, he hesitated to listen.

"You were never supposed to have been on that world, Sora. Ursula crossed Maleficent by taking you from here—Maleficent's territory. So she sent me to bring you back. That is the sole reason I went there."

Sora yanked off his towel and glared up at Yami. "Then why did you wait so long to snatch me and run?! You could have just grabbed me on the beach! Why wait til it was over?! Why wait til I was about to leave with Riku and finally fix things?!"

This time, his display of anger had an affect on Yami, whose guarded expression faltered at Sora's words. He averted his gaze, looking a little confused. "I... wanted to help."

"_Help?_ You only made things _worse_," Sora pointed out. Why was Yami acting like this? He knew Yami wasn't stupid; wasn't it obvious that Sora didn't belong here? He belonged at Riku's side, not here with Maleficent, not here with _him_. "You make me so mad," he continued, his throat hurting from the knot of emotion growing there, strangling his voice. "Why do you keep doing this to me? Do you _hate _me? Do you want me to hate _you_?" When Yami met his gaze again, Sora stepped forward, practically pleading. "I was really close to liking you, Yami! I don't get you at all! Why help me so much if you're only going to betray me again?!"

Now Yami looked awkward—put on the spot—as he should have been. It was like he hadn't even thought about this from Sora's side. Yami hesitated, his fingers curled against the towel he had wrapped around his waist, then he swiped a hand through his wet hair to draw it over one shoulder. Nervous. He was nervous.

"I apologize... for complicating your life..."

But he didn't _sound_ nervous.

Sora clenched his hand into the towel Yami had given him and held it to his chest, feeling his eyes burn. "Are you making _fun _of me..?"

Yami actually sighed and pressed a hand to his forehead. "If only I _were_," he said with a dry laugh, then shook his head. "Sora..." He turned his gaze to the side again. "One day you will understand why the worlds cannot run based purely on likes and dislikes. Hate me if you wish. I know I more than deserve it from you. However... let it be known that my motive was _not_ to upset you." He slowly returned his gaze to Sora. "Your hate is merely a byproduct of my..."

But he trailed off mid-sentence when he noticed Sora's watery eyes.

Sora sniffed loudly and swallowed before finishing for Yami. "Your what? Your _mission_?" He wiped his eyes with the back of his arm as he pressed on. "If other people's hearts are that unimportant to you, you're no better than Jafar or Ursula..."

Or Maleficent, but Sora's accusation fell short when interrupted by the familiar rap of a staff against the floor.

When he whirled around to face Maleficent herself, he pulled the towel around his waist and held Einlanzer partly behind his back.

She drifted into the room with silent footfalls, her large raven perched on her shoulder. Its eyes narrowed in Yami's direction before focusing on Sora, its wings spreading almost as if it were eager. Like it was expecting something to happen.

"Haha, how quaint," Maleficent commented as she drew closer to them. "The two marionettes caught off script. Perhaps it is time I set your wayward strings straight once again."

Yami tensed, his gaze hardening.

Maleficent cracked the base of her scepter against the ground again. The sound thundered through Sora like the storm on the beach, raising his nerves on edge all over again, and soon it was apparent _why_—

Pools of darkness formed around them, but instead of shadow heartless climbing out of their inky depths, they were hideous goblins—bulbous cheeks, hooked noses, leathery olive skin, and dilapidated armor... If not for their blazing yellow eyes and the familiar black and red emblems marking their chests, Sora wouldn't have thought of them as heartless at all.

They launched out of the darkness with monkeylike agility and flew past Sora, heading straight to Yami instead.

Sora whirled around to stop them, but they were already swarming around Yami. Sora saw his amber eyes widen, then there was a surge of darkness as he lashed out, driving them back, but they just kept coming at him. He heard Yami cry out as one of them yanked his wet hair and pulled him down, and he disappeared into the dark mob.

"_NO_—!" Sora shouted, and he dove into throng without thinking, swinging Einlanzer hard. The blade bounced off their armor, but he struggled forward, getting in between two of the goblin heartless even as their sharp claws pushed him back.

"You disobeyed me," Maleficent crooned with dark pleasure as she watched the skirmish. "I said to return here at once with the boy. Letting him rekindle old friendships—are you trying to make this harder on him?" She chuckled as she circled them. "Now would be an ideal time to tell him the truth."

As Sora kicked a heartless in her direction, it burst into darkness and disappeared before it could hit her. "I'm not listening to you!" he yelled as he pried another creature off Yami. "You're just trying to trick me!! It's not Yami's fault, so stop attacking him! _I'm_ the one who didn't want to come back to this ugly castle! Just leave him _alone_!!"

Another amused chuckle. "_Fascinating_. Even after his continuous betrayals, you protect him. I wonder—where is his worth? Why willingly endanger yourself on his behalf?"

Sora's mind whirled with confusion as he tried to make sense of what she was saying, but right then he didn't care if any of it did make sense. Yami was in trouble. Sora didn't know why he felt the need to help someone who kept making his life more miserable, but—did he need a reason? Yami needed help. Sora _wanted_ to help. What was wrong with things being that simple?

He shoved past two more heartless and reached through the curtain of darkness surrounding Yami. Grabbing onto the first hand he could find—or an armpit, that worked, too!—he jerked Yami towards him and wrapped his arms around his nude, quivering body, shielding him from danger.

Both of them were breathing raggedly. Sora could feel the older boy's heartbeat pounding erratically against his arm, and his dark skin was clammy. Somewhere in the brawl, he had lost his towel, but that was the least of their problems.

Something was wrong with Yami. Sora had _seen _how powerful Yami could be. Back at the coliseum, or even back in that watery world, with all of his magic and command of the darkness. A handful of heartless shouldn't have been able to shake Yami up this badly. It almost reminded Sora of that time he'd stumbled across Yami suffering from the darkness and how much pain it looked like he had been in... before Maleficent had interrupted and punished Yami.

Was that what the heartless had been doing to him? Giving him darkness? He didn't seem to have any wounds...

Behind them, Maleficent's staff came to a rest against the ground. "Perhaps I underestimated you."

He heard the rustle of her raven's wings and her robe, and the heartless suddenly took hold of him and dragged him to his feet before he could resist. Sora felt his towel slipping. He was turned towards her and held in place, chilly heartless hands gripping his arms with unyielding force. Yami was forced up as well, and with an audible wince, he stumbled to Sora's side. Heartless crowded around them.

Maleficent gently cupped Sora's chin and leaned close, her painted lips curled. "Your heart is much too bright, boy." Releasing him, she calmly glanced between him and Yami. "Very well. We shall continue this game a little longer." She focused on Yami, and with a swift movement of her arm, she had her scepter thrust beneath his chin. "_You_."

Yami's eyes burned with an intensity that Sora couldn't even read. Hatred? Disgust? Anger? Whatever it was, there was murder there.

Maleficent didn't seem concerned with that. She knew the two of them were too exhausted to win any fight right now.

Lifting his chin with her scepter, she met Yami's gaze with a pleasant smile. "I will grant you a final chance to prove your worth before I personally exterminate you." She pulled her scepter back, letting his chin fall. "Bring me back the keyblade master. I don't think I'm quite done with him yet. Do so, or I will finish turning you into a heartless."

Yami's face jerked back up, his amber eyes stark with surprise now.

Even Sora gasped, panic and dread coiling inside of him as he tried jerking against the heartless holding him captive. "_NO!_" Not that, not _Riku_—could she even _do _that?!

But then Maleficent turned to him, her fingers running slowly along her raven's back as the bird leered at him. "And you, boy. Find the one responsible for meddling with the heartless machine. Or..." She traced a finger beneath the bird's beak, a delighted chuckle lacing her next words. "I will turn your precious keyblade master into a heartless, too."

_NO—_

"Don't you touch him!!" Sora snapped as he wrestled with his captors, but as soon as he yanked a wrist free, another claw clamped around it to stop him. "_Grrr_—let _go_!"

Maleficent merely smiled and drew away from them, her tone darkened with warning. "And to make sure neither of you disobey me again..."

Sora stiffened as she lifted her scepter and pointed it at them.

Blue lightning crackled outward and struck them, and Sora felt a scream tear from his throat as something seared into his wrist, like a thousand burning needles piercing through his skin.

Then the heartless released them, and Sora dropped to his knees grasping his throbbing wrist, his towel hanging loosely at his hips. He turned his arm over to look at the damage, and fear filtered through him as he saw what was there.

An outline of a pink heart, glowing, softly pulsating beneath his skin as if it were alive. It seemed harmless enough, but he knew instinctively what it was.

A countdown.

The very tip of it was already bleeding into black, and he was sure he would be seeing more black in it and less pink within a few more hours.

"Both of you have two days. Use your time wisely," she advised. The amusement was gone from her voice, back to the frigid self-importance she always seemed to carry. "If you fail, you will discover _why _I am called the mistress of evil."

Sora glanced up through his bangs as she turned, flicked her robes outward, and teleported away with a burst of green flames. Then the heartless slunk back into the shadows.

Once again, Sora was left with Yami, alone and confused. Maleficent had known exactly how to hurt them.

Threatening to hurt Riku was one thing, but having Yami go after Riku or she'd turn Yami into a _heartless_... That meant Sora couldn't just go to Riku to protect him from Yami. As mad as he was with Yami, he didn't deserve being turned into a heartless. No one did.

Rubbing the sting out of his wrist, he drew his towel more securely around his waist before he climbed to his feet and approached Yami. He, too, had fallen to his knees, his legs angled behind him and his body drawn taut as if he were still in pain. His wet, tangled hair fell over his shoulders as he bowed forward, clutching his wrist.

Sora drew close to him, eyeing Yami's back cautiously, not sure what to expect from him. He was naked and weakened, but that didn't necessarily mean he wasn't dangerous. Sora remembered the last time he had approached Yami after Maleficent had gotten done with him—Yami had called _Id _out, and Sora had apparently attacked Traverse Town...

"Yami?"

He hesitantly rested a hand against Yami's shoulder blade. He felt the muscles shift beneath his hand as Yami turned to glance at him. Sora met his gaze briefly—torn between anger and sympathy when he saw the mixed emotions in his eyes. Then he lowered his attention to Yami's wrist.

There—

A heartless emblem, glowing softly white, also pulsating, but bleeding dark red at the very tip as their time ticked away. An ultimatum, just like Sora's. In a twisted way, they would have to work together if they wanted to get out of this unscathed.

Sora could go after Riku himself to stop Yami from snatching him, but then Yami would get turned into a heartless. And if Yami beat him, Riku was doomed either way... Maleficent would get Riku if Sora failed to complete his mission. But Sora couldn't just let Yami go off and retrieve Riku to let Maleficent do as she pleased with him.

So in a way, they were both allies here, _and _enemies.

And when Yami covered the heartless emblem on his wrist and averted his gaze, Sora knew he had come to the same conclusion.

No matter what happened after this, it couldn't end well.

_One_ of them would have to bite the dust.

-o-o-

Submersed.

Just a black abyss pressing in around him, a dark cradle. Soft, inviting... But cold, like ice trickling through his veins.

He breathed deep and felt the darkness flow past him in silken waves, comforting, welcoming, practically singing.

Then, a tangible touch: fingertips trailing his shoulder.

They swept his hair aside, strands stiffened by the water droplets clinging frozen to him.

A wash of warm breath against his neck—

**So frail.**

He closed his eyes, but the darkness was still there.

He didn't like it.

**Open your heart, and you'll gain what it is that you desire.**

Or... did he?

His heart shuddered, no matter how hard he tried to ignore it. He'd lost count of how many times this voice had found him like this. He couldn't even recall hearing him before a few days ago, but now—

**Power, unbridled at your fingertips.**

Now he was a constant whisper, a dark ghost haunting his shadow within the shadows whenever his heart strayed towards desperation.

**Power to keep what you hold dear close.**

Warmth tickled his ear, sending a pleasant shiver through him, reminding him that he was alive, very much alive, even here in the darkness. Wherever he was going. However he had gotten here.

_Sora... _

Right... Sora.

**Power to punish those who stand in your way.**

Water trickled down his neck, hints of crystallized water melting from the warmth of the breath teasing his skin.

**Riku...**

A deep voice, smooth and rich like heated caramel flowing through his soul, husky with something forbidden—soft lips whispering directly against his ear—

**Can you feel it?**

And when gloved fingers skimmed down his spine, he felt himself jerk away and stumble, his numb feet catching footing all of a sudden.

Then the darkness was stripped away, shredded into wisps of black as reality came crashing back.

Or rather, he came crashing back into reality.

The portal closed behind him as he staggered through shallow water and collapsed onto wet rocks, his body trembling uncontrollably. His skin was on fire—_cold _fire—as it woke from its semi-numb state, readjusting to the heat and humidity of the air. The ice in his hair was quickly melting away, but the ice inside of him burned fiercely, not even dwindling as he lay there a few moments and tried to collect himself.

Was that what it was like to travel through darkness on his own? He didn't remember it being like _that _when he had gone with Sora...

Hands shaking, he summoned the keyblade back to him and hugged its faint warmth to his body, realizing dimly that he was human again. Did that mean he had left the world? Or had Cloud's magic worn off? He was still naked, too, except for Ursula's necklace...

Wait.

Sora. Yami. The darkness. He had followed them into the darkness.

Where were they?

Swallowing past the inferno in this throat, he struggled to lift himself and survey his new surroundings.

Breathtaking beauty met his eyes.

He had landed between a set of mossy stonework columns, tropical flowers of all colors interlaced with lush green vines along the cracked stone.

A gorgeous blue sky hung overhead beyond a ring of thick clouds—or mist, he realized, like a mist from a waterfall. And there _were _waterfalls, all around, and in the distance, spanning as far as he could see, cascading from the mountains that stretched around the circular lake. And in the center—

A crackling dome of blue energy, large enough to surround a city or two. What...?

But despite the stunning scenery, he couldn't hear a sign of animal life. Not one bird circling the falls. Not one fish in the surf at his feet. Not one lizard darting through the foliage overhead.

He had a bad feeling about this.

Starting to sit up, he heard a sudden rustle to his left.

Heart leaping, he jerked his head around, catching a glimpse of dark skin and white hair, and—

_No way, is Yami __**running **__from me?!_

And where had he found clothes already?

Deciding it didn't matter, Riku unsteadily picked himself up, letting his fury fill him with the strength to move on. He had to catch up and get Sora back. He wasn't going to just let Yami get away with this, not when he and Sora had been so close to making amends and moving on! New territory or not, Riku wasn't going to let the bastard win.

Clenching the keyblade tightly, he began to climb the slippery rocks, his muscles screaming and the world spinning around him. He wasn't sure how he did it, but he managed to make it onto firm land, the soft soil underfoot making it easier for him to stand.

And when he straightened himself to continue on, that's when he saw them.

Hunched black bodies twitching with excitement, yellow eyes trained on him and his keyblade. More heartless were climbing out of the plants around him, some even perched on the stone columns, all waiting to make their move.

Riku froze in his tracks, dread filling him to the core.

"...you've _got_ to be kidding me."

-o-o-

* * *

_Finally _done with Atlantica. I had been looking forward to this chapter for SO long, but when I finally got here, I ran into problem after problem... But I'm really happy with how it's turned out.

I'm extremely excited and nervous about the next chapter—excited because I love the ideas I have for it, but nervous because, well... this world wasn't in KH or KH2. ;D AND GUESS WHAT, if I keep up the pace updating like I've been, I will get to reveal who Yami is before the end of the year!! YAY, FINALLY!!


	40. Ch 23: Facade of Happiness

_Author Notes: _

We're getting much, much closer to the Big Revelations in the story, so let's enjoy the Disney (and joint studios) while we can. :D I love reading your responses about Yami, no matter what is said about him—good, bad, ambivalent. His identity is coming very soon, too, so be sure to stick around.

Have no fear if you haven't seen the Disney movies SS features. I've tried my best to explain the worlds in a way that it's like watching the movies, only condensed. I hope it's still enjoyable. I know I had fun writing it! Except I FAIL at writing short chapters. Guh.

_**Happy 6th birthday, Stygian Solace!**_

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-three: **_**Façade of Happiness**

-o-o-

The heartless ripped at his skin as he twisted through them, his keyblade the only thing separating him from their dark talons. Nothing to wear, nowhere to go, no strength left to spare—and they wouldn't have any mercy on his heart if he fell here and now.

They had driven him out of the foliage onto a watery outcropping, where a stream cut through the middle of the precipice and spilled into the massive lake below. It wasn't a deadly fall, but it wasn't the fall that had him worried. It was the swim.

The agonizing burn of his muscles and the blood trickling down his bare arms and legs were the perfect reminders that, even with the keyblade on his side, he was still only human.

The trip through the darkness had sapped his energy, and every movement since he had stepped onto this world had felt like needles sinking deeper and deeper into his nerves. His muscles were jelly, his lungs were an inferno, and the only thing that had kept him alive in the past five minutes had been his pathetic attempt at running on two legs after swimming for days.

He was sure the adrenaline coursing through him was the only reason he was still standing.

But as he stumbled to the edge of the cliff and felt the world careen around him, he knew not even thatwould keep him on his feet much longer. The heartless closed in around him, their voices ringing louder than ever through the keyblade, whose song was now too soft to hear.

With a fierce low swing, he tried to force the creatures back as they swarmed onto the precipice after him, black climbing over black in a writhing cloud of darkness. Those he wounded only made way for more, countless pairs of glowing eyes all focused on him as the shadows crept forward through the stream.

The cool mist from the waterfall below kissed the bare skin of his back, a warning of what lay just behind him.

Prepared for their attack, he shifted his feet against the rutted stone and bit back the sting. Keyblade angled in front of him, it trembled in time with his unsteady grip as he took a careful step back.

Something cold clamped around his ankle and pulled his leg out from under him.

His knee slammed into ground and scraped across it as he twisted around, cleaving his weapon into the spindly black arm that had dragged him down. He saw more heartless clambering over the edge of the cliff and felt his stomach sink under the icy weight of dread.

Surrounded.

He grasped the shell around his neck and struggled back to his feet, focusing past the fresh wave of dizziness that washed over him.

But then, over the endless chatter of the heartless and the rush of the waterfall below, he heard something else—

A mechanic drone, and it was growing louder.

Riku glanced up and spotted the impossible gliding straight towards him: three slate gray figures—a hammerhead shark flanked by two large fish—each bearing a human rider. Flying fish-shaped vehicles?

The guy on the hammerhead shouted something he couldn't understand, and before Riku knew what was happening, twin jets of sizzling blue energy shot out of the fishes' mouths and into the crowd of heartless, scattering them. Though he himself hadn't been hit, the shockwave sent Riku to his knees again.

Then the hammerhead decelerated and pulled up beside him, cutting off the remaining heartless, and Riku looked up. The one driving the machine wasn't what he would call a typical hero.

Gangly like Sora, was his first thought. Then he scanned up the man's skinny arm to the resolute gaze behind his saucer-sized glasses. He even had copper brown hair. Not Sora, though. He was older—maybe mid-twenties.

He gestured at Riku and shouted again, something foreign.

Riku shook his head. "What? I can't—"

The man's face lit with a smile, then, and he snapped his hand out to grab Riku's arm. "Understand me? Get in!" With a jerk, he pulled Riku back to his feet and up against the machine's side, far more powerful than he looked. Too exhausted to question his luck, Riku clambered onto the shark-mobile and slipped into the seat behind the lanky stranger, the vehicle feeling rough yet smooth at the same time against his bare skin, like stone, but warm.

The other two riders zipped past, blasting at the heartless to keep them from closing in again. The man threw his hand towards the gigantic blue dome behind them and commanded something in his first language. Whatever he said, the other two riders—tanned skin, white hair, _not _Yami?—turned their vehicles and sped off towards the dome.

Mind spinning, Riku slumped into his seat and tried not to think too much. "Who are you?"

The hammerhead rose back into the air, but the heartless were already swarming towards it again. Riku's savior didn't seem too concerned about the situation, though, and when he sent Riku a grin over his shoulder, there was a sparkle of excitement in his brown eyes.

"Milo James Thatch! Nice to meet you—I hope. Here we gooo!"

Riku's fingers tightened around the keyblade as the vehicle accelerated and skimmed over the heads of the heartless, past the edge of the cliff, and high above the cerulean lake. Milo steered after the two other riders, straight for the blue dome.

Questions sat at the tip of Riku's tongue, but as portals of darkness opened in front of them, he decided there were more important things to worry about.

New heartless swooped through the sky towards them, large and reptilian, their frayed leathery wings somehow keeping them aloft. Their long legs were muscular and as thick as tree trunks, set off with massive black talons that looked like they could carry a train car. Milo swerved the hammerhead between them as their legs reared for powerful kicks, and Riku ducked in time to avoid getting thwacked in the head by a passing tail.

More converged just ahead to block their straight path to the dome, their earth-toned bodies standing out against the crackling turquoise energy. Now would be a good time for a set of offensive spells, but Riku realized that, even if Sora had been here with him, he probably would have been exhausted, too.

"Hang on!"

Riku fell back against the seat and gripped the edge of the hammerhead with one hand as Milo sent it into a steep climb. They grazed past the heartless at breakneck speed, and Riku cast a quick glance behind them to see a whole trail of them following close behind.

"We're going in!"

At the heads-up, Riku spotted the other two riders activate some sort of blue shield around their vehicles right before they plunged into the energy dome and disappeared. Milo straightened the hammerhead out of its climb and slammed his hand onto the illuminated blue control panel in front of him.

Riku felt goosebumps run along his arms as an intense energy shimmered around the hammerhead, creating the shield he had just seen around the others, and they passed through the dome unharmed.

Behind them, the heartless weren't as lucky. Diving too quickly to stop, or just not knowing better, they crashed into the dome one by one by one.

Riku settled into his seat and tried to ignore the shrieks of the dying heartless, clear as ever through the keyblade's power. He was safe now.

As the hammerhead descended into the dome, he saw exactly what the enormous bug-zapper had been protecting.

Countless fish-shaped vehicles zoomed along invisible lanes through the stone spires of an ancient city built upon water. Tall breezeways connected buildings constructed in a series of rings, starting compact in the center and spreading out to create a pattern that almost looked like a rounded spider's web, only colorful.

A ring of tall stone statues lined the edges of the dome, arms outstretched as if in defense. An entire city—hidden, nestled away who-knew-where, protecting itself from the heartless invading its world. What kind of world had that much power?

Milo steered the hammerhead towards the center of the city, coasting beneath one of the breezeways and descending into a faded teal plaza lined with burnt orange columns and yellow towers. Riku saw the faces of the busy passersby all turn upward as Milo began shouting again before he even landed.

As soon as the vehicle settled in the middle of the gathering crowd, Milo leapt out of it, almost lost his balance during his excitement, and gestured wildly at Riku, his face lit with a smile as he called out to the people in his language.

Whatever he was raving about, it worked; Riku felt all eyes on him as Milo reached into the hammerhead and took him by his arm, lifting it and his keyblade into the air for everyone to see.

Finding it difficult to focus, Riku didn't fight the attention. The rush of battle was over now, but his heart refused to calm down.

The dark-skinned people were crowding around him now, their faces and white hair a blur.

He felt strong hands grabbing him, helping him out of the vehicle, and he slumped against someone, only held upright by Milo's grip on his arm and the support of the nameless person beside him. The excited murmur of the throng faded in and out as a chill swept through his body.

A resounding cry of, "Taneb! Taneb!" filled his ears as someone broke through the crowd, and Riku squinted up through his stringy wet bangs. It was a woman garbed in a blue and purple robe and dress, wearing a simple headdress with colorful feathers.

His vision blurred again.

"Milo!" She hurried forward, slipping her robe off as she barked at him. "You may have brought us proof of this key, but your savior is about to collapse!"

"Huh?"

Milo lowered Riku's arm, and as soon as he did, Riku's knees gave out on him. Darkness enveloped his mind and senses, then ebbed again, leaving his nerves tingling as his body tried to remain awake. He pressed a trembling hand to his face.

More shouting.

Cloth fell over his head and settled onto his shoulders, and though it was light, it felt unwelcome against his chilled skin.

"Thought he looked pale..."

"He is _exhausted_. Take him to the stateroom!"

Riku's body left the ground, hoisted by strong arms. He didn't struggle. All he did was clutch the keyblade to himself as he was escorted through the chattering people. To his right, he recognized Milo's figure walking at a brisk pace to keep up.

"Don't worry—you'll be fine," he said, a grin spread across his face despite Riku's condition. "What's your name anyway?"

Swallowing, he turned his face upward, looking past the colorful spires and fish-mobiles high above, and beyond—the blue dome shielding the entire city.

"...Riku."

"Well, Riku," Milo said, clapping him on the arm. "Welcome to Atlantis!"

-o-o-

"Wait!!"

Yami didn't turn around at the sound of his voice.

Sora grabbed his arm and tried pulling him away from the portal of darkness he had been about to disappear into, but Yami jerked free of his grasp. Einlanzer in hand, Sora put himself between Yami and the portal as if it would make a difference.

"You're not going to get Riku, are you?"

His eyes searched Yami's face, those white brows knitted and his jaw tight with restrained emotion, but Yami avoided his gaze.

"I have not decided yet."

"You can't," Sora said. He clenched his hand into the towel around his waist and shook his head, a knot growing in his throat as he thought about the situation he and Yami were in. The curse Maleficent had branded him with felt heavy on his wrist. He resisted the urge to rub it, instead seeking out the one on Yami's wrist. Why was his a heartless symbol? What had Maleficent meant, _finish _turning Yami into a heartless? He wanted to ask, but it was obvious Yami wasn't in the mood for talking. Instead, he settled with a plea. "You can't listen to Maleficent. We have to fight this, okay? She wants us to freak out. She doesn't want us to work together, that's why she's doing this..."

"I know." Yami met Sora's eyes at last. Hesitating, he clasped his fingers over the emblem on his wrist. "But she gave you a task as well."

"I'm not worried about me," Sora said, standing his ground. "Look—I'll help you. I won't let her turn you into a heartless." He curled his hand over his heart. "I promise!"

A faint smile pulled at Yami's lips, but it didn't reach his eyes. "With what weapon do you propose to defeat her with? That plain sword you are carrying? The magic she herself taught you? She would have you on your knees in seconds."

Whether or not Yami had a good point, Sora still felt a pang inside as if he'd been insulted. He lowered his sword and pursed his lips, trying to ignore the ticklish sensation of his tears threatening to return. He was tired of letting everyone else tell him what he could or couldn't do, just because he wasn't the keyblade master.

Refusing to give up that easily, Sora lifted his face. "I don't want to be enemies."

Yami's eyes met his again. Then he gently pushed Sora aside and stepped towards the dark portal.

Sora let him. He'd said what he had to say.

But before he disappeared into it, Yami paused and released a soft sigh. "The way to Ansem's secret lab is through his old study. The one from before." He didn't have to elaborate. Sora hadn't forgotten the state he had found Yami in there and the way he had left the room in ruins. Not to mention the giant painting of the man who looked like an older version of Yami...

As Yami stepped into the portal without another word, Sora watched after him, unsure of where he was going or what he was planning, but...

He had a feeling that deep inside of Yami there was more light than darkness, and despite everything that had happened between them, Sora may just be able to trust him.

Besides, Yami was right about one thing. He didhave a task to do to get rid of Maleficent's curse, and now that Yami had given him a good lead, he couldn't waste time worrying. Sure, if Yami decided to kidnap Riku, Riku was in trouble, but if Sora failed his own task, Riku was in trouble anyway.

Time to get to work.

Tightening the towel around his waist, he decided he'd better get some clothes first.

With Maleficent around, the heartless probably wouldn't attack him, but with Id still being a brat, he wasn't gonna take any chances. What kind of idiot would make a heartless machine anyway, let alone _use _it?

As he headed for his bedroom, he wondered what kind of person was capable of sneaking behind Maleficent's back in the bastion on top of being able to use the machine repeatedly without her knowing until the damage had been done. (What had the damage been anyway? Why did she care if someone was using it?)

Maybe the culprit was one of those mysterious voices he had heard the other day after he'd gotten back from Agrabah. He couldn't remember what they had been talking about, but he remembered their voices well, and that Yami had called them his enemy and that he had been warding them off until recently.

It was looking possible that one of them, or all of them, were the ones he was looking for. His idea and Yami's tip both led him to the same place.

Ansem's old study.

Hurrying to his room, Sora pulled on the first pair of clean boxers he could, then grabbed his last new outfit from... whenever they'd gotten here. He slipped on the short-sleeved hoodie, carrot orange with dark blue stripes up the sides that matched the blue pouch, with yellow stars at the ends of the blue drawstrings instead of just knots (and he'd decided that would be the last time he let the girls help him shop). The cargo shorts matched well enough—mostly dark blue, except for a few orange accents along the zippers, hems, and pockets.

He fished around for his dirty clothes, finding his crown chain and attaching it to his current pants. Then he slipped his feet into some ankle socks and crammed them into a pair of sneakers. His crown necklace was on the night table where he'd left it after Agrabah before looking for Yami... yesterday? No, the day before, now.

Raking his hands through his hair a few times to untangle it, he turned back towards his door.

And froze.

Something had caught his eye.

He approached the shadows in the corner of his room and picked the small object up. His heart sank when he realized what it was that he was holding. He remembered what Riku had called the paopu-shaped charm.

Oathkeeper...

At this point, Riku wouldn't even remember this existed, would he?

Sora closed his fingers over it and sighed. Tucking the pendant into his hoodie pouch, he left his room and walked the empty halls of the bastion all the way to the back of the castle. Postern, Yami had called it.

This time the coral-colored door was closed, and no voices drifted from beyond it. Sora creaked it open and stepped inside, pausing just within the threshold to again inspect the damage Yami had done to the dusty study. Books, display tubes, even the desk... All broken. Except for that portrait of Ansem. Why hadn't he touched that?

A soft slam made him jump, and he turned to glare at the now closed door behind him. Maybe this place _was _haunted.

He moved into the room, not sure what he was looking for. Yami had led him here, so where was the way into the secret lab? He hoped Yami hadn't been jerking his chain and that there really was a heartless machine somewhere in this area.

He pulled a few of the books off the shelves, looking for a secret lever somewhere, but he found nothing, not even behind the torn blueprints on the walls.

All the while, he could have sworn he felt someone watching him.

Glancing at the painting behind him, he brushed the feeling off as his imagination. The portrait of Ansem was as solemn as always, trapped with infinite patience as if mocking Sora. Well, he could be patient if he wanted to.

With some effort, he managed to lift the desk chair into an upright position, and he pushed it close to the cracked desk before collapsing into it. He slouched onto part of the desk and rested his chin on his arms, looking at the closed door ahead.

The answer was here, but where? What was he missing?

Thinking about it was making his eyelids droop. With a soft yawn, he rested his cheek against the crook of his arm and stared blearily at a ripped diagram on the wall. Maybe the long day was finally catching up to him. Exploring a dusty old study wasn't nearly as exciting as racing through kelp forests or beating up big sharks with Riku...

...was Yami really going to go after him?

Closing his eyes, Sora breathed deep and buried his face, trying not to worry.

-o-o-

The sound of giggling woke Riku, but it was the chirrup of birds and street clatter that coaxed his eyes into opening. For a moment he could have pretended the giggling had come from Sora and Kairi or one of his other friends, and that he had only dreamt the last few months had happened, but...

He was staring at a foreign ceiling once again, and the keyblade's warmth still rested in his hand.

He wondered when his adventure had stopped being an adventure and had become a nightmare instead. Maybe that was one of the answers his contained memories had for him...

He clasped a hand around Ursula's necklace, relieved to find it still hanging from his neck.

Testing his strength, he slowly pushed himself into an upright position. Though he felt lightheaded for a few seconds, it gradually cleared, giving him peace of mind and a chance to relax and examine his surroundings.

He was in a gourd-shaped room, its windows and single door open-aired, and with primitive designs like spirals carved into the sandy orange walls. A red sheer drapery cast from the ceiling over the mound of cushions he had been resting on, and through the split in the drapes, he could see two young faces peeking at him from over the curve of the window.

As soon as his eyes landed on them, one of them—a young boy, couldn't have been older than eight—took off running along what sounded like a wooden dock, but Riku couldn't see it. Then again, nearby he could hear the calming slosh of water against rocks, and he remembered what he had seen of the city when Milo had flown over it. Water, clear and blue, surrounding and infiltrating the city.

As the boy's thumping feet grew distant, he heard his high voice announcing something in his native tongue. Atlantis... Atlantean? The other child, an older girl maybe about Tidus's age, giggled and continued to watch him from behind the window ledge.

Riku supposed he shouldn't have felt self-conscious after Milo had presented him naked to the entire city, but he still found himself checking to make sure he was decently covered by the robe he had been placed in before he'd passed out. How long had he been asleep, anyway? Yami and Sora were probably long gone by now, if they had ever even been on this world.

Sighing, he was about to slump back into the air-soft pillows when he heard more footsteps against the wooden dock. A lot more. He dismissed the keyblade and leaned to glance out the door.

A line of five Atlantean women were bustling towards him along a low-hanging wooden bridge, each carrying some sort of platter or basket or pile of cloth balanced on her head with one hand. They each wore long skirts tied at the sides and colorful tops with varying degrees of cover, and all of them had radiant aquamarine crystals dangling from their necks.

The one in front, a short, robust woman with a double chin and her white hair pulled into a fishtail, addressed the young girl outside. "Shati-toap!"

The girl left the window, casting another look at Riku before calling for the older woman. "Matim!"

The two spoke in low tones before the girl squeezed past the other women and ran down the length of the bridge before disappearing from sight. Riku sat back as the group of women entered the room, 'Matim' regarding him with a laughing smile.

"Degim, duwer-toap!" She moved towards him and lowered the shallow basket she was carrying. "Mekh anik mokihn eh sehtoat dupp?"

Riku parted his lips, unsure of what she was asking, let alone how to respond.

One of the other women, this one with a heart-shaped face and a long braid, leaned in and whispered to Matim. "Riku-toap." Then, setting down the wooden platter she had brought, she offered Riku a warm smile. "Greetings, outsider. Your name is Riku, yes?"

He relaxed a smidgen when she started speaking to him in his own language. "Yeah..."

"Come," she said, nodding back at the women while still regarding him. "We have been ordered to prepare you."

"Prepare me?" he wondered.

The other women began setting their items down—utensils, cloth, a small box of trinkets or jewelry. Matim's basket contained what looked like bathing products, and the other woman's platter had a brush and a bowl of turquoise powder. Was this all for him?

Then it hit him. _Prepare him. _And the way Milo had been treating him, too, like some sort of hero before he had even done anything. These people were expecting his help, and so they were making him feel welcome.

That was different. Or maybe he was too used to being surrounded by guards and getting hauled off to the nearest authority whenever he landed in a new world.

Unless there was a catch... "You're not preparing me for some kind of sacrifice, are you?" he asked cautiously. He wasn't above fighting humans with his keyblade if he had to.

His comment made the women hesitate, though, and the braided woman glanced at Matim for permission before giving him an apologetic smile. "The queen and king have already made their sacrifice, Riku-toap. They will explain the situation in full to you later."

"First, a bath!"

Riku yelped as Matim yanked him off the cushions and to his feet and stripped the robe right off of him. A heavy blush heated his cheeks as he cupped his hands between his legs and gave her a wide-eyed look he hoped could transcend the language barrier for _What the heck?!_

The group of women laughed at him and, before he could protest, two of them were dragging him outside while the others set up shop inside—or whatever it was they were planning to do to him once the bath was over.

Either way, he knew he wasn't getting out of this unscathed.

-o-o-

"Whoa."

The mousy-voiced comment announced Milo's arrival.

After what Riku had been through in the past hour, he wasn't exactly ready for more company, but it was too late to hide.

Riku and the women turned as one to glance at the twiggy twenty-something, who was hovering in the doorway with a silly grin spreading across his half open mouth. Then when he seemed to realize he'd said something aloud, he adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat.

"I mean, lookin' sharp!"

Sharp? That wasn't the word Riku would have used to describe himself.

After taking the bathing products away from the women, he had bathed himself, but that hadn't stopped them from embarrassing him later. Not only had they dried him off, they had used various strips of cloth to fashion him underwear and some kind of wrapped shorts-skirt. A _dhoti_, Matim had called it. That was all they'd given him to wear. Then they had thoroughly brushed his hair and painted turquoise designs onto his left cheek, shoulder, and leg. That was when Milo had decided to show up.

Riku didn't feel sharp. He felt exposed.

Milo himself was decked out in the type of Atlantean garb he'd seen on other people, but he had exposed shoulders with the same turquoise paint Riku had drawn on one, some kind of star-burst design. He couldn't recall seeing the paint on anyone else, so maybe it was reserved for foreigners? Milo seemed very at home here, though, and even knew the language...

"Feeling better now?"

Meeting Milo's friendly smile, Riku let more of his unease slip away. "Confused but alive," he said, and waved his hands as one of the women pulled a bangle and some other jewelry out of one of the baskets. "No, no—I'm good. I don't need anymore, thanks." Then he looked back to Milo for an explanation. "Was all of this necessary?"

"Sorta. They're honoring you." His smiled widened as he stepped closer to Riku. "And at least you look the part more than I did."

Wuh? Riku frowned and started to ask _what _part, but Milo was already regarding the women and speaking to them in Atlantean. Within seconds, the women had gathered their things and had begun to file out of the guest house—but not without lingering glances back at Riku and clandestine whispers to each other.

Once they were gone, Riku sighed and flopped back against the pillows. "Do they _prepare _all the other guests here like that?"

"We, uh... don't get that many guests," Milo admitted with a laugh. Riku felt the cushions sink under his weight as he sat nearby. "Actually, my friends and I were the first guests here in eight thousand years. Well, until those monsters showed up."

Riku studied him. "Your friends?"

Milo's smile turned reminiscent. "Yeah, a team of us came here to discover Atlantis—oooor so I thought. As it turned out, most of them were just in it to steal Atlantis's power source to sell it to the highest bidder." Pounding a fist against his chest, he smirked. "Believe it or not, I once saved Atlantis myself! Well, with help." He laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "A lot of help. I was just a linguist back then. Well, still am. But, uh..." Hesitating, he sat back and released a sigh of his own. "But that was ages ago."

The way he stared off into the room, letting silence reign, reminded Riku of the awkward conversations he would have with Leon or Cloud, the kind where he could tell the person he was talking to had seen and experienced more than they were willing to share. He decided not to press Milo for more.

Even if he had, his questions would have fallen short at the sight of who came to visit him next.

_Wow__,_ was what came to mind when the woman entered the guest house. She was beautiful, no denying it. Though nothing about her state of dress told him differently, he could tell she wasn't just another Atlantean woman here to pamper him like the others had. It was something about the way she carried herself... That, and she didn't eye him as if he were some sort of god.

Quite the opposite.

She looked Riku over and frowned. "You are so skinny! When is the last time you ate?"

Not that she mentioned it, he was kind of hungry. When _was _the last time he'd eaten? It'd been those clams with Sora. Yesterday afternoon?

Without letting him answer, she turned right back around and shouted out the door in Atlantean. Several children who had been peeking through the foliage cheerfully called back before running off down the bridge.

Done with whatever that had been, the woman folded her arms and returned her attention to Riku. She was older than him, probably in her twenties like Milo, and like all the other Atlanteans, had mocha-colored skin and white hair.

With a nervous laugh, Milo rubbed the back of his head and gestured to her. "Riku, meet—"

"Kida," she interrupted. She approached Riku with the air of a hawk who'd flown down from her perch just to see him, and when she reached him, she planted a hand on her hip and leaned in to stare. Her eyes were a bright aquamarine, much like the crystal hanging from her neck.

Riku turned to Milo for an explanation for her silent scrutiny.

Milo continued on as if everything were normal. "Kida," he echoed, "who happens to be the queee..." But he trailed off when Kida's gaze flitted to his and her lips pursed. He adjusted his glasses and gave a nervous grin. "—queen's bodyguard!"

Her eyes returned to Riku, studying him for another long moment before she stepped back at last. "Take him to the royal chambers when he is done eating." Then she turned away and left, and both Riku and Milo watched after her as she disappeared down the bridge.

A crooked smile was on Milo's face. "She's something, huh?"

"Yeah," Riku said. Now that she was gone, he tried to shake the uneasy feeling she'd given him, almost as though he'd been dealing with another, more familiar dark-skinned, white-haired individual... but he wasn't sure why thinking about Yami made him feel like that. Besides the way the jerk had taken Sora from him and, in turn, gotten Riku stuck here.

Kida's voice floated to them through the open door as she spoke with someone beyond the bridge, and within a minute, an older man and a little girl entered the room next, both carrying large trays of unidentifiable foods. Milo spoke to them in Atlantean, and they placed the trays on a low-sitting table before kneeling in front of Riku and Milo until Milo cheerfully dismissed them.

"Help yourself," he told Riku, but that was easier said than done.

When Riku settled himself at the table to eat, he saw the utensils he was supposed to use—a spiral-shaped scoop, something that looked like two thimbles attached by a thread, and a strange fork with prongs made out of flimsy wires—and he was at a loss.

The food? Not so much a problem. He was used to strange looking seafood, so the dozen-eyed green crawfish wouldn't have bothered him. Except it was alive. The contents of the rest of the bowls looked edible: thick, flat noodles, unknown orange crunchies, and several sticks of skewered meat.

What mattered to him was that it smelled great, and it was free. He picked up the spirally scoop and started on the noodles first, and when Milo laughed at his attempt to use it, he moved in to help him.

"I used to have problems eating, too," he admitted as he showed Riku how to use it properly. "But some things don't change. Kida? She's been like that since I met her."

"She's always stared at and intimidated people she's just met?" Riku asked around a mouthful.

Milo's grin returned. "No. Well—she kind of did that to me, too, when I met her. But my friends and I had been Atlantis's first guests in thousands of years, so I guess she had reason to."

"You said that was ages ago."

"It was," Milo said, and with a push of his glasses, he sat back. "_You're _Atlantis's first guest in almost a century."

Riku nearly choked. He blinked at Milo, trying to comprehend what he was trying to say. "How old are—wait. How do you look—?"

"So young?" Milo finished for him, his amusement unfading. "Believe me, it was a shock for me, too! Take Kida, for example. Looks good for over eight thousand years, right?"

This time Riku really did choke, and after a few seconds of Milo patting him on the back and apologizing, Riku glanced up through his bangs, gasping. "Eight—_thousand_—years?!" Just what kind of world had he landed on?

Despite almost killing Riku, Milo remained upbeat. "Yup, kinda boggles the mind, doesn't it?" He laughed and swiped a hand through his hair. "It's thanks to the heart of Atlantis. These crystals?" As he lifted the string of the blue crystal dangling from his neck, Riku noticed it was identical to the crystals all the other Atlanteans possessed. "They're a piece of a bigger crystal, sorta. They all share the same life force. It gives its people longevity, amongst other things. Protection, power, flight, and even medicine. But well..."

And that was when Milo's optimism faded. Riku watched as a grim shadow passed over his face, almost a sense of loss, and he wondered if this paradise had some darker side that they'd been trying to hide from him.

Whatever it was, Milo was good at keeping it hidden. With a hesitant smile, he adjusted his glasses again. "Anyway, it's easy to lose track of time down here."

Now there was something new. "Down?"

"Yeah, you know, down..." Milo's words trailed off when he saw Riku's curious expression, then he scooted closer, now curious himself. "Wait a sec, how _did _you get here anyway? I mean, you were, uh... naked, and..." He gestured, his cheeks reddening. "Uh, naked."

Riku pointedly focused on his food, eating with caution. He could have done without the reminder of how he had gotten here. He hadn't had the time to really think about what he'd been through in the last few days—not that it would matter, with his memories still trapped in Ursula's shell.

Its warm weight around his neck seemed heavier at just the thought.

"It's a long story," he muttered and picked up a skewer of meat.

"Well."

Riku glanced up in time to see Milo swipe a hand across his nose and take on a self-assured smile.

"Believe me, I've got time for long stories."

Riku mustered a smile to his credit. How had a geek like him wind up in a place like this? "Alright. I got here through darkness." He nibbled on the meat as Milo's demeanor faded right back into curiosity. Apparently he hadn't been anticipating that explanation.

"Darkness?" he asked, pulling his lips to the side. "That some sort of Milton reference?"

"What? No—_darkness_," Riku tried to clarify. He set his food down. "You know, shadows? I don't really know how to explain it." He sighed and raked a hand through his hair. This probably sounded crazy, but then, this world was pretty bizarre on its own. Flying shark vehicles? A city protected by a dome? Green shrimp with twelve eyes? "Where I come from... well, not where _I _come from, but in the universe in general, there are some people who can sorta travel using darkness. Like opening a door here and stepping out in a completely different place."

The suggestion had an immediate effect. Milo looked like a puppy who had just found a new chew toy. It was the kind of boyish excitement Riku was used to seeing from Sora.

"Can you show me?" he asked, leaning close and fixing his glasses.

That was something Sora might have asked, too, in this situation. Riku shook his head and looked away, once again troubled by the reminder of where he was. Milo had said Riku was the first guest here in almost a century, which meant Sora and Yami weren't here after all. They probably didn't even know where he was. And short of trying to use the darkness himself or waiting for Leon and Cloud or Donald and Goofy to show up and rescue him, he really was stuck here.

"I can't use the darkness," he said. "If I could, I probably wouldn't have landed here."

Milo's brows knitted with confusion. "Then how...? Wait a second, but you said—"

"I followed someone else." Riku glanced down at the table, lost in thought and staring past the green shrimp as it wriggled around inside the bowl in front of him. "But I don't think he's here. I think... he dumped me here to get rid of me."

"So then..." Milo sounded like he was connecting the dots. "...your coming here wasn't on purpose."

Riku shook his head.

"You're lost?" Milo asked, and when Riku nodded, Milo's grim expression returned for just a moment. Then he leaned towards Riku again, the twinkle in his eye returning as he studied him. "You sure about that?"

What was he getting at? Of course he was lost. He didn't know how to get off this world, and even if he could, he didn't know the way back to Traverse Town. He pushed back his brief irritation, but it still crept into his tone.

"Why?"

"Your key," Milo said.

"What about it?"

"We've been waiting for you."

Alright, Riku hadn't seen that coming. "You... have?" No wonder they had been pampering him, then. But it still didn't make any sense. Why would they be expecting him?

Then again, Ariel's dad had known about the keyblade before Riku had shown up, so maybe that was the case here, too.

"Yeah." Milo's lips curled with playfulness. "You don't think it was a coincidence that I happened to pass by on a flying shark right as you were about to tumble headfirst over the cliff and-or get eaten by those black creatures, did you?"

"Kinda, yeah." Riku noted that Milo didn't seem to know what the heartless were called. "It wasn't?"

"Nope. And—" Milo lifted a finger as if brandishing a sword. "I don't think it was a coincidence that you got dumped here, either."

Riku was getting the feeling that he was going to learn the darker side behind Atlantis after all. Milo's optimism was a good cover-up, but something told Riku there was something here, besides the heartless, that wasn't all right with the world, or Milo himself.

"And... you figure this because of my... key," Riku said.

He followed Milo with his eyes as the so-called linguist got to his feet and straightened out his robe. "Exactly." He pushed his glasses into place once more before pointing to himself. "And I can prove it to you." Once Riku was standing as well, Milo nodded towards the door. "The queen's waiting. Let's go."

Trying and failing to smooth out his wrapped pant-skirt-whatever, Riku moved to follow him.

He just hoped that his first encounter with the local royalty didn't turn out as badly as Agrabah and Atlantica had.

-o-o-

The patter of feet startled Sora awake.

He stared off into the wrecked study, heart hammering inside of him, and waited, watched, listened.

Nothing stirred.

Had it been his imagination?

Whatever it had been, it was gone now.

Sora took that moment to peel off the piece of paper that had been plastered to his face by drool. Wiping his cheek with the edge of his orange hoodie, he held the paper up to study it.

_My efforts these many years have come to fruition, with the world I govern having become a paradise worthy of being called "Radiant Garden."_

_Nurtured by the pure water that is the source of life, fragrant flowers bloom in abundance, and blah blah blah blah..._

Sora yawned and slapped the paper back onto the desk before he started rubbing his eyes to wake himself up a little more. He couldn't believe he'd fallen asleep in this creepy, dusty place, and it felt like he'd been sitting there for _hours_.

Popping his neck and shoulders, he glanced around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but he could have sworn he'd heard something in here.

_Maybe you're hearing things._

Sora sat upright, his heart jumping again as he felt Id's existence creeping into his own.

After Id's tantrum in Atlantica, Sora had grown comfortable without his presence there, even if it had only been—what?—part of a day?

_What, like creepy voices in my head? _Sora returned.

_Ha. Ha. I take it you didn't miss me._

Sora wrinkled his nose. _No way! You could have __**stayed**__ away. _Slipping out of the chair, he stretched and sighed, ready to get back to work. He glanced down at the softly glowing mark on his wrist to see how much time had passed.

His eyes widened.

The pink heart had turned more than a third black! How long had he been sleeping?!

_Interesting._

_NOT interesting! _Sora snapped back. He whirled around in a panic and studied the room again. Yami had led him here, so where was that heartless machine? It had to be here somewhere. And what about the noise that had woken him up?

_It's interesting to me, if not a bit unsightly to look at. You let that dark fairy practically brand you. What's the catch? I missed the details._

Sora stumbled over to one of the bookshelves that still had a few books in it. _I'm not telling you! And it's __**my **__body! You don't have a right to be in it in the first place, so be quiet!_

He yanked the rest of the books off the shelves, once again trying to find a secret lever to a secret door that led to some secret room with the secret heartless machine so he could find the person messing with it. When he was done, he turned to the next shelf, not caring that he was adding to the huge mess.

_Whoa, geez. What did I do? _

Tossing the last book onto the floor, he lifted his attention to the giant portrait of the man who looked like Yami. _Leon told me what you did to Traverse Town in __**my **__body, so now__** I'm **__the one who looks like... like..._

_A bad guy? _Id offered.

Sora squeezed his eyes shut, fighting back his frustration, and pounded a fist against the wall. _A monster! _Then, slumping against the wall, he slid down and pulled his arms around his knees.

Id didn't say anything at first, but his presence never faded. It was almost a full minute before he finally replied, all of his playfulness gone.

_Not every thing without a heart is a monster, Sora. _

Sora lowered his face into his arms. _Yeah, well, try telling that to the people in Traverse Town when I go back there._

_Are you ever going to go back?_

His decision from Atlantica was fresh in his mind. Had Yami not messed things up again, Sora could have been snug in bed with Riku right then.

_Yeah. _

Once this mark was off his wrist, nothing would stand in his way. He'd confront Riku, help him sort through his memories, and wring an apology out of him. Then they could be best friends again, and maybe—depending on how good Riku's apology was—_maybe _back to being more than friends.

Mustering a smile, Sora decided that sounded pretty good.

He opened his eyes, feeling better. That is, until he heard the sound again.

Scampering!

Sora leapt to his feet as _something _flew past him, scattering loose leaves of paper on the floor as it fled out of the study, slamming the door open wider. He charged after it, yelling for it to stop—not that he thought it would do any good, and it didn't.

The invisible person pattered quickly down the hall, but Sora was close behind it, listening for its footsteps even as it scampered right up the wall and began running along sideways. Okay, so maybe it wasn't an invisible _person_. He mentally kicked himself for not bringing a weapon along. If it was some kind of invisible heartless, how was he supposed to catch it? He wasn't any good at using magic without something to channel it through.

As the footsteps picked up speed, Sora did, too, realizing they were heading in the direction of his room. Maybe he'd have time to grab Einlanzer or—

No! No time!

Sora felt a surge of triumph as the culprit knocked open one of the nearby bedroom doors and darted inside. Intending on trapping it inside, Sora flew into the room behind it and kicked the door closed behind him.

Pressing himself against the solid wood, he glanced quickly around the room, breathing hard for his lungs to catch up with his heart. The bed was small, adorned in shades of white and lavender, and a small vanity with ornate boxes littering the top sat in the corner.

The invisible whatever had led him into... a girl's room? Why was there a girl's room in a gloomy castle like this? And this door had been locked before... Oh well, no time to worry about that right now!

A couple of childish but colorful drawings of flowers hung on the closet door, which was creaking closed.

Bingo.

"Gotcha now!!"

Sora leapt for the door and rushed into the closet, ready to grab the first thing that moved.

The last thing he had been expecting was to stumble into an entirely different world.

He froze where he was and gaped.

Hi-tech machinery filled the dim, spacious factory he was now standing in. All sorts of unfamiliar gadgets surrounded him, and a huge flat screen was planted high on the far wall, detailing what looked like a scoreboard. Yellow cylinders littered the area, most lined carefully up as if containing something precious. The creepiest part was that the place was deserted.

Sora took a step back, ready to run out of the closet he thought he had entered, but somehow he missed a step and tripped, landing on his knees. And he didn't have to fall as far as usual...

Actually, the hands he was staring at were much _much _smaller than his own.

"Wahh?!"

He clambered back to his feet and clasped his throat, shocked at the high voice that had just left him. He didn't sound like that!

That's when he looked down at himself.

His orange hoodie and shorts were in tact, but they and his shoes (and feet, for that matter) were a gazillion times smaller, and his crown necklace had gotten a lot bigger... Wait, he had shrunk?!

_SLAM._

Yelping, he whirled around and rushed to the closet door that had slammed shut without him.

Before he could reach it, something cold and hard and—invisible!—barreled into him, and he went crashing into a rack of the yellow canisters, sending them clattering and rolling across the factory floor.

"Get offa me!"

He kicked out, knocking his invisible adversary away. There was a distinct _oof! _as he was freed, but he didn't get a chance to face his attacker. Someone else was coming.

"Hello? Is anyone still in here?"

As the deep voice filled the empty factory, Sora heard his attacker scramble around and then take off running in a direction opposite of the newcomer.

Sora sat up panting and wondering what the heck had just happened. And where _was _he? Inside the closet?!

Maybe it wasn't the smartest thing to do, but Sora was too confused to err on the side of caution. He picked himself up and stepped out from around another cart of yellow canisters that had been concealing him from the newcomer.

"Thanks for saving me!" he said, internally wincing at his small voice, and he brushed his knees off before looking up.

And up.

And up.

A big, blue, fuzzy monster was staring back down at him. He also had purple polka-dots and a pair of short, curved horns.

"WAHH!!"

And he was terrified. That hadn't been Sora screaming.

The giant blue monster stumbled backwards at the sight of Sora and started holding up his hands. "WHOA, how did you get in here?!" Wide-eyed, he glanced left and right, and when Sora took a step towards him, his fur bristled. "Stay back!!"

Sora didn't listen. "I was chasing someone—or some_thing_—into the closet, and I came out here, and and and the thing _attacked _me!" he explained, waving his arms. "But it left me alone when you showed up! Er, why are you shaking?"

The monster _was _shaking, or more like trembling with fear. Sora tilted his head at him and frowned. Did he recognize him somehow? Id hadn't terrorized this world, too, had he? Actually, he couldn't really feel Id's presence anymore...

"Don't come any closer!" the monster commanded, and despite his impressive size, he was practically climbing onto the weird computer console Sora had backed him towards. Like an overgrown kitty.

"Why are you scared of _me_?" Sora wondered. He took another step closer. "I mean, _you're _the big monster!"

The answer he received was another fearful shout. "I mean it, stay back! Wh-WHOA!" The console the monster had been perched on careened under his weight, and like a fuzzy blue tower of cotton candy, he crashed to the floor.

After clapping his hands over his eyes, Sora peeked through his fingers to see the aftermath. The console was bent and sparking, but the monster was alive and already trying to scuttle farther away from him. He was way too big to scuttle, which made it look more funny than anything.

"You okay?" he asked, trying not to laugh. He moved after the monster, but as soon as Fuzzy-wuzzy saw Sora coming, he was on his feet in an instant and hightailing it away from him. "H-HEY!"

Before pursuing, Sora paused to glance back at the door he had come through. The mechanism attached to it wasn't lit up anymore. He had a feeling he wasn't going to be able to go back to the bastion right away... Besides, the jerk who had attacked him was still around here somewhere, and he wasn't going to get anything done standing around waiting to get attacked again.

"Wait up!!" he called and broke into a sprint. His shorter legs were awkward at first, but soon he was flying down the empty factory floor. The large monster was just ahead, lumbering more than running because of his impressive size, and also more than clumsy in his rush to get away.

One big blue furry foot stepped on one of the fallen yellow canisters, and suddenly he was like an elephant trying to remain perched on a rubber ball. Only he failed. Miserably.

With a deafening crash, he fell back to the floor, and Sora caught up.

He leaned over Fuzzy-wuzzy and tried not to grin down at him. "Never seen a human before or something?"

Then again, the disbelief that crossed the monster's face was somewhere along the lines of, _And you've never met a monster before or something?_

But it was short-lived as the disbelief faded into something else. He may have been facing a monster, but a look of determination was universal, and Sora knew what that look meant when he saw one.

One moment, Sora was poking fun at the monster, and the next, he was flat on his back with a clawed hand pinning him to the floor. He blinked up at maybe-not-so-friendly monster. Blue lips pulled back to bare fangs.

A deep, deafening roar shook the air and rustled Sora's hair, and the monster's horrible breath filled Sora's face. It was a powerful sound, one of those gut-wrenching ones you feel vibrate right through you, and when it was over, Sora found his heart racing.

But the giant hand pinning him down didn't have the same threat behind it that the roar had. This monster was more bark than bite.

Sora used an arm to wipe the spittle from his face before he frowned up at the monster, bewildered. All he had wanted was a little help here, and he'd gotten a face full of dog breath instead. "Are you trying to _scare _me?" he asked.

Fuzzy-wuzzy's brows drew low over his eyes, and it was his turn to be bewildered. Maybe he was good at scaring other people, but Sora was used to dealing with monsters by now. This guy was practically a teddy bear.

Sora's grin returned. "You're totally _not _scary. You're like one of those oversized stuffed toys at a carnival!" he said, and, unable to help himself, he broke into laughter.

Abruptly, all of the lights and machines around them flickered on and off and back on, shining brighter and brighter until—

POP-POP-POP-**POP**—

The lights burst and plunged them into complete darkness.

The monster released Sora as if he'd been burned. "What... was _that_?"

Sora hadn't a clue.

He picked himself up and moved closer to the monster as a chill crept up the back of his neck. "I dunno, all I did was laugh!"

Overhead, there was a slight hum as emergency lights finally kicked in, illuminating the factory even more dimly than before. But even through the shadows, Sora could see what hadn't been there before.

Darkness, pooling on the floor around them, and the distinctive yellow eyes of heartless as they began to rise out of the black.

"Heartless!" Sora cried.

"WAH! Don't touch me!" The monster jerked away as Sora tried to grab a fuzzy arm. "Who's heartless? Is that your monster?"

"They're everyone's monsters, they eat worlds! We need to get out of here!" Sora ignored the monster's request and grabbed his big hand—or one of his fingers, that worked, too. "Come on!"

The monster tensed, but this time he didn't pull free. "What do you mean, they eat worlds?"

Sora was trying to drag him away by his finger, but Fuzzy-wuzzy wasn't budging. "They take people's hearts and turn them into heartless, too! We gotta run or they'll do it to you!" Then, calling out with his powers, he tried to reach the heartless. _Stop! Go away, you can't take this place! _

But just like in Atlantica, that power was gone. Id's presence had vanished, and he had no control over the darkness or the heartless. To the heartless, he was just like any other heart.

Except...

Sora let go of Fuzzy-wuzzy and snatched the first thing he could find off the ground—a heavy wrench near a gutted machine—and he swung it towards the heartless as they advanced, crouched in preparation to pounce the big monster.

"Take _this_!"

Flames crackled through the air and engulfed the heartless as Sora released a string of fire spells, knocking one of the heartless right out of the air. Behind him, he heard the blue monster exclaim something in surprise, but Sora didn't turn around until all of the heartless had dispersed back into shadow.

Even though his body had shrunk, it seemed like he still had all his magic. Sora sighed and swung the wrench up, resting it on his small shoulder. "Looks like we're safe for now."

Until a keening siren went off and red lights began flashing.

The fire sprinklers kicked in, and Sora grimaced as freezing water rained down on them. Dropping his wrench, he pulled his hood up and wrapped his arms around himself, shivering hard.

He glanced up at the big monster through his dripping bangs. "You wouldn't happen to know how to get me back through that door, would you?"

Fuzzy-wuzzy, who wasn't so fuzzy now with his fur all matted, took one long look at Sora before his face softened. "You said you chased something in here and it attacked you? No one's supposed to be here after hours..."

"Then what are _you _doing here?"

"I came back to get Mike's paperwo—AH!" He froze, eyes wide. "The paperwork!!" He grabbed Sora around the waist and tucked him beneath his arm. "Come on, we gotta go!"

"Ack! O-Okay!"

As sirens screamed around them, the monster grabbed a stack of soggy folders near one of the consoles, then took off towards the exit, this time with Sora in tow.

-o-o-

The throne room was as lush and beautiful as the rest of Atlantis, open-aired with a pond in the center and stepping stones set in a spiral, greenery all around and the sound of trickling water creating a soothing atmosphere. The thrones themselves were nestled beneath a colossal monument of a soldier or king whose head had tumbled to its feet in ancient times; the seats were connected lengthwise as if to create one throne, and they were draped in layers of colorful furs and cloths.

But as lovely as everything was, something was missing.

No one was on either of the thrones.

"Um... Where's the royalty?"

Riku turned to Milo for answers, but the geeky linguist smiled wistfully at the empty seats.

"Hah... she hasn't done _this_ in a while." Milo rubbed the back of his head and approached the dual thrones. "I guess it's up to me."

"Done what?" Riku wondered. When Milo slumped onto the left throne without anyone's permission, Riku gaped for a second before he cast a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching. "Er—are you supposed to be—?"

He cut himself off when Milo planted a headdress atop his own head. A _regal _headdress.

Wait a sec...

"_You're _the king?!" Riku blurted out as soon as things clicked into place. Why hadn't he told him? More importantly— "I thought you said you were a linguist!"

"I am!" Milo said with a laugh. "Well, and king. But only because my wife is the queen..." He scratched the side of his face where his turquoise paint was, but nothing peeled away.

For the first time, Riku noticed that the marks on Milo's face and arm were not in fact paint like Riku's, but tattoos. So then maybe the marks didn't stand for foreigners, but rank? Importance?

"You're not mad, are you?" Milo asked. He seemed embarrassed about the situation.

Whatever anger Riku might have had dissolved away at the innocent question. "No," he admitted as he stepped towards the throne. "Just extremely confused now."

After a relieved laugh, Milo nodded and sat back, his eyes growing serious once again. Gone was the Sora-like demeanor Riku had been growing used to. Here was the king Riku now understood he had been seeing glimpses of all along.

"Then I'll explain what's been going on."

He began by describing how Atlantis was, literally, alive.

The heart of Atlantis was a crystal that thrived on the collected emotions of all the city's inhabitants, both past and present. As the queen's father had explained to Milo when Milo had first arrived here, the heart of Atlantis had developed a consciousness of its own over thousands of years. In times of need, when the city was in danger, the crystal would protect the city.

"That's that dome around the city," Riku realized.

"Right." Milo looked down and released a soft sigh. "When those creatures appeared, the city went into protect mode. Just like all times when the city is threatened, the crystal... chose a host. One of royal blood." He paused for a moment, reaching up to remove his glasses. He began to clean them with the outer layer of his robe. "My wife thought it would pick her, just like last time when Atlantis was in danger." His fingers fell still. "But it didn't." Glancing up, he stared off towards the pond, and his voice dropped to a murmur. "It chose our daughter."

So that was the sadness Riku had kept spotting in between Milo's smiles. "Where is she now?" he asked.

After clearing his throat, Milo replaced his glasses and adjusted them. "Safe below the city, but we don't know for how long. If she's bound to the crystal for too long, she'll become part of it forever. It's been two weeks now. There's no telling when the bond becomes permanent, but..."

"But you don't want to find out," Riku finished for him. "I understand. Basically, you're saying that if the city doesn't need to be in this protect mode anymore, it'll let your daughter go, right?"

"Exactly." Milo relaxed a smidgen and smiled, though it was half-hearted. "I had a good feeling about you. When I saw your key, I just knew it."

Folding his arms, Riku recalled what Milo had said before bringing him here. His arrival hadn't been coincidental. But why? Where was the proof Milo had talked about?

"About that..."

"Oh!" Milo shot to his feet. "Right! Let me show you—" With his spunk back, he whirled towards a low-set table near his throne and grabbed one of the thick handwritten books that had been lying on it. "For the past couple of years, I've been leading an excavation crew that's been working on hundreds of underwater murals that reside deep beneath the city. They were flooded thousands of years ago when the city sank beneath the ocean." He nearly stumbled over his robe in his excitement to thrust the book in Riku's face.

Riku leaned back to get a better look at the page the linguist-king had opened to. The text was written in a foreign language—Atlantean, he presumed—but what caught his attention were the sketches littering the pages.

Starry skies, creatures that looked similar to heartless, and a person with a giant key.

"Pretty neat, huh?" Milo said with grin. "These are my sketches of the images found on the murals. These images were mixed in with the lore about the heart of Atlantis, back before it had a consciousness of its own. Like I said, they're thousands of years old." He pulled the book back and adjusted his glasses again. "But when I saw those creatures surrounding the city, I _knew_, somehow, someone like you would show up with your key. Why a key, anyway?"

Listening to Milo, Riku felt a distinct chill run through him. The thought of the keyblade being that old was more than just spooky. But the heartless, too? Well, the things in the sketch didn't look exactly like heartless... but he couldn't tell if that was the fault of Milo's artistic ability, the murals themselves, or if the creatures had been different once upon a time.

"I don't know much about the keyblade," Riku said as his attention finally left the book. "But I use mine to lock worlds. There are keyholes to doors that lead to the hearts of worlds. The heartless—those creatures outside the city—feed on hearts, and are ultimately trying to get to the heart of the world through that doorway. If I lock the keyhole, the world should be safe."

"Which means our daughter will be released?"

Milo's brown eyes were unguarded in that moment, reflecting the utmost hope and trust, with just a small shadow of doubt. He really had a lot riding on Riku's words here.

Riku was no stranger to feeling the pressure of hundreds of thousands of lives riding on his actions. The difference this time was that he'd always shared it with someone else. Sora, Leon and Cloud, or Donald and Goofy...

He was alone here. If he messed up, no one else would be able to step up to the plate and fix things. Not like in Agrabah, not like in Atlantica.

He did believe in the keyblade's strength, but... he wasn't so sure about himself. Not after what he'd been through lately, and not after the dreams he'd been having.

Still, what was he supposed to say? All he could do was pretend to remain optimistic for everyone else.

"Yeah," he assured Milo with a half smile. "I'm pretty sure that's how it'd work."

Milo wilted with what could only be relief, and he gave a soft laugh as he grabbed Riku's bare shoulder and squeezed it. "Thanks. If you need_ anything_..."

Anything?

They'd pampered him enough on this world. The one thing he needed, they couldn't give to him, anyway. He may as well get right to work. If Milo's daughter had been bound to this crystal for two weeks already, no doubt there was a rush to put things in their natural order.

"Actually, if you have any leads on where the keyhole might be," Riku said, "that'd be a big help. I don't know this city like you do." He slipped a hand through his hair and glanced around the throne room in search of ideas. "You did mention the heart of Atlantis, right? Keyholes are usually somewhere important to the world, so..."

"Ah—" Milo grabbed Riku's arm and began to lead him across the pond's stepping stones. "Good thinking! I'll take you to the crystal chamber. If what you're saying is true, the pathway to the heart of the city _has _to be there. That's where the heart _is_." He glanced over his shoulder. "And the crystal."

_And my daughter,_ went unsaid, but Riku understood.

Milo came to a stop in the middle of the pond where the water was shallow. Clasping a hand around his glowing crystal, he held Riku's arm tighter. "Hang on, there's a—"

As the floor suddenly began to sink beneath his feet, Riku stumbled and caught Milo's other arm to balance himself.

"—slight jolt." Releasing Riku, Milo chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry."

A circular dais had been hidden beneath the surface of the pond, and as it descended slowly with them on it, the pond spilled water into a great cavern below. Riku lifted an arm to shield his face from the water so he could get a good look at where they were going.

The cavern was spacious but enclosed by tall, smooth rocks with ancient patterns etched into them. The dais deposited them on a small stretch of rock, a lip at the edge of a bottomless lake with pure, clear water.

Suspended high above the lake was what really caught Riku's attention: a figure shaped like a small child, translucent and as smooth as glass, with a brilliant blue light emanating from within. Tall stone faces rotated around her like planets to their sun, slow and steady, as if biding their time.

Riku found himself drawn to the edge of the lake, unable to take his eyes away from the child. "She looks like..."

"A crystal?" Milo offered quietly beside him.

His tone drew Riku's attention away from who he assumed was Milo's daughter. It was hard to tell how old she really was, especially if Milo himself was a century old, but she hardly looked old enough to attend preschool. Riku found it hard to believe that Atlantis would have chosen someone so young as its host to protect itself from the heartless.

"When the crystal bound her to it, it took her high above the city," Milo said, gravity returning to his tone. "My wife didn't want her so far out of reach, in case something... happened. So we moved her down here, into the crystal chamber. It's safe, close. Within the eye of the king."

He trailed off for a moment, staring up at his daughter as if watching something he couldn't change, or touch, or challenge.

"It's like looking at the past," he sighed, shaking his head. "But no matter how many of those creatures we kill, they keep on coming, and the crystal keeps on protecting, and she's still there—" Growing agitated, he waved his hands and kicked a pebble into the lake. "Channeling Atlantis's will while I sit around and pour over old books and pin my hope on some stranger with a magical key!"

Milo's shrill voice echoed throughout the chamber, but it was as if he wasn't even there. The stone faces kept on circling his daughter, who remained motionless except for the rustle of her hair and skirt.

Burying his hands into his hair, Milo sank into a crouch, now silent except for another aggravated sigh.

Not sure of what else to do, Riku left the king to his woes. In a lot of ways, he understood and even shared Milo's frustration. Despite his rank and whatever past deeds he'd done for Atlantis, Milo was still powerless when it came to protecting one of the people he cared about the most. It made Riku think about Sora again. Always Sora.

He needed to save this world and find a way off so he could carry on with his own personal mission.

Riku turned his focus towards the crystalline child and held his hand out.

In that comforting swirl of magic, Oblivion appeared clasped in his fingers, along with that familiar tang of black cherries. If there was one thing that had remained constant since the start of his journey, with or without Sora, it was that the keyblade was always just a touch away.

But it seemed not everyone was as pleased to see his keyblade as he was.

A deep metallic groan filled the chamber as the frosty blue radiance of the crystal suddenly bled into a stark crimson, and the stone faces around the princess began to spin at a rapid pace.

Milo clambered back to his feet with his jaw hanging open. "What—?"

Riku was just as confused. Why would the world see his keyblade as a threat? Didn't it want to be sealed?

A hand rested on Riku's outstretched arm, and he met Milo's gaze, recognizing the worry there. Milo drew Riku's arm down, and Riku got the hint. He dismissed the keyblade.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," Milo said, his fingers slipping away from Riku. "We should wait for my wife. She'd know what to do." He lowered his head and rubbed the back of his neck, a familiar gesture by now. "If we can find her."

Once the two of them were back on the dais and returning to the surface, the crystal seemed to calm down, the crimson gradually fading back into its gelid state. Riku took one last look at the small princess before she disappeared beneath the pond, and the dais settled back where it'd been before. Milo led Riku back onto the stepping stones, this time towards the doors, not the thrones.

"You can look around the city while I have some of my people look for my wife," Milo said. It wasn't a suggestion. Riku got the distinct feeling that Milo wanted to be alone for a while, either to wallow or to do more research on the keyblade using his notes on those ancient murals.

"Does the queen disappear often?" Riku wondered. He knew he probably shouldn't pry, but Milo had been pretty liberal about giving him information earlier.

After hesitating, Milo shook his head. "Hasn't happened in a while, but... she never liked being confined to the throne. I guess you could say that she's a free spirit, ehehe..."

Sounded familiar. In Atlantica, if Ariel ever took over the throne for her dad, Riku imagined she wouldn't stick around often.

"With this dome around Atlantis, I'm guessing I can't leave the city?" Riku asked. "Just a precaution, since I'm going to be exploring."

Milo tapped his chin in thought. "The crystal won't hurt—" But he cut himself off and frowned. "Well. After what happened down there, who knows. Here..." He lifted the small crystal from around his neck and held it out by its cord for Riku. "This will help Atlantis recognize you as one of its people."

Riku took it, surprised at how warm it was to the touch. Was that because of Milo's body heat or the crystal's powers? He lifted his hand to Ursula's shell, hesitant about wearing both necklaces at once. He didn't really know how magic worked, but he wasn't going to take any chances wearing Ursula's magic next to Atlantis's.

He would wear the crystal instead of the shell, but he didn't want the shell to break when he wasn't ready for his memories. The crystal was sturdier and wouldn't get in the way as much, so he looped the cord twice around his wrist.

He smoothed out his wrapped dhoti and glanced at Milo. "Thanks..."

The smile the linguist-king was giving him was almost forlorn. Riku wasn't going to question it, but Milo reached out and squeezed his bare shoulder again. "Riku, how old are you anyway?"

Riku curled a hand around Ursula's shell again as his stomach gave an unexpected flop. Sora'd had his birthday already, hadn't he? He had to have... For some reason, Riku had a feeling he had missed it, but suspected it may have been one of his trapped memories. Either way, that meant Riku's was coming up soon.

"Almost sixteen."

Milo's brown eyes widened, then shifted away from Riku's, filled with shame. "I'd go with you if I could, but I've never been any good at fighting. Saving Atlantis was more luck and quick thinking than anything else I had. Except teamwork..." Trailing off, Milo sighed and, with a push of his finger, adjusted his glasses. "Well." He mustered a reassuring smile. "When you hit rock bottom, the only way to go is up."

Riku returned the smile, but his heart was in a different place.

As he turned to go, he couldn't help thinking that those words might have been something Sora would say in a situation like this.

-o-o-

Fuzzy-wuzzy's name was actually James P. Sullivan, which Sora thought was quite a distinguished name for a big blue fuzzy monster. He was quick to adopt James's nickname, Sulley.

Sulley had stuffed Sora into a gym bag before sneaking him out of the factory, some sort of corporation named Monsters, Inc., and through a series of quick, clandestine twenty-questioning through the large bag's zipper, Sora had learned more about the world he had stumbled into.

The doors of children's closets were pathways between his world and the monster world, and every day (night for the children) the monsters crossed into children's bedrooms to scare them. Monsters, Inc. converted screams into energy, which in turn provided electricity and other power to the monster world.

Sora had to admit it was a clever ruse.

There was one catch, however.

Apparently the monsters were as scared of children as children were scared of monsters, and no child had _ever _crossed into the monster realm before. No wonder Sulley had freaked out when he had seen Sora standing there.

"Why are you guys so scared of kids?" Sora asked, ignoring the way Sulley kept trying to zip up the bag in a panic every time Sora unzipped it a little more. Where was the monster taking him anyway?

"You're toxic!" Sulley hissed through the corner of his mouth. Then, with a groan: "And I touched you! Oh man, the CDA's going to skin me alive."

Sora peeked out of the bag. "CDA?"

"The Child Detection Agency!" A fuzzy blue hand stuffed Sora's face back in and tugged at the zipper. "Stay in there or you'll get both of us caught!"

"I can't breathe in here! And I'm not toxic! Your fur didn't melt off, did it? And where are you taking me?!"

Sulley ignored his protests, and Sora dropped his head into his arms, trying to think of a way out of this. Sulley had mentioned that he was one of the top "scarers" of the company, which meant he worked at the factory with the closet door Sora needed to get back to.

There was one big problem, though.

Sora lifted his face, and through the darkness of the smelly gym bag he was in, he could see Maleficent's mark brightly shine on his wrist.

In a few hours it would be half pink, half black, which meant an entire day would have passed since she had branded him and Yami. Sora was stuck here for who-knew-how-long and wouldn't be able to look for the culprit... and wouldn't be able to stop Yami if he actually decided to bring Riku in. Maleficent would have her hands on him, and Sora had no doubt she'd go through with her promise to turn Riku into a heartless if Sora failed his mission.

Swallowing hard, Sora rubbed at his wrist before clenching his hands into his hoodie, trying not to worry.

But he could only think of one bright side to this entire situation.

Sulley wouldn't eat him if he thought he was toxic.

-o-o-

Riku was used to being stared at by strangers, but there was something way different about walking through an ancient, foreign city filled entirely with people who looked like they could be Yami's long lost cousins. All dark-skinned, all with white hair.

He kept imagining Yami standing at the edge of a crowd or at the end of an unpaved street or looking down at him from one of the hanging gourd-shaped homes he kept passing. But Yami wasn't here, he kept reminding himself. He'd taken Sora and left Riku here to fend for himself.

After wandering through the hubbub of the city's vast marketplace and fishery, Riku passed through the thinning streets towards the outskirts, smiling to himself as the children played tag around him and giggled as they peeked at him from around towering trees.

As night fell, they left him to himself. Milo never sent anyone for him, so Riku assumed they hadn't found the queen yet. He knew his way back to his guest house, but he didn't want to be caught resting when he was supposed to be looking for other places the keyhole might be.

Every once in a while, Riku would take a moment to just summon Oblivion to his hand, almost in reassurance that he wasn't completely alone here. The keyblade didn't sing to him like it used to, but its warmth was good enough for him.

Riku reached the outskirts of the city where toppled statues overgrown with foliage made up the population. These areas were deserted, and as he climbed a broken aqueduct, he glanced back at the rest of the city and saw the twinkling fires of countless homes.

High above, the crackling blue dome continued to keep the city safe from the heartless infesting the rest of the world.

Riku examined the keyblade in his hand and wondered again why the heart of Atlantis had reacted as if it had been threatened. The rest of this world seemed happy to have him here.

A firefly buzzed past his face, drawing him out of his thoughts, and he watched as it landed on the tip of the keyblade to stretch its wings. Smiling a little, Riku reached out to coax it onto his finger.

It flitted back into the air and zipped past his face, and Riku turned to watch it go.

He wasn't alone anymore.

A woman stood behind him with a jar of fireflies attached to a pole, creating a makeshift lantern.

When she saw that he had noticed her, she narrowed her aqua eyes and moved to approach him—which was a big feat, considering she was standing on an aqueduct arch higher than his. She leapt from the crumbled stone top and slid down the collapsed siding, coming to a graceful stop beside him with her pole planted in the soft earth.

"Riku, yes?"

Now that she was in front of him, he recognized her.

"Kida."

The queen's bodyguard. She was even more dressed down than before, with just a wrapped bikini top and a skirt that came down to her knees, all in shades of blue and purple.

She smirked a little upon hearing her name. "Good. I see that you are well now."

Riku nodded and lowered his keyblade. "Been a hectic week." A week that wasn't going to end any time soon, either. "Did you come to bring me back?"

Kida raised her brows. "Bring you back? No, no—" She drew an arm through the air and lifted her pole of fireflies. "You will need a guide if you are to search out here." Then she smirked again and jabbed at his bare chest with the end of her pole. "And protection, since you are so skinny."

Riku gave her a wry smile and pushed her pole away. "Look who's talking. And shouldn't you be protecting the _queen_?"

For a split second, Kida looked confused. "The queen?" Then her lips parted with realization. "Ah, right. I am here with the queen's blessing, so do not worry." She patted his chest and moved past him.

"So you know where the queen is?" Riku asked.

Kida paused and glanced back at him. "She is missing?"

Growing suspicious, Riku studied her closely. "Apparently. That's what her husband said."

"Well—" Kida rested a hand on her hip and leaned towards him. "Another reason you may need help."

That made no sense, but Riku decided not to argue. A guide to the city would make this go by much faster, anyway. Even if Kida did unsettle him a little bit.

"Alright, fine. Lead the way," he said, gesturing for her to get going.

She lifted her pole onto her shoulder and began to wade into the foliage. "Milo explained to me what you told him about the keyhole. That is why you have a key, yes?"

"Yeah," he said. He couldn't help noticing she lacked the use of a title for Milo. Either she was very familiar with the king, or he wasn't the king after all. "Don't you mean King Milo?"

"Yes, yes." She glanced at him briefly before changing the subject. "I know the city better than anyone."

"Wait a minute." Riku moved to walk beside her, even more suspicious now. "If you talked to Milo, why didn't he tell you the queen was missing? And how did you get her blessing if she's missing? And why didn't Milo send someone to come get me if she was back?"

"You ask too many questions," Kida laughed. "Come, let me show you _King _Milo's pride."

Sighing, Riku dismissed his keyblade and followed her as she ducked between two statues collapsed onto each other. As he watched her long white hair spill over her shoulders, he realized had just let her get away with avoiding his questions. Just like Yami. At least, even though he couldn't recall any specific moments, Riku had a feeling Yami had done the exact same thing to him before.

Not for the last time, Riku held Ursula's necklace.

**So frail.**

Shaking his head clear of his thoughts, Riku tried to ignore the deep whisper brushing against his ear. He knew that if he turned around there'd be no one there.

There never was.

He took a deep breath and, stilling his heart, he ducked through the statues to follow Kida's lead.

-o-o-

"AHHHHHHHH!!!!"

"Mikey."

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"

"_Mike._"

"AAAAAAAHHHHH—"

"_**MIKE**__!!_"

Clapping his hands over his ears, Sora grimaced at Sulley's roar—a roar that had probably slipped out in Sulley's frustration to get "Mike" to stop screaming.

Mike was a short, squat monster composed of a giant eyeball. Well, he sort of had a body, too—a green one, with thin arms and legs, a wide mouth, and two tiny horns sitting atop his head. He wasn't as kid-friendly as Sulley's cuddly blue and purple fuzz, but he still looked sillier than scary.

"WHAT. IS. _**THAT**_?!"

And he wasn't taking Sora's entrance very well. Then again, it had been a tumbling-out-of-the-gym-bag-onto-Mike's-green-feet entrance.

"You know what it is," Sulley said, slowly, as he lifted his hands in a placating gesture. "Mike, hear me out."

"Sweet Medusa, of _course _I know what it is!! What I wanna know is why it's in my _living room_ and _what _in the blazes you're doing with it!" His eye widened with panic, and he suddenly started dancing in place before he took off running towards what looked like a bathroom. "AND IT TOUCHED ME! Sulley, it _touched _me! You went through the training, you know there's nothing more toxic than a kid!"

"Yeah, and a single touch can kill you," Sulley sighed, rolling his eyes as Mike fumbled frantically around his bathroom. "I know. I went through this already."

Sora had since picked himself off the floor and was halfway peeking into the bathroom to see what the green monster was up to. "Who told you guys _that_?" he asked with a snerk. "I'm totally not toxic. See, look—" He lifted an arm and took a long lick of his wrist.

And of all possible reactions, he didn't see sudden sanitation coming, let alone being attacked with an aerosol spray can.

"Gwahh!"

The wet spritz in his face sent him stumbling backwards over his own feet, and with a flail, he tumbled over a hassock and onto the rug. The landing wasn't painful, but it was bad enough that he wasn't looking forward to sitting on his bruised butt later. Wincing, he rubbed his tush and pouted up at Mike, who was brandishing the anti-bacterial spray like an ultimate weapon.

"Stay back or I mean it, I'll decontaminate you!" Mike cried. "Sulley, that thing is a killingmachine!"

Sora rubbed his face clean, ready to throw a childish insult back at Mike, like at least he didn't look like an overgrown pea, but Sulley went for a more reasonable approach. He stepped between Sora and Mike, his hands up again as if to disarm his friend.

"I know this sounds crazy, but I don't think the kid's dangerous, Mike." Sulley glanced back at Sora, then, and his expression turned sheepish. "Well, not toxicdangerous."

Sora noticed they kept calling him "the kid" and stuff like "the thing" and "it," which he wanted to comment on. He'd given Sulley his name when Sulley had given _his _name, but maybe it was just easier for them to think about Sora as a child. No strings attached.

"Really?" Mike's eye narrowed at Sulley, and when he lowered his spray can, Sora wasn't convinced the discussion was over that easily. "Well, in that case, let's keep it." He threw his hands up and raised his voice. "I always wanted a pet that could KILL ME!"

Sulley sighed and lifted Sora up by his armpits, planting the boy on an armchair. "Listen, okay? I went back to get your paperwork, just like you asked, and there was a_ door_."

"What? A door?" Mike actually lowered the can for real this time. "After hours?"

Turning towards his friend, Sulley left Sora on the armchair. "Yeah. And get this—this kid here says he was _attacked_. By an invisible _thing_. An invisible thing I apparently scared off."

Mike gasped. "Invisible! Randall?" He almost sounded excited about it.

But Sulley didn't. "Randall," he confirmed.

"Wait, so Randall was trying to stop the kid from entering the factory! Why'd you save the kid?!" Mike demanded. "I mean, I know the scaley jerk is out to top your scare record, but—"

"_Randall _had the door there in the first place," Sully interrupted, and added, again, for emphasis: "After hours."

Mike's mouth was still open in mid-sentence, but as Sulley's statement sank in, his jaw dropped even more. "Wait, so he was _cheating_! He's trying to beat your scare record by cheating!"

That didn't seem right. Was this Randall guy really the one who had attacked Sora? But why would he attack him over something as silly as a record? Sitting up, Sora folded his arms against the arm of the chair and thought out loud. "I don't think he was there to scare anyone... I mean, break a record. He wasn't trying to scare me at first, and—there aren't any kids where I came from."

Both Sulley and Mike exchanged deadpan looks before pointedly returning their gazes to Sora. Their disbelief couldn't be anymore obvious.

Oh, right. Sora was as small as a kid now.

"Well, there aren't any kids there _normally_! That room and closet are totally deserted." And the more he thought about it, the creepier it seemed. All those bedrooms in the bastion—the one he was staying in, the one Riku had stayed in... If the world had been overrun by heartless and all of its people had been turned into heartless, or fled—why hadn't the world died, too? Sora shook his head, trying to focus. "Whoever that door belonged to, they're long gone. This guy Randall wasn't there to scare anyone. He was there for something else."

Mike slammed his aerosol can down on the table and folded his arms. "Oh really? Like _what_, Mr. Smarty-pants?"

Sora knew the answer was right there in front of him, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

From the sound of it, Randall was the invisible monster who had attacked him—the same one who had been in the bastion for whatever reason. Sora had thought his attacker had been the culprit he'd been looking for, the one messing with the heartless machine, but... that didn't make any sense.

But then—

Why had the heartless shown up in the factory and nowhere else? It was almost like they had known to attack Sora and Sulley. To silence them, maybe? Which meant someone was controlling them.

So what had Randall been doing in the bastion?

"Making heartless," Sora realized aloud. The heartless, the connected worlds, Maleficent's heartless machine, and Sora's attacker—things were beginning to make sense.

If Randall was at both places and brought the heartless here, then he _was _Sora's invisible attacker _and _the culprit Maleficent was looking for! He was using the heartless for something in this world.

"Heartless? What's that? A new cologne?" Mike asked.

"No, they're monsters—_bad _ones!" Sora said. The more he thought about it, the cleverer he thought Randall's plan was, whatever it was. Introducing heartless to a world already filled with monsters? No one would think to look twice until the damage was too late to reverse. "They don't just scare people," Sora continued, trying to make this as easy to understand as possible. "They steal people's hearts, turn them into heartless, too, and they swarm the world and fill it with darkness. And when they find the heart of your world, your world disappears!"

Mike was giving him that deadpan expression again.

Sora looked to Sulley for support. "They're those creatures we saw in the factory, remember?"

The big monster curled his fingers beneath his fuzzy chin. "Yeah... they did look like they were going to jump us. But you, uh... burned them up with a wrench."

Putting it that way, it did sound kind of ridiculous. "That wasn't the wrench, it was my magic," Sora tried to explain. "Look, it's hard to believe, but you _did _see them! Where I come from, there's some sort of heartless machine. I guess it makes them! And I was looking for someone who's been messing with it, and remember I told you I chased someone into this world? It was Randall, right? So Randall's the one using the machine, and he's bringing heartless to this world. I dunno why he is, but your world is going to die if we don't stop him!"

As Sora finished his tirade and took a few breaths to calm himself down, Sulley and Mike once again exchanged glances. Sulley seemed ready to accept everything until—

"Oh come on!" Mike yelled at his friend. "I'm supposed to believe all this? Don't we have more realistic things to worry about?! Like your career, Sulley! It's going to go down the toilet because you're smuggling children into Monstropolis, and you're going to get caught and lose your scarer rank—and have you forgotten we're _this _close to breaking the all-time scare record?! Our job is hard enough as it is with all those doors going inactive every day!" Mike flailed his arms, his voice shrill. "HELLO! There's an energy crisis, we can't afford worrying about some stupid human kid with a story as crazy as this! We need to figure out a way to get him back to the factory, _unseen_, stuff him back through a door, and pretend this never happened!"

Sora leapt to his feet, towering above the short monster from his perch on the chair. "You think it's stupid that I saved Sulley's life?! If you pretend this isn't happening, you're just letting your world die!"

"Whoa, whoa, _whoa_. Guys!"

Sulley planted a hand on Mike's head, and his other hand on Sora's shoulder, pushing both of them into sitting positions to get them to calm down. Sora sat obediently, unable to hide a pout, and Mike sat at the edge of the coffee table, his arms folded as he glared at Sora.

"He started it," Mike grumbled.

Sulley shook his head, crouching between them. "No, listen—I just thought of something. If what the kid says is true, maybe the heartless are the ones causing the inactive doors lately."

Both Mike and Sora turned to Sulley. "Huh?"

"Think about it," Sulley said. "If heartless do eat worlds, and if the worlds behind the closet doors are being eaten, the doors would go inactive." He looked to Mike, a brow raised. "Just yesterday, weren't you the one who said it was like the kid's bedroom just _disappeared_? And just now you brought it up again. Dozens of doors every day, just—inactive. Like the rooms disappeared."

Mike's eye lowered. "Yeah, well..."

"It's worth looking into, isn't it?" Sulley mustered a smile and nudged his friend. "Think about it, if you catch Randall in the act... Mike Wazowski, your face would be on _thousands_ of magazines. The hero of Monstropolis."

This time Mike's jaw fell, a look crossing face like he'd just been offered all of his dreams on a silver platter. Then he leapt to his feet, hands on his hips, and took on a whole new attitude about their situation. "Alright, you big hairball. I don't believe I'm saying this, but—"

He thrust a finger into the air.

"Let's save the world!"

-o-o-

Despite Kida's excitement to show him Milo's precious murals, Riku studied the ancient drawings with a grave air. They were massive to the point that Riku couldn't imagine how many people must have been in Milo's excavation crew in order to uncover something this impressive.

He couldn't read the inscriptions, but he got the gist of what the drawings were depicting.

The stars in the night sky disappeared one by one. Then one day creatures appeared and began to overrun the city. No matter what weapons the Atlanteans used, the creatures kept coming. That is, until a warrior appeared with a key.

Riku studied the mural of the keyblade warrior and the crowd of creatures surrounding him. He had the keyblade pointed high, proudly. The next mural was of the Atlantean people bowing to the keyblade master with praise on their faces. And the one after—decayed beyond recognition, crumbled and dilapidated over thousands of years of exposure to water and sea life.

The images were simple, but their message was clear, even without the last mural. The keyblade master had saved Atlantis and earned its eternal gratitude.

Except if that was true, why had this story been buried deep beneath the city like Milo had said?

"Can you read any of this?" Riku asked Kida as he turned to her.

She held her pole of fireflies closer and shook her head. "This language is ancient even for Atlantis, and Milo is slowly translating it into our current dialect." Then she pulled away, handing him the pole. "Here. Study and rest. I will be back in a few moments."

Riku set the pole against the wall and watched her head back in the direction they had come. "Where are you going?"

"To get more light," was her distracted response as she disappeared into the undergrowth.

Even though he thought there was plenty of light, he let her go. He settled against a smooth boulder and stared up at the large murals, studying their details more thoroughly and wondering what was nagging him about them. It wasn't that the creatures didn't look exactly like heartless, and it wasn't that these murals were so old it made his brain hurt, it was something else. He had a feeling there was more to these images than what he was seeing, but there was no telling what that was, not if the language was dead.

Sighing, he glanced at the other murals around him, counting at least half a dozen other stories, each about Atlantis's past. This had been the only one with a keyblade or creatures, though. The rest seemed to focus on its people, the crystal, the city itself. Some of them were so worn away that they were completely indecipherable, but others were pristine as if they had been painted only years ago. It was bizarre.

Minutes passed with him lost in his thoughts, unable to come up with the solutions he was searching for.

It was about the time he was anticipating Kida's return when he heard a sudden scuffle in the bushes, like two large animals fighting.

He flicked his hand out, summoning Oblivion instantly, and turned towards the sound, prepared for anything—heartless, native, or otherwise.

There was a yell of surprise right before two familiar figures came flying out of the bushes and rolled to a stop at Riku's feet.

And—admittedly—he hadn't been prepared for _this_.

Kida had Yami pinned to the ground.

Both of them were breathing raggedly, with Kida's expression close to murderous, and Yami's like he had just been thrown into the lion's den. A dagger was held to his throat, and Yami's wing-shaped sword was held to hers.

After shouting at him in Atlantean and not getting a response, Kida switched to their language, furious. "I knew it! You look like one of us, but I know you are not!" Her fingers tightened their grip into the front of his white shirt, and the dagger pressed against his skin without breaking it. Yet. "Who are you?!"

This time, Yami really _was_ there.

It wasn't just a trick of his eyes. It wasn't just a hopeful notion.

"What the—YAMI?!"

And it only took two seconds for Riku's surprise to shift into anger. He marched up to them, his keyblade joining Kida's dagger at Yami's throat, and a growl laced his voice as Yami met his gaze from upside down.

"How _dare _you come back."

Kida lifted her face, glancing from Riku to Yami. "You know this man?"

"He's the one who left me here," Riku explained through clenched teeth. "And took my best friend away. _What _are you doing here?" Deep down, his anger was already dissolving. As pissed as Riku wanted to be with Yami, he was largely relieved just to see a familiar face here—it meant he wasn't as stranded as he'd thought.

"You have every right to be angry," Yami said, his words chosen as if he were treading very thin ice. "But I came to help."

"Yeah, right."

Riku wrenched Yami's weapon from his hand and tossed it aside, and as soon as it hit the mossy earth, it dispersed into shadows. Now that she was safe to move, Kida forcefully yanked Yami to his feet, her dagger still against his throat as she moved close behind him and began to search inside his clothes with her free hand.

"Why are you _really_ here?" Riku asked, leveling his keyblade at the older boy.

Yami shifted uncomfortably as Kida's hand searched his waist for other weapons. "I came to help," he said again with a sigh, and he lifted his hands to show he was now unarmed.

Kida's fingers caught his wrist, where Riku saw a stretch of white across his dark skin.

A bandage?

"Wait." He lowered his keyblade and took a closer look. Sure enough, gauze was wrapped in several layers around his wrist. Why would Yami...? "What's this?" he demanded, yanking the gauze free.

Instead of a wound, he found something even more taboo.

It was a heartless symbol.

Though glowing a soft white in the center, it was bleeding dark red around the edges. Riku knew that emblem hadn't been there in Atlantica, but the thought of how it might have gotten there tugged at Riku's heart in ways he didn't like.

**Can you feel it, Riku?**

Grimacing, Riku clamped his hand around Yami's wrist. "If this is the way you define _help_—" He shoved the emblem into Yami's face. "I don't need it, _heartless_!!"

"Not a heartless yet." Yami yanked his arm free and covered the emblem with his other hand, but he didn't stay free for long. Kida's arm wrapped around his throat, and Yami tensed against her but did not fight. His eyes narrowed at Riku before shifting away. "I wanted to help Sora before my time ran out, but if you do not want to cooperate..."

"What is this?" Kida asked, gesturing to Yami with her dagger. "Who is he? Who is this Sora?"

Even Riku hesitated at Yami's words. He'd _had _to bring Sora up, hadn't he? And now Riku was torn between wanting to find out more and—

_Damn it._

If Sora was in trouble, he wanted to know about it. "What are you talking about?" he asked at last. "Explain."

"I will explain if you release me first," Yami said calmly. His eyes shifted towards Kida as if to make a point. "I did not come with ill intentions."

"So you say," she returned, holding the dagger to his side. He stiffened. "Yet you drew your weapon first!"

Yami seemed to be losing his patience. "You _startled _me. I wasn't expecting to be pounced on."

"You were spying on the boy!"

Riku and Yami's eyes met again, and this time when Yami looked away, Riku could have sworn there was a hint of embarrassment there.

"I was trying to decide how to approach him. We did not exactly leave on the best terms..."

"Got that right," Riku said with a glare. He motioned for Kida to release Yami, figuring that if he really _had _come to help, he would be sticking around. They may as well get some answers out of him. "How'd you find me anyway?"

Kida nodded and pulled away from him, and Yami released a sigh before straightening his shirt. "Simple. I followed your heart."

And Riku's heart gave a startled thump at the confession. He opened his mouth to remark, but hesitated, not having a clue as to what to say to that. "W— ...huh?" What was _that_ supposed to mean?

After pulling his long hair over one shoulder, Yami paused to study Riku's expression, and that familiar and aggravating half smirk of his pulled at his lips. "It's a talent I possess. In any case, I came to take you off this world."

Riku's thoughts scattered, giving him a hard time deciding what part of Yami's words to focus on. Why was every answer that came out of that man's mouth an even bigger mystery than the statement before it?

And despite being the one who had stranded him here in the first place, Yami _was _here to help him?

Unlike Riku, Kida knew exactly what part of Yami's words to be concerned about. She stepped forward, putting herself between Yami and Riku. "No—he cannot leave yet. He has the key."

Oh, right. Riku couldn't just up and leave this world without helping these people.

...he couldn't believe he had just been thinking about doing so. Heroes didn't do that. Not even Sora would have put himself first before the safety of the world.

Lowering his face, Riku raked a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I need to seal the world first."

Yami nodded in agreement. Then, noticing several leaves stuck in his hair from his scuffle with Kida, he began picking them out one by one. "Very well, but we do not have much time. I assume you have not found the keyhole yet."

Riku dismissed his keyblade and folded his arms. "No, but the king and I think we might know where it is." He surveyed the murals in front of them, wishing one of them would have had the answer, some sort of hint that the keyhole was where Milo suggested it would be. That way Riku would know for sure, no matter how violent Atlantis reacted to the keyblade. "The problem is that when I tried to get close to it, the crystal—the heart of Atlantis—reacted a little weird."

"Weird?" Kida asked, no longer concerned with Yami. She tucked the dagger into the folds of her skirt.

"Yeah. Milo told me to go explore while they looked for the queen," Riku said, "so she could take me down there next. She's supposed to know what to do."

"You did not tell me this," she said, and it was the hint of accusation in her voice that roused Riku's suspicions again. "We should return to the city." Wasting no time, she moved to the murals to grab the firefly pole.

As the warm glow illuminated her face, that's when Riku saw it—a smudge of blue on her cheek that hadn't been there earlier that evening.

Without giving warning, Riku crossed the distance between them and reached out to pinch her cheek. With a remark in Atlantean, she leapt back, putting the pole in front of her in defense, but it was too late. Riku saw that his fingers had come away from her skin with residue the color of light chocolate.

Make-up?

Riku glanced at her again, and where he had touched her cheek, more turquoise had been uncovered. Face tattoos, just like Milo's, hidden beneath a layer of paint the color of her skin.

"I knew it." He grabbed the pole away from her and wiped his hand on his dhoti. "I _knew_ there was something fishy about you." Unable to resist the urge to gloat, he smirked at her. "You're not the queen's bodyguard, you _are _the queen."

Kida pursed her lips. Then, figuring her ruse was up, she began wiping her face clean with the tail of her skirt, unveiling the same tattoos he had seen on the woman with the headdress when he had first entered the city with Milo. She _was _the queen. This proved that the tattoos were indeed some sort of mark of royalty or status.

"Very well," she said, finishing with her cheek. "You are more clever than I first thought." She started cleaning her shoulder where another tattoo had been hidden.

"Why is the queen personally escorting the keyblade master around the fringes of her city?" Yami asked. He was pointedly keeping his attention elsewhere, and for good reason; with Kida's skirt lifted and being used as a towel, her simple underwear left little to the imagination. Not very queen-like behavior, but maybe she was used to being shameless around men. After the way the Atlantean women had treated Riku during his bath, he wouldn't be surprised.

Finished cleaning herself, she fixed her skirt and blew her bangs upward, crossing her arms. "Because!" she said, then gestured with a sweep of a hand. "It is my city."

Then why the disguise, he wondered. But then he recalled that Milo had said the queen was sort of a free spirit. Riku could relate to that. That was why he had sympathized with Ariel, too. Being trapped by an inescapable duty was in the fine print of being royalty. And in Riku's case—a _hero_.

Riku offered her the pole of fireflies. "Let's get back to the crystal and save your daughter."

And sometimes even queens and heroes needed someone to remind them what was important.

Kida's face lowered, and she took the pole with both hands, silent. With a nod, she turned away from the murals and began to lead the way back to the heart of the city.

Riku trailed close behind her, more than aware of Yami's eyes lingering on him as he, too, followed. He caught Yami's stare and frowned. "What?"

For that moment, Yami's eyes softened as though he had a world of confessions to offer. But Riku didn't hold his breath.

Sure enough, instead of an apology for dumping Riku here or an explanation for stealing Sora or—_anything _Riku needed to hear—Yami closed himself off again, his words distracted.

"You look..."

_Ravishing? _

The word sprang to mind unbidden. Somehow, it seemed like something Yami would say.

Riku curled his arms around himself and fought back a shiver.

"Tired," Yami finished quietly. He was the one who sounded tired. Of all people, though, Riku didn't want to sympathize with _him_, and he didn't want his pity. As far as he was concerned, Yami was his enemy after that stunt he had pulled in Atlantica. He didn't care what good may or may not have been in his memories concerning Yami.

"I'm not," he said, resisting the urge to hold Ursula's shell again. They passed through the undergrowth side by side, stepping over crumbled walls and maneuvering around fallen statues, following the light of Kida's fireflies just ahead.

He thought about the dark voice haunting him both in dreams and waking hours and grimly mused to himself that he _was _tired but apparently had to be exhausted to the point of collapsing before he could sleep without worry.

"Riku," Yami hedged, his voice a solemn reprimand. "The keyblade may have everlasting strength, but it is only useful as long as its master is capable of wielding it. You are only human. Your foes are not."

Not in the mood to be lectured, Riku sent him a cutting look and shoved a plant into his face. He spotted the faint light of Yami's wrist as he lifted his arm to shield himself. A heartless emblem... Was Yami really there to help?

Riku tore his gaze away. "How did you get that mark?"

Yami didn't ask for specification; he knew exactly what Riku was referring to. "Maleficent," he replied, and his usual calm was laced with poison. "She placed a curse on us."

The "us" didn't escape Riku's attention. He reached out to stop Yami and demand what had happened with Sora, but the other boy beat him.

"Sora will be fine," he assured. He brushed Riku's hand off and looked away. "She gave him a simple task that should not shroud his single-minded sense of morality."

Riku detected a hint of humor there, but it was what Yami _wasn't_ saying that caught his attention. "And you?" he asked. Not that he cared, he reminded himself.

"I came here to help him help you," Yami replied without facing him. "Sora would not have the slightest idea where to look for you, and you have no means to leave this world. It's beneficial for you both."

He was hiding something. He was always hiding something, but this time it was different somehow.

"I'm sensing a catch," Riku said.

He stepped in front of Yami, who came to a stop. Ahead of them, Kida marched onward, her light disappearing behind an aqueduct that had undergone partial reconstruction.

Yami glanced in her direction before tucking a tuft of his bangs behind an ear. Slowly, they met eye-to-eye.

"I have one request," Yami admitted. His amber eyes shifted downward, focusing on the faint light radiating from Ursula's shell. "Your memories."

Heart jumping, Riku clutched the shell and stepped back, stretching his other hand out to summon his keyblade.

Yami's fingers wrapped around his arm to stop him, but it was the teasing smile on his face that actually made Riku hesitate.

"I do not _want _them," Yami clarified. He released Riku, who only tightened his grip around the necklace.

"Then what's the request?"

Yami countered Riku's cautious tone with his smile. "I only ask that you wait until you are off this world before you break that shell."

There was the clearing of a throat as Kida returned, standing nearby with the firefly lantern. Riku ignored her for a moment, aware that she was eager to move on, but right now it was just him and Yami, and he wanted his answer.

"Why?"

"Does it matter why?" Yami returned in challenge. "It's in your best interest. You do not know what the shell contains or what will happen to you when those memories return. You could be put to sleep for days, your heart could collapse on itself in the middle of the mission..." He glanced at Kida before heading towards her, still speaking to Riku. "It would be wise to wait until both you and this world are safe."

"Fair enough," Riku said, and it was his turn to grab Yami's arm to stop him. "But—at least tell me what it has to do with you."

The older boy stopped in place, not tugging himself free just yet. He hesitated for a moment, his face turned and hidden from view. Then, his half smile in place, he faced Riku again, eyes locking with his.

"Things are better this way. Simpler. If you remember what happened, I will be forced to do something I would rather not do."

Riku watched as Yami lifted his wrist and ran his fingers over the darkening red of his heartless emblem.

"I have very little time left."

And as Riku watched Yami begin to walk after Kida, fallen to silence, he slipped his hand away from Ursula's necklace, Yami's words settling inside of him. The weight of his trapped memories felt like a stigma again, and suddenly he wasn't so sure he wanted to break that shell, even when he got off this world.

What was inside of it that even _Yami _was ashamed of?

-o-o-

After an hour of Mike trying to come up with a genius plan to sneak Sora back into Monsters, Incorporated, and another hour of Mike and Sulley arguing about how digging a tunnel with spoons wouldn't work, Sora distracted them another little problem.

He was starving.

The monsters ended up raiding Mike's fridge, only to offer Sora gross things like eye of newt, toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog. Sora decided he was better off with a small box of leftover lasagna that didn't smell like it belonged in the sewer.

"Why do you even _have _those things?" Sora heard Sulley asking Mike while he busied himself by warming up his food.

"To impress company," was Mike's smart-aleck response. He watched as Sora settled into a kitchen chair before digging into the rubbery noodles and saucy cheese. "You owe me for that, kid. I was savin' it."

"For the end of the century?" Sora joked around a mouthful. The lasagna was a little tough but made up for that by being delicious.

Mike's eye narrowed. "Ha. Ha."

"He's just picking on you because those were leftovers from his date with his Celia-welia," Sulley said with a playful smirk.

"Yeah, and—hey, you can't call her that!" Mike stamped his foot. "Her name is _Celia_."

Sora snickered as the two of them began bickering again, and he continued with his dinner, devouring it. And with two bites to go, Sora only put the fork down because he was so stuffed he felt like he'd explode. Which was weird—since when couldn't he finish a normal-sized piece of lasagna? He could eat like _three_ back home.

"Yo, kid—you okay?" Mike asked. "You look a little sick."

Nodding, Sora pushed the plate away. "Yeah, just gotta pee!" He hopped off the chair, staggering a little, forgetting for a second that he had shrunk and the ground was farther than he'd anticipated.

A big fuzzy hand steadied him. "Whoa there." Sulley smiled down at him, then jerked his thumb towards the hall. "Sora, the potty's that way."

Sora.

Not just _the kid_.

Sora had no reserves about smiling back. "Thanks, Sulley." Even though he was on a totally different world surrounded by monsters, he felt at home. Monsters or not, he liked them a lot.

He moved through the darkened hallway, hearing the two of them return to chattering about what to do with him. Finding the bathroom was simple, and he stood on his tippy-toes to switch the light on. That bathroom was clean and completely normal-looking, except for some of the products next to the sink, cologne like "wet dog" and "old trash."

Spotting a footstool nearby, probably for Mike's own squatness, Sora dragged it to the sink and climbed atop it.

The person he saw in the mirror was someone Sora never thought he'd see in the flesh again.

Himself, nearly ten years younger. He knew he had shrunk, but this was—_whoa._

Eyes widening, he touched his round cheeks and pulled at his short eartails, wondering why and _how _this had happened. Had the world done it? But why would it turn him into a five-year-old?!

Sora opened his mouth, dismayed to find a lot of baby teeth. If his _teeth _were little, he wondered what else of his was—

Oh no.

His stomach sank as he turned to face at the toilet.

He knew what he would he would find when he went pee. Worrying his bottom lip, he hopped off the stool and approached the toilet cautiously. Then, wrenching his eyes shut, he unzipped his pants and hurried, refusing to look.

All that growing, for nothing.

He sighed.

Finishing up, he returned to the sink and washed his hands. He had half expected a wisecrack from Id about his petite body, but he still couldn't feel Id's presence. Not one ounce of darkness. It was... kinda comforting.

After smiling at his reflection, Sora stepped off the stool again and switched the light off. Time to see if the monsters had made any progress since he had left. He liked this world, but his time was steadily ticking away, and the heart on his wrist was darkening by the minute.

He just hoped that, when he got off this world, _everything _about his body went back to normal.

Otherwise he'd never be able to face Riku with his pride in tact.

-o-o-

* * *

We're over 1000 pages now, so don't be shy! I would LOVE to hear your thoughts! Please review? I've been at this story for six years, and I will never grow tired of good feedback.


	41. Ch 24: The Weaker Heart

_Author Notes: _

This chapter was a huge challenge. I lost count of how many times I debated with myself about cutting out Atlantis and Monsters, Inc., but in the end I decided to keep them because I really, really needed this last touch in developing Riku and Sora's characters. Even if you're not a fan of the movies, I hope you still enjoyed reading Riku and Sora's adventures. I'm very pleased with the responses I did get!

We're getting so close to the end that I can _taste _it. ;D I'm expecting my updates for this fic will be much faster in the near future than they have been in years. Why? I'M EXCITED! I can't wait to get to the really good stuff! All the answers you guys have been waiting for after hundreds of thousands of words. And this chapter marks the start of it.

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-four: **__The Weaker Heart_

-o-o-

The journey back into the center of Atlantis filled all of them with a quiet solemnity, though for different reasons. Riku didn't have a daughter to worry about like Kida, nor did he have a dark curse haunting him like Yami, but they didn't have his growing list of issues to deal with, either.

And Riku's biggest issue? The seashell necklace hanging from his neck.

Yami had told him to wait until he got off this world before he broke Ursula's shell to get his memories back... but what was inside those memories that was so taboo that Sora _and _Yami couldn't tell him?

"Wait here."

Kida's voice drew him back to the present, where he realized she hadn't led him and Yami back to the throne room. They were by the guest house he had woken up in earlier that day.

"I will return for you, but... it may take a while."

She settled her lantern into the soil by the walkway and opened the jar of fireflies to free them. Though it was late at night now, the city was still filled with the warm glow of many homes and the twinkling reflections on the water.

Before leaving them, she glanced at Riku and Yami, then just Yami, studying him with an almost cautious air. Riku couldn't blame her, not after the scuffle they'd had at the murals and the way Yami had supposedly been spying on him. Riku nodded to her, that he'd be fine with Yami's company.

She still seemed hesitant, but she accepted Riku's reassurance. "Please get some rest," she said as she turned to go.

As soon as she was out of hearing range, Riku glanced at Yami. "She's probably going to talk to Milo about what happened in the crystal chamber," Riku explained to him. Just speaking aloud helped his nerves relax despite the uneasy feeling he had about—well, everything. His memories, this world, Sora...

Yami said nothing. He rubbed at his wrist for the hundredth time, his gaze distant as he studied the symbol branding it.

Riku felt frustration bubble up inside of him. "Quit staring at that."

Yami had been glancing at that heartless emblem more and more often, and the way he was acting around Riku was starting to get distracting. Riku found himself teetering between worrying about Maleficent's curse and worrying about his duty on this world. The curse didn't even deal with him, but with the way Yami was reacting to it, it had him really concerned about Sora.

He needed to focus. Atlantis first, Sora later.

Man, he really wished Sora was here with them now. Maybe then he'd be able to think straight. But Sora wasn't here, no thanks to Yami.

"If you're actually here to help like you say you are, you need to get your head in the game," Riku said, half reprimanding himself as well. He headed down the walkway to the guest house. "I'd be better off without you if you're just going to stare at your arm all night."

He heard Yami's footsteps follow him, much softer and more hesitant than his own. Yami's voice, though, still carried his unruffled character. "What happened in the chamber that has them concerned?"

Riku entered the gourd-shaped room, which was lit by several jars of fireflies suspended from the ceiling. "It's a little complicated," he said. He dropped onto his bed of pillows and sighed before describing what the heart of Atlantis had done when he had summoned his keyblade to find the keyhole.

Yami, who took a pillow and settled beneath the window, listened with interest. "It does sound as though it senses you as a threat somehow."

"But it doesn't add up," Riku said. He glanced down at his own wrist, which still carried Milo's crystal necklace around it. "What kind of world doesn't want to be sealed?"

"A heartless world."

Wondering if he'd heard that right, Riku sat up straight. "Something like that _exists_?"

"One possibly does," Yami said, but he shook his head as he folded his arms around the large pillow in his lap. "But not _this_ world. Despite its crumbling architecture and primitively dressed people, the world is still thriving on its own. A heartless world... would be filled with heartless, darkness, and probably not much else."

Goosebumps crept across Riku's arms. He rubbed them, trying not to think too much about a world like that. "That still doesn't explain why the crystal reacted like that."

"There may be more to this world than what they have told you," Yami pointed out. "Or perhaps more than they themselves know."

That was possible. No one, not even Milo or Kida, seemed to know why Atlantis had chosen their daughter. "The heart of Atlantis—the crystal—chooses a host to carry out its will when the city's in danger," Riku said slowly, recalling what Milo had told him. "A royal host. They'd expected it to be Kida, because apparently she was chosen last time. But it picked their daughter. She looks like she's hardly three years old. Why would it pick someone so young?"

Yami's eyes were focused on his wrist once again. "The heartless are the darkness of the heart. If the world sensed it was in danger, it may have chosen a host to offset that remarkable darkness. And the hearts of children are the brightest of all."

Riku couldn't help wondering if that was why the keyblade had come to him instead of someone like Leon or Cloud. But then, keyblades didn't really deal with the brightness of heart, did they? Both Merlin and Yami had told him it was strength of heart, whatever that meant.

Now that Riku thought about it, _Yami's _weapon was somewhat of a mystery. He had always wondered about its strange wing design and the way it appeared and disappeared similar to a keyblade—but it couldn't be one, it didn't look like a key or have a keychain.

"Yami?"

Amber eyes rose to meet Riku's. "Hm?"

"Your weapon... what _is _it anyway?"

For a few seconds, Yami said nothing as he looked away, lost in his thoughts again. "Soul Eater?" he said at last.

That didn't sound like a friendly name. Fitting, for such a wicked looking thing.

Riku shifted onto his stomach and crossed his arms on the pillow in front of him, trying to look interested to encourage Yami to continue. For once, he did.

Yami reached out, and with a quick eddy of darkness, the wing-shaped sword appeared clasped in his hand.

Riku hadn't gotten a good look at it out near the murals when Kida'd had him pinned, but now that he studied it in the light of the room, it seemed to have changed. Its dark colors of old, indigo and maroon, had begun to fade into warmer shades, more maroon with a touch of orange along the fringes. The cat-slit eye centered on the hilt was a burning topaz.

"This particular weapon is made out of the darkness of one's heart," he told Riku. The fingers of his other hand delicately traced over the ridges of the wing, a shape reminiscent of Cloud's. "And it was forged using magic."

Riku watched him study the weapon as if he himself hadn't taken a good look at it in a long time. "How did you figure out how to do that?"

Yami's expression darkened. "It was Maleficent's gift to me when I had first gone to her offering my services." He dismissed the weapon and stuffed his pillow behind him to get more comfortable. "She would have preferred it if I had been able to use a keyblade, but—well... obviously, my heart was not fit to wield one. She decided to have me use my power in other ways."

Yami was being awfully liberal with information that night. Riku decided to press his luck and keep asking.

"Why go to Maleficent and help her?" he wondered. "And... all of that darkness inside you, where did it come from?"

Based on the secretive smile that spread across Yami's face, Riku's luck had run out. That smile was as aggravating as his others, and Riku rolled his eyes at the sight of it. "Forget it," he sighed. Fluffing the pillow beneath his head, he shifted to get more comfortable since it seemed like they really were going to be here a while. "If I happen to fall asleep, wake me up when Kida or Milo get here."

"What makes you think I will not be sleeping, too?"

Riku scowled at him. "You'll probably be up staring at that stupid symbol on your wrist. Besides, I said _if _I happen to fall asleep."

Sure enough, at the mention of the heartless emblem, Yami looked down at it. "Troubles sleeping?" he asked without glancing up again. He lightly rubbed the mark before he pulled his knees to his chest.

"So what if I do?" Riku challenged, but before Yami could react, he turned onto his side away from the older boy and tucked an arm under his pillow. It wasn't like Riku _wanted _to be plagued by weird dreams almost every time he tried to sleep.

When Yami did reply, it was in a tone softer than Riku remembered ever hearing from him, almost as though he were talking more to himself than Riku. "So, even the keyblade master gets them."

He knew exactly what Yami was referring to.

Nightmares.

"Very well," Yami said, this time with a touch of reassurance, "try to rest. I will keep my distance."

Aware of Yami's eyes on him, Riku resisted the urge to find something to cover himself with. He tried to ignore the comment instead, but his words seemed to carry more weight than what was on the surface. Keep his distance...?

Not for the last time suspecting there was something horrible in his memories, Riku closed his eyes and tried to calm his heart down. "Don't flatter yourself, Yami."

-o-o-

For being such a tall, fuzzy teddy bear, Sulley was pretty talented at sewing.

Sora settled down into Mike's plush sofa and watched as the two monsters worked diligently at making him a costume. Well, Sulley was the one doing most of the work since Mike kept pausing to make comments.

"Egh, it's getting its germs all over my furniture."

"M'not toxic," Sora reminded him, then stifled a yawn as he sank into the cushions.

"Maybe not, but the CDA doesn't know that!" Mike said, wagging his glue gun at Sora. He was in the middle of adding touches to the hood of Sora's costume. "And do you think they'll _care _if you say you're not toxic when they catch us? No! They'll have to decon my entire place at this rate! Or worse, they'll _banish _us to the human world! And look at me, tearing apart my prized possessions..."

Sulley snorted at that. "It's just your shower curtains, a feather duster, two snake lights, and a box of plastic sporks, Mike."

To which Mike muttered, "Doesn't mean I didn't cherish them."

"Just think of it as a small sacrifice on your road to saving the world," Sulley suggested, his deep voice amused. "No one's going to banish us because we're not going to get caught."

"Yeah, yeah." Then, louder: "Hey kid! You better not drool on that leather if you fall asleep!"

Sora only smiled and closed his eyes, settling in for a little nap as his new friends continued to work. On his wrist, the light of the heart-shaped mark continued to fade steadily into black.

-o-o-

It was almost as dark as when he had first shut his eyes.

Shadows fell from the ceiling in curtains, crept across his reflections in the countless mirrors lining the round room, swathed inch by inch of floor in a snarled web of black.

Face buried in his arms, he waited and listened, huddled in the center of his prison of mirrors and darkness.

He wasn't alone.

He hadn't seen them, but he could hear the echoes of their hungry whispers somewhere. Maybe behind his gritty reflections, maybe inside the shadows.

Maybe they weren't there at all.

"Hello?"

A child's voice.

Riku slowly lifted his face, just enough to peer through his bangs. A terrible chill crawled through him as he stared ahead where a mirror had been sitting moments before.

The darkness had peeled away, leaving a path, and beyond it—a shaded cave of weathered stone, soft sand, and twisted tree roots. The secret place. He recognized it immediately, though he was used to entering it from the other direction, through the tunnel.

"Is anyone there?"

That was where the voice was coming from. It was familiar.

Too familiar.

Getting closer.

Any second now, the child would step out of the tunnel and into the secret place and see Riku there.

Nerves on edge, he climbed to his feet, hugging himself as he stepped closer to the secret place. It looked just like he remembered it, with one exception.

Not a single chalk drawing marred the smooth walls. It was untouched.

And as he tried to enter the cave, a thin, translucent barricade shimmered to life and prevented him. Not another mirror, though.

It was shaped like a door.

Then, out of the shadows of the tunnel leading into the secret place, he saw the child.

Small, pale, with short silver hair and wide green eyes. Yellow shirt, long shorts, and a pair of beach sandals. Riku remembered that yellow shirt well—it had been one of his favorites when he had been in elementary school.

His younger self focused right on him. Maybe it was a trick of the moonlight filtering through the fissure above, but his eyes almost seemed to be glowing. "It's back," he breathed.

It?

Riku pressed a hand against the transparent barrier, wondering if his younger self could see him after all. He watched as the child approached him, face lit with a sense of wonder.

Just like him, he pressed a hand against the barrier.

A small smile, tinged with awe, spread across his face.

"One day, I'll figure out how to open you."

Riku drew in a sharp breath as a sudden shiver swept through him.

The door, he realized.

The boy was talking to the _door_. Riku was _behind _the door.

He stumbled back in disbelief, digging his hands into his hoodie as he stared, dumbfounded, at his younger self. Ever since the night of the meteor shower and the morning Kairi had washed ashore, he had been obsessed with the wooden door in the secret place, obsessed with finding out what lay beyond his isolated little world.

He hadn't forgotten what had happened the night that door had opened...

Now he was the darkness behind it.

Little Riku's smile fell as Riku continued backing away from the door, his eyes lowering as his innocent face filled with disappointment. "It's gone."

Riku curled his arms around himself and stepped back into his prison, flinching as flashes of movement caught his eye, only to realize they were just his countless reflections around him. He squeezed his eyes shut and felt the racing of his heart, the shudder of his breath, the tremors of his body.

He could still hear the whispers around him.

Hungry.

Waiting.

He reached inside himself and tried to will his dream to go away, to let him wake up, to let him open his eyes and see something real.

_Please let me wake up. _

Taking a steadying breath, he swallowed and slowly slipped his eyes open.

Mirrors. Darkness.

A flicker of yellow—

Riku tensed as a figure leapt from the shadows above and landed in front of him in a crouch, the darkness curling off of it like flames.

An anti-Riku. Only... this one moved more like a human, the way it rose to its full height and turned directly to face him. He sensed awareness there, not the blank hive-mind he had witnessed during his memory dive.

And it was studying him with a predatory interest.

As soon as he threw his hand out to summon his keyblade, the creature lunged.

It slammed into him with full force, sending both of them tumbling into a mirror behind him. Glass shattered and gave way, cutting through his hoodie as he hit the ground hard with the heartless on top of him. Even before the keyblade had finished forming, the creature had sank shark-like teeth into his arm.

Lashing out, he yelled and twisted away, the pain in his arm searing with pure agony as he ripped it free from the heartless. Through sheer desperation, he scrambled to his feet, blood trickling down between his fingers in a slow, steady flow.

The heartless vaulted back to standing with perfect ease, and Riku bolted without thought, his panicked breaths echoing around him as he clutched a hand over his lacerated arm. The broken mirror had opened a new passageway, but—

He was too slow.

Another heartless—or the same?!—barreled into him, followed by another, and he crashed to the floor again, thrashing and crying as their nails—claws—tore through his hoodie, his pants, his _skin_. Teeth, biting into the curve of his neck. Blood, seeping into his hair and clothes.

His keyblade, trapped uselessly beneath the heartless's knees.

He threw all of his strength into pushing them off, somehow freeing his keyblade long enough to strike them, driving them back. He rolled to his knees and held his weapon in front of him with a trembling arm, watching the heartless through his crimson-specked bangs as he sucked in sharp, ragged breaths to control his heart.

They slunk away from the keyblade, thinning eyes and hissing at the sight of its gentle glow in the heavy darkness around him. Several more heartless dropped out of the shadows nearby to join them, but Riku only tightened his grip on his weapon. He didn't think he had the strength to stand on his own two feet anymore, but reduced to his knees or not, he wasn't going to give in without a fight.

His vision blurred.

An icy numbness crawled through his wounded arm to his fingers as static began to eat at the fringes of his mind. The world started to pinwheel around him, and with a grimace, he fought not to lower his head or look away from the heartless.

Then he heard it.

Rattling. The unmistakable clanking of metal on metal.

Chains.

He squinted, focusing past the heartless, as the unmistakable song of chains approached.

Out of the darkness stepped someone—some_thing _new.

It was nude, its skin as colorless as someone who had never set foot in the sun before, but its muscles were well-toned, its body even more fit than his own as if it had fought countless battles. Slender ivory horns curved outward from beneath its long hair, and delicately crafted keys pierced out of its spine like a row of twisted fingers.

And there, hanging from its thin, claw-tipped hands, was a keyblade so dark it could have been made out of pure shadow, bound to its bony wrists by a thick, heavy chain.

Drawing its immense leathery wings behind itself, it slowly lifted its head.

White bangs hung in its face, but not long enough to cover its faint smile. Through a split in its hair, a pitch black eye watched Riku, its iris and pupil a solid, smoldering gold.

The blood seeping down Riku's arm began to crawl—_upward­—_and with a startled gasp he lifted it to look. The bitter burn of fear engulfed him with what he saw next.

It wasn't the crimson of blood there staining his arm. Instead, inky tendrils of darkness stretched right out of his wound.

_NO!_

He heard the sharp clang of his keyblade as he dropped it to claw at the darkness, trying to tear it out of him, but the shadows just stretched and grew and wrapped around his other hand, beginning to envelope him.

_NO!! This can't be happening!! _

Cold washed over his body as more of the darkness sprang out of the ground to draw him into it, and he struggled against it with a desperate cry, managing to pull a leg free just before three more tendrils ensnared it.

The creature that looked like him only watched, its small smile unfading.

"You're not _me_!" he screamed.

Flicking its wings out, the creature wrapped its fingers around its shackled keyblade, and its eye narrowed at Riku with wicked delight.

It didn't say a single word, but it didn't have to. The darkness responded anyway.

It lurched off the ground, tangling around his arms and waist and face. He writhed, screaming, as tendrils fed into his mouth, leaving the bitter taste of darkness on his tongue and choking off his cries as he was dragged off into the frigid black.

-o-o-

The costume had been Sora's idea, but it was Sulley who had made the masterpiece—with Mike's help, of course (namely getting to use his stuff).

Sulley had been inspired by Sora's hoodie and had fashioned a bodysuit with a hood using Mike's shower curtains, which for some reason had been like a shaggy orange and white zebra on one side. Sora hadn't questioned Mike's sense of style; after all, he was getting a monster costume out of it.

The hood came down over his face, where two slits had been cut for his costume's nostrils, allowing him peepholes to see where he was going. The monster's eyes had been fashioned out of bendable snake lights, and to hide the holes that they fed through into the hood, Mike had glued a bright green feather duster, giving the costume's head a mop of feathery locks.

The edges of the hood had been lined with the rounded, pronged ends of plastic white sporks, creating two rows of monster teeth. The handles of the sporks had been used down the back of the fuzzy bodysuit to make a stripe of protruding spines, all the way to the tip of his long tail.

The feet of the bodysuit fit comfortably over his own shoes, and the claws had been made out of the plastic rings that had once hung the shower curtain in Mike's home. The enclosed arms were the only uncomfortable part, since if Sora wanted to hold anything, he'd have to do it through a layer of long orange synthetic fur.

He kind of felt like he was wearing a set of full length pajamas. It was only a little stuffy, probably because he was still wearing his normal clothes beneath it. All in all, not bad for a full night of sewing and gluing.

Well—_Sora _had slept through the whole thing.

He had woken to the sound of Mike yelling about not being able to take a shower with his curtains gone.

Now the three of them were marching right into Monsters, Inc., and not a single monster had questioned Sora's appearance during the entire walk here. Sora was feeling good about this plan.

Until the slug.

"Hello, gooood morning, nice hat, Larry! Ohh, looking particularly scary today, George."

Mike was in the middle of greeting and complimenting almost everyone on his way through the front doors. As Sora followed at Sulley's side just behind the green monster, he wondered if this was his normal behavior for Mike or if he was being overly friendly to hide the fact he was smuggling Sora through the front of the factory.

"Hey, Charlie, been working out?" Mike shouted, snapping and winking with finesse. "Now to see my Celia-weli—AHHH!!"

That last part had been a scream directed at the slug lady who had slithered up beside Mike.

"Good morning, Mr. Wazowski," she greeted in the driest, most emotionless tone Sora had ever heard. "I see you forgot to file your paperwork again."

Mike looked decidedly panicked. "My—uhh—paperwork! Right! You see—" He sent Sulley a pointed glare. Sora did recall Sulley mentioning some sort of paperwork right before they had fled the factory last night. "Roz, I would have filed it, but—" And here he changed his tone, regaining his casual attitude. "Sulley here needed me to babysit right after work. His aunt's sister's grandson is visiting."

Roz slowly glanced at Sora without moving her shapeless head. "Wouldn't that make him Mr. Sullivan's son here?"

Mike blinked, and Sora could practically see the wheels in his head turning as he replayed what he'd just rambled out. "Different sister!" he blurted, then grabbed Sora's fuzzy arm and dragged him away.

As Sulley jogged to catch up, Sora heard Roz call across the foyer.

"I'm watching you, Wazowski. Aaaaaalways watching."

The look on Mike's face was close to creeped out. "I hate it when she does that," he muttered. Then his expression lit up like a carnival at night, and he released Sora to run forward. "My Schmoopsie-poo!"

Standing behind the reception counter, a skinny monster with snakes for hair beamed back at him. "Googley-bear!" But when Mike held his arms out for an embrace, "Schmoopsie-poo" planted her hands on her hips, and the snakes atop her head glared down at him. "Why didn't you call me last night?!"

In trouble again already? That was twice in less than five minutes. Sora grinned to himself as he watched Mike handle his (apparently) miffed girlfriend.

"I swear I woulda called," he insisted, "but Sulley needed someone to watch his—"

"Nephew," Sulley interrupted so Mike couldn't come up with another distant relation to confuse people even more. "Hi Celia. Meet—Sora." With a gentle push forward, he presented Sora to her. "He's, uh… shadowing me for the day."

She took one look at Sora, and the irritation melted right out of her, even from her hair-snakes. "I didn't know you had a nephew, James!" She slid close on her snake-tail feet and stooped over to meet him eye-to-eye. The look she got on her face was the same look that Kairi and Selphie and his mom—_all girls_—got whenever they saw something they thought was adorable. "Awwww, aren't you the cutest thing!"

Her snakes crept forward to study him as well, too close for comfort. He didn't want his cover to be blown for something at silly as Medusa's hair realizing his monster eyes were bendable lamps—but what would a monster do to get out of being cooed at?

Doing the first thing that came to mind, he lifted his arms at her. "RAWR!!"

She meeped and stepped back, then giggled, placing a tentacle-arm over her mouth. "And already learning from his uncle!"

"Best scarer in Monstropolis," Mike added, nudging Sulley in the hip.

"Unless I beat him to the scare record."

Sora's heart gave a start at the sudden new voice, and even Mike jolted with surprise. And no doubt why—right before Sora's eyes, the invisible voice became visible, clear air solidifying into scales and a sinister reptilian face.

Sora didn't need an introduction.

Invisible and mean? This had to be Randall.

Celia looked disgusted by his appearance. Rolling her eyes, she leaned down and kissed Mike's cheek. "I'll see you later, Michael. Bye James, Sora!" With a wave, she slithered off back to her desk and left the boys to fend for themselves.

Once she was gone, Randall sat on his hind legs, crossed his gecko-like arms, and outright glared at Sulley. "Sullivan. You look uptight," he noted in a dubious tone. "Have a bad night?" He had a distinctively nasal voice, like what Sora imagined a weasel to sound like.

"Not that it's any of your business, _Randall_," Sulley said through a growl. His blue fur began to bristle, and Sora fought the urge to inch away, not wanting to be standing too close if his furry friend decided to go off on Scaley-butt.

"James!"

Saved by another interruption. Sulley and Mike were awfully popular.

Sulley's anger faded as an elder monster scuttled towards them. The newcomer was a stout one, but smartly dressed, and Sora knew by just looking at him that he was someone important—further backed by how Sulley favored calming down instead of clawing Randall's head off.

Randall just smirked at them. "See you on the scare floor, loser." He turned to leave, but not before pausing in front of Mike and pointing a finger at his big eye. "Boo."

Then he dissolved back into camouflage and scampered away. He hadn't glanced at Sora even once.

"James, there you are."

The monster who had yelled for Sulley had finally reached them. He came to a stop beside Sulley on his many legs, which were reminiscent of a crab's, though his five eyes reminded Sora more of a spider. He seemed friendly based on how he was talking to Sulley.

"Fine work yesterday," he said, and for a second he did sound proud. But that faded from his tone as he continued. "You were one of the few who managed to reach his quota, let alone pass it. Thank you for that."

Sulley grew serious for a moment, too. "It's not a problem, Mr. Waternoose." He offered a smile. "Just doing my job."

Waternoose chuckled and started to continue, when several of his eyes caught sight of Sora. "Oh—who's this?" Just like Celia, he started to stoop closer to Sora's height.

Sulley's big hand tugged Sora back to keep him close. "Ah—my nephew, sir. He's shadowing me." He cleared his throat and changed the subject. "If I may say—you look worried about something."

"I am, James. I am." Waternoose sighed and adjusted his bow tie. "Someone broke into the warehouse last night, damaged some property." He shook his head, his lips set in a grim line. "In better times, the cost would have been minimal, but with the energy shortage, every mishap escalates into a disaster."

Sora watched as Sulley's tail gave an uneasy shift, and beside him, Mike twiddled his thumbs. If Waternoose noticed their failure at being casual, he didn't seem to suspect them of anything. He clapped Sulley on the shoulder.

"But don't you worry about it. Actually, I could use a favor from you."

Sulley straightened again. "Anything to help."

"I knew I could count on you." Waternoose smiled again, his worry fading. "Come by the scare simulator this afternoon right after lunch. The new recruits could use a good demonstration from a top quality scarer."

"You mean like the old Waternoose jump 'n growl?" Sulley asked with a grin, then nudged him. "I did learn from the best."

Sora blinked at the crab-spider monster. So this was Sulley's mentor and boss? He did seem scarier than Sulley, but too friendly to be a _really _scary monster. Randall, on the other hand... Sora wouldn't want to meet him in a dark alley—or an alley at all, not if he could camouflage so well he seemed invisible.

"Haha, good one!" Waternoose said with a laugh. As he began to turn away, he spotted Sora again. "Oh, and bring your nephew along. He'll learn from the best, too."

"Will do, sir," Sulley replied, patting Sora on his feathery head.

As Waternoose smiled and scuttled off, Sora glanced up at Sulley. His mood had completely changed since his boss had shown up, which was interesting to Sora. Waternoose must have been a good boss. Maybe if things got bad with Randall and the heartless, Sora and the others could go to the big boss for help. Surely he wouldn't want monsters around that could endanger the company, right?

Mike, poker-faced, eyeballed Sulley. "You are _such _a crab-kisser."

Sulley didn't seem to mind Mike's teasing. "What? He's my boss."

"Uh-huh."

Sulley shrugged and reached for Sora's fuzzy hand again. "You kiss up to Roz."

"She _terrifies _me," Mike said, and Sora grinned beneath his costume's hood, finding it ironic that Mike was scared of the slug lady when he was a monster, too.

"That doesn't make any sense," Sulley said, and with a laugh, he started to lead Sora away from the foyer. "Let's go, we're gonna be late for the Eastern seaboard."

-o-o-

Darkness had consumed his dreams.

Riku no longer dreamt of sapphire butterflies, the sound of waves, or the warm glow of the setting sun. The dark-winged Sora was gone, replaced instead with unsettling visages of himself and a hollow darkness he couldn't escape from.

But even if he could, in a world—a _dream—_made of darkness, where could he go?

The black surrounded him.

It was alive, breathing, stretching towards him. It wanted to slide over his body and swallow him into its cold embrace, to snake into his heart and devour every last shred of his light.

He knew this because he could hear its whispers, whispers just like the ones the keyblade used to sing to him but no longer did.

And amongst the whispers, loudest of all, close and kissing his hair as it breathed against his ear, there was that voice. _The _voice, and with all the sultry confidence it'd had when it had first come to him.

**Have you seen it, Riku?**

The cool texture of a glove brushed across his neck to sweep his hair aside. A shudder ran through him as always, the gesture familiar by now, but he didn't pull away or turn to look behind him this time.

No one was ever there.

**Their doubt in the keyblade. Their doubt in your power.**

Riku's heart clenched as he listened, even though he didn't want to listen. He didn't have a choice. He was dreaming, but being aware of it didn't change anything. He couldn't wake up, not from these dreams, not until his heart couldn't take it anymore.

Days ago, the voice had frightened him. In a lot of ways, it still did. He didn't know who it belonged to or what it wanted from him or why it had singled him out or why it chose this method, of all, to meet with him.

But the more he heard these dark whispers, the less he feared them.

**Their doubt in you. **

Again, those words piqued his heart, worse this time. Riku fought not to believe the voice, but... it was beginning to make sense.

His fear was giving way to acceptance, and that acceptance played at his conscience. It reminded him that even on a new world, Atlantis, with people who idolized him, not everyone completely trusted him.

He'd seen the doubt there in Milo's eyes. He'd seen the worry on Kida's face.

**You even doubt yourself. **

After Agrabah and Atlantica, how could he not?

Sora had been so upset with him, but Riku still didn't know why. _What _was in his memories? What was there that not even Yami wanted to tell him?

Whatever it was, it weighed on his heart. It drove his every action, rash or calculated, and had steadily just made things worse.

He was scared of what was happening to him. He was scared of messing up again.

He was scared of hurting more people, or worse—driving those he cared about even further away.

**It doesn't have to be that way.**

No, things didn't have to be like this. He knew that. But he couldn't help himself if he didn't have the power to do so.

He closed his eyes and tensed as strong arms slid around him and pulled him against a solid chest.

He wouldn't admit it to himself, but somehow the attention was comforting—and sometimes, even with his guard up, he got a dangerous little thrill as those fingers traced against the back of his neck, or when he felt the warm contrast of breath tickling his ear.

**Can you feel it, Riku?**

At first he didn't know what he was supposed to be feeling.

But as he opened his eyes and stared off into the moving shadows, he caught another glimpse of his own face there. Not the colorless creature with the keyblade, and not an anti-Riku. Him. His winged doppelganger, yellow eyes narrowed.

Riku remembered him from a previous dream, though he couldn't remember much of that dream except _him_. What he did know was how those dreams had made him feel.

Terrified.

Strong arms tightened around him, and that was when Riku noticed it—

A different darkness, like a pulse, all around. It wasn't like the cold darkness he was used to, it was almost... comforting, like a soft towel after swimming in a winter sea.

And as he met his dark twin's gaze across the dark chasm, he no longer feared him.

**Open your heart...**

Riku watched as one of the arms around him stretched forward, cloaked in the heavy darkness. Beneath the coiling shadows, he saw hints of the white glove that had often traced the curve of his neck over the past few days.

He knew he hadn't been imagining any of this—the voices, the touches, the promises. All along, this figure had been trying to protect him against the darkness.

_Do it_, his heart encouraged, as he watched those gloved fingers spread towards the other Riku. _Help me._

The hand made an elegant swoop in the darkness, turned upward, and tightened into a fist. It was a simple gesture, but Riku felt a noticeable change in the darkness around them. The comforting darkness pushed forward, driving back the old.

Ahead, the other Riku's yellow eyes narrowed into a deadly glare, and he slowly backed away, slipping into the shadows. Then, with an echoing crack of hardening ice, the darkness there solidified into a wall of dark crystal, a medley of grays and veins of acidic purple.

The cold darkness was gone.

Riku knew, without being told, he would no longer be having nightmares.

**...and no one will ever doubt you again.**

-o-o-

While "shadowing" Sulley on the scare floor, Sora got to see firsthand how the monsters of Monsters, Inc. worked to earn the screams that powered their world. As strange and complicated as it all seemed at first, Sora soon realized how simple and genius it all really was.

Every scarer, like Sulley or Randall, was assigned an assistant. Mike was Sulley's, and he handled all the paperwork, like the folders that detailed what kind of child was behind which door, and the card keys that were associated with calling the door out of the warehouse.

The cardkey slid into the card reader, the door came rolling down a rack and was lowered to the mechanism on the floor that not only clamped it into place, it activated the door so that it wasn't just a door—it became a portal directly into the child's bedroom. Without the red light signaling it had power, it was just a plain ole door.

The assigned scarer would enter the door and scare the child within. Depending on how scared the child was, assistants were able to collect the kid's screams via a machine, into yellow cylinders—the same ones Sulley had tripped over.

He also learned that the world, Monstropolis, was in some sort of scare shortage because doors kept deactivating on their own, as if the rooms and children on the other side were just disappearing. Only Sulley, Mike, and Sora knew the truth about the heartless and how they were the ones probably behind the dead doors.

That kept nagging at Sora, who had been keeping a close eye on Randall all day. He must have been the monster responsible for introducing heartless into this world, so Sora also blamed him for the disappearing children. In his book, someone who hurt children like that had to be evil.

Randall was excellent at being a scarer, almost neck-in-neck with Sulley, who really _was _the top scarer of the company. Throughout the day, the big screen on the wall updated with the scream count and who was ranked the best. Sulley was the top, and Randall was always only a few screams behind him.

Sora had caught Randall looking over at them more than a few times, too. He was almost positive that Randall knew exactly who the furry orange monster "shadowing" Sulley was. After all, if Randall had been the one who had attacked Sora when he'd first entered the world, he would have known Sulley was the one who'd shown up and taken Sora with him.

If Randall was that good at camouflaging, it was possible he hadn't run off and left Sora with Sulley; he could have been watching the whole thing, from Sora meeting Sulley, to Sulley taking Sora with him. He even may have been the one who had summon those heartless that had attacked them—if he really _was_ the one messing with the heartless machine.

Guilty or not, Sora didn't like him—or trust him—at all.

When the bell rang for lunch hour, the scare floor began to clear out. Mike organized his paperwork in a hurry as Sulley, just finished with his last scare for the morning, laced his hands together and stretched his arms.

"What now?" Sora asked them.

Nearby at his own station, Randall was yelling at his assistant, a short red monster named Fungus, who cowered and apologized for whatever it was he'd done wrong. Sulley glanced in their direction before replying in a whisper.

"We follow the plan."

Said plan was simple. As soon as Randall's assistant took off for lunch, Randall himself left his station and followed after the departing crowd, and they were ready for action.

Sulley's task was to follow Randall and see what he was up to on his free time. He left Mike and Sora with a thumbs-up before sneaking after the lizard-monster. Sora had doubts about something so big and blue being stealthy, but Randall didn't even glance back as Sulley followed a good distance behind him.

Mike and Sora hid out behind their workstation until the lights dimmed and they were completely alone.

"Let's move it!" Mike hissed. He and Sora clambered up and hurried to Randall's station, where his assistant had left all of their scare files neatly organized. "Alright, you check this stack," he said, handing Sora a few folders, "and what kind of door is it?"

Sora pulled open the first folder. "Fancy, kind of old-fashioned with elaborate trim, and it had a couple of drawings on it," he said, recalling as much as he could about the closet door. "Big flowers, like they were colored by a little girl. But the room is abandoned, and has been for years..." And the folder in his hand was the file for a little boy whose door was still active. He set it aside and opened the next.

"So we're looking for a little girl whose door should be old or deactivated," Mike said with a sigh as he rummaged through the rest of the folders. "This might be harder than I thought, she might not even have a fi—iiiiiiiile...." He blinked at the first folder he'd opened. "Is this it? I've never seen a chartreuse-colored one before." He bent the folder open and held it out for Sora to see. "And she's lookin' at you, kid."

The headshot was of a little girl with auburn hair and big blue eyes. Sora's heart gave a soft flutter of recognition—or was he just imagining that?

"Awww, she's cute," he said with a smile as he took the folder. "She looks almost like..."

_Kairi._

"...someone I once knew," he continued, sadness filtering through him. Not for the first time, he wondered if she had somehow made it off Destiny Islands alive and was living comfortably somewhere like Traverse Town, and he and Riku just hadn't found her yet.

But he knew deep down it was unlikely and that she must have fallen to the heartless just like the rest of the world, just like his mom and all his other friends...

A shred of sympathy crossed Mike's face—until his big eye focused on something on the other side of the folder. "This door was stamped dead over nine years ago! Why wasn't it shredded?"

Nine years ago? That was around the time Kairi had washed up on the islands.

Sora frowned to himself, contemplating the odds...

_Naahh, that's impossible._

"Dunno," he said instead. "And whaddya mean, 'shredded'?"

Mike started flipping through the individual pages of the folder to find out more. "When a kid grows up, or just stops getting _scared_, the door is marked dead, and it gets shredded so there's no possibility of the desensitized kid wandering into Monstropolis. And as you already know, a lot of doors are cropping up dead lately 'cuz there's been no closet to connect to—which you and Sulley say is because of these heartless guys." Peeking over the edge of the folder, Mike narrowed his eye. "Which I still find hard to believe."

"Well, what's _your _theory?" Sora asked. "You're the one who wanted to sneak me back in here by digging a tunnel with spoons."

Mike's rifling stopped. He glared. "I can't think when I'm stressed! Sulley had just dumped you on my feet and told me you weren't toxic, and you guys expected me to believe it all, let alone come up with ideas to help you! I'm not crazy, you know. I like my nice, simple life with my simple job and my simple best friend and my not-so-simple girlfriend." He turned his attention back to the folder. "I don't need one _simple _kid to mess it all up, capiche?"

Frowning, Sora set his stack of folders down. "Alright, alright. I'll be out of your hair soon..."

"Sooner than you think," Mike added, pulling a cardkey out of the folder. "Ah-ha! Guess we didn't need lizard-brain after all. Come on, let's activate the door, put you back, and forget this ever happened."

Mike started to set the folder down, cardkey in hand, but Sora snatch both out of his hands and ducked away.

He waved the key up high. "Not so fast!"

Mike didn't look impressed. "I can reach it, you know," he said, planting his hands on his round sides, "and you're not funny."

"And I can't leave until this world is safe!" Sora retorted and waved the cardkey at him. "Whatever happened to Mike Wazowski, Hero of Monstropolis? Do you want to be Mike Wazowski, the monster who stood around let Monstropolis _die_?"

Rolling his eye, Mike snatched the key back. "Fine, whatever. I'll keep playing a little longer. But if what you're saying is true, I'm hanging on to this."

"You don't have any pockets."

"......so I don't."

Mike grudgingly handed the cardkey back, and Sora took it with a grin. As he fished an arm out of his costume to stuff the key into the pocket of his inner hoodie, the "chartreuse" folder slipped from beneath his arm and scattered the papers at his feet.

"Ah!"

"What a klutz," Mike muttered.

Sora hurried to fix his costume and pick the papers up, but something caught his eye.

One of the pages was bright and colorful and looked torn at the edge. He inspected it, confused because it didn't look like data reports about the door or the child. It looked like a page from a kid's book.

Not bothering to show Mike, he folded it up and, like the key, stuffed it into his hoodie pocket to look at later.

The sight of his bare arm made him hesitate, though, and he glanced at his wrist, reminded of why he did need to take care of the heartless problem on this world. But if he tried to explain all that to Mike, he definitely would think he was crazy.

The heart symbol was more than two-thirds black now. He was starting to cut it close here...

Sora slipped his arm back into his costume and righted his hood, and just in time. He heard footsteps.

"Someone's coming!" Mike whispered, tugging Sora behind Randall's workstation to hide.

Sora scrambled with the folders and set them with the others before he ducked down with Mike, waiting for the footsteps to pass, _hoping _the footsteps would pass and not come right to them. Mike had mentioned earlier that no one was allowed on the scare floor after hours or even during lunch hours, to prevent cheating. If someone caught them, they could even get Sulley in trouble since Sora was supposed to be his nephew...

"Guys?"

Sora's tension melted out of him. He'd recognize that deep voice anywhere. "It's just Sulley," he whispered. Then he popped out of their hiding spot with raised arms. "BOO!"

Sulley actually gave a slight start before he recognized Sora and broke into a grin. "You got me."

"I think all that scaring's gone to his head," Mike said in a dry tone as he came out from behind the workstation. "So what happened to Randall?"

Sulley scooped Sora up and planted him on his shoulders. "Lost him," he replied. "So you guys find anything?"

Sora held onto Sulley's little horns, unable to help beaming at being held so high. It gave him an old but unforgettable feeling of being a kid again, not bound by limitations of the world. It was like swinging as high as he could and feeling his stomach soar right before the plummet back to earth. Despite the burden of Maleficent's curse, he did feel like he was soaring here, on this world.

He felt alive again. Adventure, intrigue, hero stuff, and best of all? No one to tell him what to do. No darkness looming over him, just the darkness in front of him that he knew he needed to defeat somehow. After he helped this world and got rid of this curse on him, he was going to dump Maleficent faster than she could cackle at him. He just hoped that Riku and Yami had their heads in the right places, too, wherever they were by now.

"…and then all we have to do is stick the kid back through the door," Mike was finishing. Sora blinked out of his thoughts, realizing he had spaced for a few seconds. What had he missed?

"Well, saving the world will have to wait until after the scare demonstration," Sulley said as he patted Sora's leg. "Promised Waternoose I'd help him with the new recruits, remember?"

Sora recalled the conversation with crab-man earlier that morning. "Oh yeah!"

"You're kidding me," Mike groaned. "What happened to saving the world?"

Shrugging, Sora looked to Sulley for support. "It doesn't look like the heartless are causing any problems right now."

"And if we can't catch Randall red-handed yet," Sulley added, "we may as well show Sora some of the ropes, right?"

"Right," Sora agreed.

"Right," Mike said, only he wasn't agreeing judging from the sarcasm dripping from his voice. He crossed his arms and glared. "You two are the ones who dragged me into this! How come I'm the only one taking it seriously anymore?"

"Relax, Mike." Sulley laughed and hefted Sora up onto his shoulders, who grabbed onto his horns again to keep his balance. "It's just a demonstration. Ten minutes, it'll all be over and we can get back to saving the world."

"Yeah," Sora pitched in as Sulley began carrying him off the scare floor. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"I can think of plenty," Mike grumbled as he followed behind them.

-o-o-

When Riku woke up, it was with an unsettling sense of tranquility. He knew he had been dreaming, but as always the details escaped him as soon as he opened his eyes.

He couldn't remember the last time he had felt this… calm. Something had happened, but what?

Sitting up, he took in his surroundings: brightly colored walls and draperies, an open window letting in the rustle of plants, the laughter of children, the gentle lap of water against wood, and the smell of old earth and sandalwood. Atlantis.

It was light outside, and Yami was missing.

Gone already. He had even replaced the pillow he had slept on last night, making it seem as though he hadn't been here at all.

Riku wondered why he had even trusted Yami in the first place, but then he recalled the mark on Yami's wrist and how preoccupied the older boy had seemed about it. And Sora.

With a sigh, he wrapped a hand around Ursula's shell and pulled the necklace off to look at it. Yami had asked him not to break it and get his memories back until after he was off this world, but if Yami had left without him, what was the point in waiting?

At least, that's what a part of him was saying.

The other part still had hope Yami was just out sightseeing and would be back soon. It was also the part that knew better than to give into temptation. Yami was right—he couldn't break the shell here.

After tracing its warm spiral with his fingers, Riku slipped the necklace back on.

A scuffle of feet at the door made him glance up.

Speak of the devil.

Yami had returned, and he had found time to change his clothes. Instead of the elegant white shirt he had been wearing yesterday, he had donned a metallic gray coat—a stylish one, too, which looked like it could have come from Traverse Town.

It was form-fitting and zipped up the front, with mid-length sleeves that ended in large cuffs, and a long, split tail that came to the backs of his knees. Its collar was lengthy and had a heart-shaped accent on either point, and a curly heart charm hung from the front zipper. The zipper itself stopped right above his navel and gave the world a teasing view of his toned stomach.

Along with a pair of black leather pants with belts adorning both legs, and a pair of tall, lace-up black boots, he looked ready to join Leon, Cloud, and Sephiroth in a fashion show.

Riku noticed that he had left the emblem on his wrist uncovered. It was mostly dark red now, with only a hints of white along the outer edges. Hadn't it been about half white last night?

When Yami saw that Riku was awake, he entered the guest house, his calm demeanor shaken for once. He seemed preoccupied about something but also relieved to see Riku was still here.

"What's going on?" Riku asked, instantly wide awake. He slid off the bed of pillows and to his feet. "Where did you go?"

Yami gave him a quick once over as if to make sure he was whole. "Hollow Bastion. I wanted to check in on Sora and to find something in the library..."

The way he trailed off clued Riku in that something was definitely amiss. "And?"

"Sora is doing his task and will be protected from Maleficent for the time being. As for you—" Yami paused to rub his wrist and nod towards the door. "We need to go. It's not safe here."

That got his attention. "I can't leave yet," he reminded him. "We need to find the keyhole."

Yami's eyes locked with his before he turned and left the guest house at a brisk pace. "I found the keyhole."

Wait—what? Already?

Riku hurried to follow him as he continued speaking.

"It was exactly where you thought it would be," Yami said, "but if you summon your keyblade near it, we will run into more trouble than just a few heartless."

"What? That doesn't make any—"

"It does," Yami interrupted. He was the first to make it to the breezeway that would take them to the center of the city and the throne room. They needed to return to the crystal chamber to get to the keyhole from what Yami was saying, but Riku remembered how the crystal had reacted to his keyblade. Was Yami right? What kind of trouble could be worse than heartless?

Riku grabbed his arm to stop him and asked exactly that.

Yami hesitated a few steps into the breezeway. The gentle wind kicked his loose hair into his face, and he brushed it out of his eyes as he regarded Riku. "I will explain on the way."

When he started to walk again, Riku released his arm.

Before he could follow, the walkway began to tremble and shake around them. He stumbled and grabbed onto the edge of the stone handrail as the Atlanteans in the plaza below gasped and cried out. He glanced down at them to see what was going on, and every one of their faces was turned upwards.

Not at him, but at the dome.

Riku raised his eyes with dread, already knowing what he would see. The protective bubble around the city was melting away, creating cavernous holes in the magical barrier that were only growing larger.

"Riku!"

At Yami's call to attention, Riku returned his attention to the civilians below. Amongst the scattering people, he saw them: little pinpricks of darkness rising out of the stonework.

The heartless.

Something had happened to the crystal, to Kida and Milo's _daughter_.

Bracing himself for the worst, Riku beckoned Oblivion out and broke into a sprint. He heard Yami's footsteps fall into a run behind him, and Riku shouted to him over his shoulder. "You'd better start explaining!"

"I saw Thatch's sketches of the murals and listened to his theories," Yami said in a rushed voice as he too summoned his weapon. "I believe he is mistaken about what the story represents!"

Riku didn't have to ask which murals or which story—he was talking about the ones of the keyblade master who had saved Atlantis from creatures all those millennia ago. But... "What do you mean he's mistaken?!"

As the two of them leapt down the stairs of the breezeway and entered into one of the open-aired plazas, Yami cleaved Soul Eater into the nearest heartless. "Keyblades are mere tools of their wielders!"

He glanced at Riku, who felt a wash of relief as heartless began to turn away from the fleeing Atlanteans and focus on him instead, sensing the keyblade. Riku charged towards the creatures as Yami continued shouting over the screams and mayhem.

"The wielder is the one who chooses what to fight for—the light, the darkness, or the gray areas between!"

"What's your point?!" Riku demanded, swiping through two heartless in one go. A large shadow descended on him from above, and he glanced up just in time to see one of the flying heartless dive talons-first for his head. He threw himself down and rolled out of the way, feeling his heart twisting both with fear and the familiar excitement of battle.

As he vaulted back to his feet, Yami raced right past him and sprang from the ground. Just as the flying heartless rose back into the air, Yami collided with it and plunged his weapon into its side without hesitation.

The heartless twisted in the air and veered like a kite without wind, but it somehow managed to remain aloft and give a powerful kick of its wings to throw its deadly passenger off. Yami kept his feet planted against its rough hide and his grip tight on his weapon, and with a spark of yellow energy, he channeled a thunder spell directly into the heartless's wound.

The crackling magic spread through the creature and engulfed it in an instant, and through the keyblade's connection, Riku could _feel_ the heartless's silent screech of pain even though he wasn't the one who had dealt the damage.

Its wings lost their tension, and the powerful creature careened in midair. Riku shielded himself as it crashed into the plaza close by, demolishing merchant stalls and scattering rolls of cloth, baskets of jewelry, and crates of fish. Riku flicked away a green shrimp as it hit his arm wiggling.

Stuck on its back, the heartless whipped at the air with its wings to right itself, and Riku vaulted over a collapsed veranda to reach it, intending on finishing it off before it could take back to the air.

Without even stopping, he sprang from the edge of a split beam and landed on the heartless's torso, hitting the heartless emblem on its chest with a fierce strike. The backlash of power washed through Riku like a summer high tide—chilly, heavy, _right._ Then the heartless collapsed completely and began to fade.

Brushing his coat off, Yami passed through the dissolving fragments of magic and darkness that had once been the heartless. "My point," he said, slightly winded but returning to their previous conversation, "is that history is not always interpreted correctly. Not all keyblade masters are heroes."

As the last of the creature flickered away into nothingness, Riku studied the dark, intricate design of his keyblade. Not all keyblade masters were _heroes_...

"The same could be said thousands of years ago," Yami finished, probably not realizing the impact his statement had just made. He curled a hand around Riku's shoulder and squeezed it. "Come on. Now you don't have a choice... The keyhole must be sealed."

Brushing his hand off, Riku nodded.

More heartless were appearing. If the number of heartless he had encountered outside of the city was any indication of how many the world was already infested with, Atlantis would be overrun in no time.

Hero or not, he had promised to help.

He dismissed his keyblade for now and broke into a run, heading straight for the center of the city with Yami at his side.

-o-o-

"Of course I'm unhappy!"

Complaining the whole time, Mike had followed Sulley and Sora all the way to the simulator room, and now they stood outside the doors arguing while Sulley waited for lunch hour to end. When it did, they were expected to be at the scare demonstration.

Only... Sora noticed that this hall seemed pretty deserted right now. No one was entering the room, either.

"I just want to save the world like you guys promised and get this all over with so we can move on with our lives!" Mike yelled, and Sora was glad no one seemed to be around to hear some of the suspicious sounding things Mike was having a fit about. "But you two just want to play around!"

Unperturbed by his best friend's temper tantrum, Sulley glanced at the clock on the wall above them. "Well, lunch break is over. You can stay here if you want, Mike. This shouldn't take long."

As Sulley hefted Sora off his shoulders and planted him on the ground, Mike drooped like a deflating beach ball as his anger seeped right out of him.

"Fine, fine." He threw his hands into the air and waved. "Don't listen to a word I'm saying. I'll be on the scare floor doing our _job_ when you're done showing off." With a final glare, he turned and stomped away, looking every bit like the child Sora was supposed to be.

"He'll calm down," Sulley reassured when Sora sent him a concerned look. "He always does this." With an amused sigh, he shook his head and rested a big hand on the door handle. "He'll probably be back in a few minutes just to apologize."

Sora smiled at that, reminded of Riku's occasional temper tantrum. Quick to argue, quick to apologize—but only to his best friend. Riku had always been too confident to get into real arguments with the other kids, and way too proud to apologize to any of them whenever he _was_ in the wrong.

"Yeah, I know someone like that," Sora said, offering the big monster a grin. "Hey, why not make a big entrance?"

Sulley's lips pulled into a smirk.

A few seconds later, Sulley burst into the simulator room with a wall-rattling roar, claws up, fur bristled, and Sora was right beside him with a petite howl. He didn't care if he looked ridiculous, he was having fun, and all that mattered was that the rookie monsters would be impressed with Sulley's performance.

But Sulley's roar faded quickly, followed by confusion.

"Huh? There's no one here yet."

Sora glanced around at the darkened room lit only by a single lamp overhead. A deactivated door stood at the far end of the room next to a set of six monitors and a long control panel. He could see a display area with a fake bedroom and some mannequins inside, and a row of scoop-shaped seats where he assumed monsters would sit and watch the demonstration—so they were obviously in the right place. Why were the lights off? Where was everyone?

_SLAM._

Whirling around, Sora gasped. "The door!!"

Sulley pulled at the handle, eyes widening. "It's locked."

This was beginning to feel very familiar...!

"It's Randall!" Sora whispered.

The wall beside him suddenly morphed into purple and blue scales and a wide, sharp-toothed grin. "Boo."

"WAH!"

Sora stumbled backwards and tripped over Sulley's foot, his hood falling back from his momentum as he hit the ground. Randall dove onto him, two of his hands pressing Sora to the floor as he leered up at Sulley.

"You idiots actually thought you could stroll right into MI with this brat and get away with it?"

A trap! Randall had set them up somehow—but hadn't Mr. Waternoose been the one who had asked Sulley here after lunch? What was going on?

Sulley seemed just as surprised to see the exact person they had been looking for. "Randall—!" He started forward, but thought better of it and feigned concern. "You're touching a human kid! Get off of him before you get contaminated!"

Randall gave a dry laugh and sat squarely on Sora's chest, two of his arms folded over his long torso. "Sullivan, you really _are _an idiot. You have no idea why you're here, do you?"

Sora struggled to push the lizard monster off of him as he yelled. "You're the one I saw—er, _didn't_ see! You're the one messing with the heartless machine! What do you want with heartless anyway?!"

Narrowing his eyes down at Sora, Randall began to chuckle. "Hearts, kid. You wouldn't _believe _how many times more powerful than screams just one heart is." He leaned close, his lips pulling into a sadistic grin. "And the hearts of bratty human children give off the most energy."

Sulley let loose a roar of outrage as he lunged forward, knocking Randall clean off of Sora. Sora scrambled to his feet, stunned that not only could someone be that _evil_ to steal hearts of children for a profit, but also because Sulley had reacted the way _he _wanted to. With fury, vengeance—for righteousness.

So what if he was just a kid here? He could still fight for what was right, and someone had to put a stop to Randall's evil plan!

As the two monsters wrestled on the ground, slippery slender Randall easily gained the upper hand and wrapped two of his arms around Sulley's neck. Not needing any more incentive, Sora charged forward, fueled by a cry of determination.

Randall glanced up right before Sora barreled into him, tackling him to the ground and off of Sulley. "Leave him alone, you scaley jerk!"

With a fierce kick, Randall knocked Sora back and abruptly vanished, scampering quickly away.

"Coward!" Sora yelled after him.

He picked himself off the ground as Sulley did, too, but as he straightened his costume, he heard something clatter to the floor. He glanced down at his feet, his heart giving a frightened flutter when he saw what he had almost lost.

A small paopu-shaped charm.

Oathkeeper!

Sora swooped down to pick it up, realizing it must have slipped out of his inner hoodie pocket and fallen out of his costume when he had attacked Randall. Clenching the keychain in his hand, he hoped he hadn't lost the cardkey to Hollow Bastion, too. He patted his pocket and felt it inside and sighed in relief.

He heard Sulley cracking his neck, recovering from his bout with Randall, and Sora remembered he needed to focus on getting out of this mess first; _then _he could worry about returning to the bastion.

"You okay, big guy?"

"Yeah," Sulley sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Thanks."

"You saved me first," Sora pointed out with a smile. Then he froze in his tracks, eyes widening when he saw the darkness pooling on the ground in front of them. Glowing yellow eyes emerged out of the shadows, and Sora felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. "H-Heartless!"

"That's right."

Randall's voice!

Sora jumped as the monster appeared next to him perched on the wall.

"And they obey _me_," Randall said with a sinister chuckle.

As he watched the heartless climb out of the floor towards them, Sora began backing away, feeling Sulley's big hand curl against his shoulder as if to reassure him. Of what? That they were going to get their hearts stolen?

"Sora, now would be a good time for some of that magic," Sulley commented, and Sora was thinking the same thing, only there was nothing nearby he could grab as a makeshift weapon.

No—Sora couldn't think like that! Even though the door was locked and even though he didn't have Id's powers to control the heartless and even though he didn't have a weapon—he could still fight! Who else was going to stop Randall from hurting all those kids?!

Sora tensed and stood his ground, his fists clenched at his sides, his keychain still clutched in one. "I'm not scared of the heartless!"

The shadows didn't care. They continued to creep forward, their arms and antennae twitching excitedly.

And when they sprang to attack, Sora reacted on instinct. He threw himself in front of Sulley and cried out, swinging an arm forward to push the heartless away even as their dark claws ripped into his costume.

He called out to his powers in desperation, trying to summon his magic—_anything—_to help him fight off the heartless, protect his friend, and stop Randall from winning.

He wasn't expecting anything to happen, really.

Definitely not what happened.

A sudden wellspring of warmth flourished inside of him and, thinking it was his magic begging to be released, he threw his hand out to release it.

Light shimmered around his hand and stretched, solidifying into a short but familiar form now clasped under his fuzzy orange fingers where his keychain had been a moment ago.

A key.

A key_blade_.

Heart soaring with the realization of the kind of power he was now holding, he swung it forward and drove the heartless back. They hesitated at its appearance, giving Sora a second to study his new weapon and soak in the reality of it.

_He _had summoned it. This wasn't Riku's—he didn't recognize the form at all! It was shorter, much shorter, probably to accommodate for Sora's current size, and it was full of elegant curves in shades of white, blue, and yellow, like a seashell. The paopu charm keychain dangled from the end, and Sora knew exactly what its name was. Oathkeeper. Riku _had _said that Sora was capable of wielding a keyblade, and Sora had proven that in Atlantica with Riku's.

Now he had his own.

His fuzzy fingers trembled with excitement, but he kept the keyblade leveled at the heartless.

"Sora?" Sulley gasped.

Even Randall was stunned. "What the..." But his bewildered pause didn't last long. He tsked and snapped with two of his hands, and the heartless moved to obey.

This time Sora rushed forward to meet them, fearless as he swiped his keyblade through their shadowy bodies, destroying two and scattering the rest. He followed them with unwavering resolve, not letting a single one escape back into the ground.

As the last one dispersed back into darkness, he smiled to himself, panting from the effort of working so hard but _loving _it.

Until he realized he should have been paying attention to what was going on outside of the battle.

"SORA!"

As soon as he heard his name, he spun around and readied his keyblade to attack—

But he wasn't the one in danger.

The door across the simulator room had been activated and opened, and Sora caught a glimpse of Sulley's blue fur as he disappeared into it.

"SULLEY!"

He raced towards the door without hesitation, hearing the keyblade's warning too late as an invisible Randall slammed into him. He went crashing into the floor hard and, unable to stop his momentum, he slid across it, his keyblade skittering away before disappearing into a flash of light.

"Agghh..."

He came to a stop next to the series of monitors next to the door. Rolling onto his back, he reached out, calling his keyblade back to him. It swirled back into existence just as he heard the tapping of footsteps approaching him.

_Not _Randall's.

Sora glanced up into the monitors, recognizing the stout figure as he caught glimpses of him on the screens.

A fancy waistcoat and bowtie.

A short, squat head with five narrowed eyes.

A set of crablike legs on a round body.

"Mr. Waternoose?" he gasped. Wasn't he Sulley's boss? Why had he just thrown Sulley through a door?!

The apparently not-so-friendly monster stopped beside Sora and sighed, regret in his voice. "I didn't want to have to resort to this, but you left me no choice." His eyes shifted up, and he nodded.

Before Sora could protect himself, Randall's lizard fingers closed in on him, reaching into his costume and grabbing the hood of his normal hoodie. It was yanked over his face and the drawstrings were tightened and tied together in one swift movement.

Unable to see what was happening now, Sora cried out and flailed as he was lifted into the air and pitched forward. He crashed against a metal surface, cracking his head against it.

Mind swimming, he groaned and collapsed onto the floor, and not even the keyblade's soft croon could protect him from the shadows of unconsciousness.

-o-o-

Kida and Milo were arguing in Atlantean when Riku and Yami burst into the throne room. Only a few minutes had passed since the dome had collapsed, but the city had quickly fallen into turmoil. It looked like not even its king and queen knew how to handle the current situation.

Kida was the first to acknowledge them as they hurried forward, the large doors closing behind them with a heavy sound. Those wouldn't keep out heartless. Whether or not Kida knew that, she seemed to be on the same page as them.

"There you are!" she said with relief on her face. "I wanted to retrieve you myself, but—"

"You were right to wait here," Yami cut in, never mind that she was a queen. "The heartless are spreading quickly. We need to reach the heart of the world immediately in order to protect your city from further chaos. And it _will _come."

She nodded and, to Riku's surprise, she sent Milo a blatant 'I told you so' look. "They are here to help! Ask them yourself! Were you not the one who translated the murals and reassured me every day that the key would come? He is here, and we must use him!"

Milo's brows were knitted with confusion as he glanced between Riku and Yami, then tried to plead with his wife. "Kida, I translated them _wrong. _We already went through this! They can't help us!"

"Whoa, whoa, _whoa_!" Riku shouted. He stepped forward to confront them, wondering where the heck Milo's optimism from yesterday had gone. "What do you mean we can't help you? That's why I'm still here! Let us into the crystal chamber so I can seal the world!"

Looking torn about something, Milo rubbed his forehead and gave a frustrated sigh. "Look, I _can't_! The legend—it's all wrong! There's nothing anyone can do!"

"So you're telling me you _don't _want me to save your city—your people—your _daughter_?!" Riku demanded.

"No—" Milo shook his head and gestured angrily. "I mean, _YES_, but—I can't let you go down there!"

Kida grasped Riku's wrist and tugged him away from the thrones, her eyes earnest. "_I _will take you there. I have faith that you will help save us. No one else can, and we are out of time! I will not let my city crumble beneath my feet as I stand here and do nothing!"

Riku set his jaw and nodded, relieved that at least she had her priorities straight. Whatever was bothering Milo must have been damn important if it had changed his mind about letting Riku save them, but he had a world to protect before he could drill Milo about what his problem was.

With Yami hurrying behind them, Kida led Riku to the shallow pond in the center of the throne room, just like Milo had done the day before.

"Kida, don't!" Milo was shouting. He had his journal with him, the one with the sketches of the murals and his translations—the one he had been so proud of yesterday. But even though he was saying _don't, _when he reached them, he didn't even try to stop them. He settled onto the center dais with them, breathing hard, and he adjusted his glasses before he flipped through his journal. "Guys, it's not that _I _don't trust you. The heart of Atlantis doesn't!"

As the dais began to descend into the cavern below with the four of them on it, Milo showed them a page with his sketches of one of the murals. It was the one with the keyblade master standing proudly in the center, surrounded by dark creatures.

"The dialect is old so I was having a lot of trouble translating some of the characters, but yesterday after I saw how the crystal reacted to your key, I realized maybe I was wrong about all this, maybe there was something _huge_ I was missing because of all these untranslated characters, and I was right—I was right that I was _wrong_!"

Riku studied the page with the sketch closely, getting the same odd feeling he'd gotten from the mural itself. There _did _seem to be something wrong about all this, but he still couldn't figure out what. But what about what Yami had been saying earlier? Something about not all keyblade masters being heroes... He had said Milo's interpretation of history had been wrong, too.

What was going on?

Before Milo could continue and get on with his point, though, the heart of Atlantis caught their attention.

Its serene blue glow was back to the furious crimson, and the stone faces rotating around the crystal—the princess—were revolving so quickly they were a blur of red light. The sound the moving stones made was a deep, heavy groan, as if the world itself were in pain.

"Kydari!!" Kida cried.

Both Riku and Yami whirled towards her in shock. Riku's mind had made an instant leap to whose name he thought he had just heard, but he realized Kida was actually crying for her daughter. Yami seemed to have come to the same conclusion, and after he glanced up at the dangerous whirlwind of stone and pure Atlantean power, he lowered his gaze to meet Riku's.

"The keyblade," he said.

Riku understood the implied command. He knew what needed to be done.

He lifted his hand to summon Oblivion.

Behind him, he heard Milo's warning to stop, he felt the air shift as Yami moved to stop Milo from interfering, but he didn't look, and he didn't stop. He concentrated and opened his heart to the keyblade's powers, waiting to feel its warmth flow through him.

A warmth that never came.

Nothing connected with his heart. Nothing appeared.

Riku glanced at his hand in confusion as fear instantly engulfed his confidence.

"What...?"

This couldn't be happening. That was just a fluke, right?

He started to call to the keyblade again, but the crimson vortex above them suddenly froze, plunging the cavern into silence. All eyes turned towards the crystal as the stone faces began to shift into a new shape.

When they parted, they revealed the child in the center, only she was a child no more. A woman hovered high above them, translucent and emanating the brilliant red as if she _was _the crystal. Her long hair flowed along an invisible current as she descended to the bottomless lake below.

The stone faces continued to shift until they made their new form—six of them shaping a set of massive wings behind her, four smaller faces hovering at her hands and feet, and one last face—a massive one—rested suspended above her as though to watch whatever was about to happen.

The stone wings fanned outward.

Riku stretched his hand out again to call for the keyblade, ignoring his instincts screaming for him to _run_.

Then the crystal moved.

Riku didn't even _see _it move. It was high above them one moment, and in the next instant, a stone monster was slamming into him and mowing him into the ground.

He heard the heavy impact before he _felt _it, like a hundred knives driving into his back and then burning in protest. After his own cry of pain faded, Yami's alarmed voice filled Riku's ears—followed by a sharp ringing as his head connected with the dais floor.

His vision blackened, but he was still aware of an incredible weight pinning him down.

What was going on? Where was the keyblade...?

Shouting. Everyone was shouting.

He heard his name, he heard the name of Kida's daughter, and he heard—

**Can you feel it?**

Riku sucked in a sharp breath and focused, determined not to fail, not here, not _now_.

He turned his face, squinting up through a grimace. One of the glowing stone faces was staring straight down at him with its fiery red eyes. How did someone go about fighting a stone heartless? If it even _was _a heartless... Either way, a weapon was needed.

Riku unsteadily stretched his throbbing arm out to call for the keyblade again. He did everything he always did—

Opened his heart.

Called to its power.

Imagined it there.

But as his heart cried out for help, nothing reached back. Nothing appeared.

Growing frantic now, Riku squeezed his eyes shut and fought back sudden despair. He refused to believe this was happening, he _couldn't_ believeit was happening.

Tears pooled on his lashes as he reached inside of himself, searching for the keyblade's power.

He fanned his fingers in the air, waiting for its comforting weight to appear in his grasp, to wait for its familiar tang of metal and cherries to fill the air, to wait for its soft encouraging power to hum beneath his palm and reassure him that, no matter what happened to him, no matter what he did, no matter how badly he messed up, the keyblade would still be there for him.

But as he grasped at the air, nothing responded to his silent, desperate calls.

-o-o-

Sora must not have been passed out long because, when he woke up, he was in the same room—except now tied to one of the scoop-shaped chairs, and his hood had been untied and lowered.

Blinking through his stinging headache, he squinted at the blurry figures moving around in front of him.

"I can't believe I had to banish my top scarer because of the mess you made!"

Mr. Waternoose sounded pretty upset. But Sora wasn't going to sympathize with someone who had betrayed his friend Sulley. Wait—Sulley—where was he? Where had he gone? That door—where had it led?

As Sora's vision began to clear, he spotted Randall nearby, whose slender form was fiddling with the control panel attached to the door Sulley had disappeared through. Wires were hanging out of it, and the activation light was turned off. Definitely not a comforting sign.

Randall didn't seem to feel guilty at all about Sulley. "We won't _need _scarers with the heartless around. Hearts are ten thousand times more powerful than measly screams, remember?"

Sora swallowed against a knot in his throat and decided to let them know he was awake. "Why Sulley?" he asked, his childish voice a little hoarse.

Waternoose's five eyes focused on him, but there was no surprise there on his face. He didn't seem threatened by Sora's presence, and as troubled he had seemed moments ago about Sulley's banishment, his tone was quick to turn assertive. "We can't allow witnesses." Assertive enough to be aggressive, that is.

"If what you're doing is so bad that you can't let anyone else know about it, why are you doing it?" Sora asked, the haziness in his mind fading completely now.

"Screams aren't enough anymore," Waternoose sighed, scuttling past Sora. For the first time, Sora noticed that several heartless were waiting nearby for orders, and Waternoose paused in front of them as if they were prized trophies. The heartless focused on him and shuffled impatiently in place. "With such desensitized children these days and the shortage of screams, new measures have to be taken to ensure the monsters of Monstropolis get the energy they need. This company has been in my family for three generations, and I would do anything to keep it from going under."

"Even if it means hurting innocent kids?" Sora asked, horrified at what he was hearing. Waternoose was no better than Randall. Wait, he was worse! Waternoose pretended to be a good guy, pretended that he was doing the right thing for the betterment of his people, but at the expense of innocent lives! Randall was just a jerk by nature.

As the heartless watched him, Waternoose turned back towards Sora, eyes narrowed with resolve. "If that's what it takes!"

Black antennae twitched with excitement, and the heartless began to creep forward.

Sora tensed against his bonds—it was just some cord, he could get out of this, right?—but his arms were pinned down, so even if he summoned his keyblade, he wouldn't be able to do much to protect himself.

He watched with widening eyes as the heartless slunk towards Waternoose to receive his latest instructions.

Wait a sec... they weren't stopping.

Randall noticed, too. Finished with destroying the door's control panel, he glanced from the heartless to Waternoose. "What? Is it time to grab the kid's heart now?"

"You tell me!" Waternoose said as he backed away from the heartless, his commanding poise gone already. "Aren't you the one controlling them?"

"I, uh..." Randall looked confused. "Not this time." Frowning, he gestured at the heartless. "Get back to your corner!"

Instead of obeying, the shadows leapt at Waternoose, dogpiling onto him as he cried out and shielded himself, trying to scuttle away. Eyes widening, Randall didn't think twice about sticking around; he blended into the wall and scampered up the ceiling.

Seconds later, the locked door swung open, and an invisible Randall escaped into the hall, leaving Waternoose and Sora to fend for themselves.

Sora struggled against the chair, trying to work at least one arm free as he watched helplessly as the heartless sank their talons into Waternoose's chest, infusing him with darkness. Shadows sprang up around the monster as his screams grew shrill, and soon Sora couldn't even seen Waternoose anymore—only darkness.

And then, right before his eyes, the shadows cleared.

Waternoose was gone.

A portal of darkness swirled alive in midair, and out popped a new heartless. Now there were half a dozen of them to deal with, and Sora was still tied to a chair!

Panicking, he summoned the keyblade in hopes it would help him get out of his binds.

But as soon as it appeared in his hand, the six heartless stiffened. Their antennae twitched as they sensed their prey, and they sank into the ground, one by one, shadowcreeping straight towards him.

-o-o-

Riku was trapped.

Weaponless.

Atlantis's living crystal kept two stones pressed against him like the paws of a giant beast. He heard Kida yelling at someone—the crystal?—in Atlantean, and Milo frantically telling Riku to hang on, as Yami also yelled—at the crystal, too?

As Riku focused on what they were saying, he realized Kida was translating Yami's words into Atlantean for them, things like how to release Riku because he was here to help the world, not bring it to destruction.

The crystal didn't seem to be buying it.

In a deep, grinding voice that sounded like stone itself, the crystal replied to Kida and Yami. Everyone fell silent long enough to listen, and then Kida began to translate, her voice tinged with uncertainty.

"It says... it will not allow the darkness to overtake the city, and that the key weapon rained destruction long ago. It also called you 'getuhnos'—an intruder."

Then the crystal continued, stating a short, concrete sentence that Riku instinctively didn't trust. He felt the grim tone even before Kida hesitated about translating it.

"What did it say?" Riku demanded. "What's 'tirid' mean?"

"T-To destroy," Milo offered in a quiet, tense voice. "It thinks it needs to kill you because you're here to destroy the city."

Riku's stomach twisted with dread. "But I'm not! Wait, is it the crystal's fault I can't summon my keyblade?!"

"You can't?" Yami asked, sounding taken aback. "This world should not be able to have that kind of power—are you sure you cannot summon it?"

"You think I'm stuck here because I want to be?!" Riku snapped back at him. "No, it won't appear! It's the first time it's ever done this! If it's not the crystal's fault, why else would the keyblade decide to take a vacation at the worst time _ever_?!"

Kida began to shout at the crystal again in Atlantean, and between her steadfast words, Riku heard Yami drilling Milo about the murals and his translations.

"A key didn't save the city in the past," Milo explained. "The one with the key was the one who _brought _those creatures here and filled the world with darkness. That's why the crystal doesn't trust Riku!"

Riku stared up into the fiery glow of the stone face's eyes and thought back to the murals. _That _was why they had rubbed him wrong! The one of the keyblade master looking tall and proud in the middle of the creatures—he thought the creatures had been running away from the keyblade master, but that wasn't it at all. He had brought the heartless—or whatever they were—and had unleashed them on Atlantis! And the mural after that, of the Atlanteans 'praising' the keyblade master, that hadn't been _praise_ on their faces. They were bowing because they were scared, they were _suffering_.

That's what Yami had meant. Not all keyblade masters were heroes, and thousands of years ago Atlantis had been attacked by a dark keyblade master.

No wonder the crystal wanted to kill him.

Its gravelly voice echoed through him as it shouted back at Kida, and Riku caught the last few words—

"—Adluntis es khobdesh, Adluntis es mutih!"

"It says it can sense the darkness inside these strangers," Kida said, "and if it does not kill them, Atlantis will be doomed, Atlantis will be lost!"

"No!" Riku cried, frantically calling to the keyblade again. Just like before, it didn't respond, sending him into more of a panic. "Tell the crystal that it's wrong, that not all keyblade masters are evil! I'm here to help save it from the darkness, and then I'll leave! The heartless had been infesting your world for weeks already when I got here yesterday!"

Milo began spouting off a translation in Atlantean, but he had only gotten a few words in before a deafening roar shook the chamber, loosening a few boulders from the walls and sending them tumbling into the bottomless lake. Riku felt the reverberation tremble all the way through him, and the stone trapping him began to press him into the ground with crushing strength.

Air left his lungs in a rush as he gasped, the incredible weight making it impossible to breathe again or even writhe beneath the pressure.

He choked out a cry, his fingers stretched as if the keyblade would appear at the last moment and give him the strength to survive this. He felt the blood rushing to his head, making it difficult to think, but it didn't numb the pain as his bones threatened to snap under the indomitable force like tree branches during a typhoon.

Through the rush of his own pulse roaring in his ears, he heard Kida and Milo's voices screaming at the crystal to stop. And Yami—where was he?

He squeezed his burning eyes shut, tears slipping free from the pressure, his mind panicking as the weight quickly became unbearable. It was like drowning on land, suffocating—and all he could think about was how much it _hurt_, how his head felt like it would _explode._

He didn't want to _die_—!!

_The keyblade—where?!—Sora!—someone!!_

The last thing he felt was a hand clasping around his own, and then—

Cold, familiar darkness.

-o-o-

"Yoo-hoo, Sulley?"

Mike Wazowski's voice was pure music to Sora's ears. Keeping his eyes on the heartless quickly creeping towards him, Sora shouted at the top of his lungs.

"MIKE, IN HERE!! _HELP!!_"

Mike burst through the door Randall had opened in his haste to get out of there, and he paused when he saw Sora strapped to the chair. "Sora—what the heck are you doing tied up?" He started forward, _walking_, and Sora realized Mike didn't have a clue as to what was going on.

"HURRY UP! HEARTLESS!!"

Sora bounced in the chair in a panic, keyblade dangling uselessly from his hand as he watched the shadows fling themselves out of the ground. He yelped as two landed on him, undeterred by the keyblade's presence, and then cried as they pressed close to take his heart just like Waternoose's.

"SWEET MEDUSA, THEY'RE REAL?!"

"YES, THEY'RE REAL!" Sora screamed. "GetmeoutgetmeoutGETMEOUT!!"

Even as Sora was chanting to be saved, Mike barreled towards the heartless in a moment of utter fearlessness, and threw himself into them like a big green bowling ball. They scattered, flying off of Sora. Mike struck the wall and bounced, hit the ground, and rolled back to his feet—dizzy, but alive.

"Why are you tied up?!" he demanded as he started pulling off the cord wrapped around Sora, never mind that the rest of the heartless had them surrounded and were grabbing at Mike to take his heart, too.

Sora took a deep breath and began to spout off everything that had happened. "Randall and Waternoose were working together and the scare demonstration was a trap and they banished Sulley and tried to use the heartless to steal my heart but now the heartless are on the loose and Waternoose is a heartless now too and Randall ran off!" He paused only for air. "We gotta stop them!"

As soon as the cord was loose enough, Sora wriggled out from under it and fell to the ground, keyblade in hand, and leapt at the heartless. Mike stumbled back in surprise as Sora cut down one that had been perched on top of the green monster, then another that had just been about to get him from behind. Mike stood stock still, jaw dropped, eye wider than Sora's head as he watched the boy tackle the rest of the heartless.

"What are _you _doing here, anyway?!" Sora asked as he fended off two more trying to grab onto _him_.

"Holy jahmoley—" Mike blinked, then realized Sora was talking to him. "I came back to see Sulley! He got _banished_?!"

"Through that door!"

"We need to activate it!" Mike yelled, running over to it.

Sora backed him up by striking a heartless that had been going for him. "We need to find your world's keyhole so I can seal it so the heartless will stop coming and your world won't die!"

But Mike had a one-track mind. He tried punching something on the gutted control panel. "We need to get Sulley back first!" After nothing happened, Mike groaned and slammed a fist on the console. "The wires are all hanging out of this! Even if I had the keycard, I..." Mike trailed off, his body growing rigid. "Wait a second—"

He turned towards Sora, eye thinning.

In the middle of a swing at a heartless, Sora yelped as Mike suddenly grabbed his arm and pointed the keyblade at the door. A jet of light shot out, struck the door, and the red activation light switched on.

"Bingo!"

Mike released Sora and swung open the door as Sora took care of the last heartless.

A blast of freezing wind was released into the room followed by trailing flakes of snow, and Mike leaned into the door to holler.

"SUUUUUUL—"

A mass of blue and purple fur came flying through the door and landed on the floor between Sora and Mike.

"—LEY!" Mike blinked and glanced down at the fuzzy monster beside him, his hairless brow raised. "Wow, that was fast."

After cutting through the last heartless, Sora laughed and glanced through the snowy door. A huge fuzzy white monster on a sled was waving at them.

"Bye, James!"

Sulley sat up and rubbed the back of his head, frost clinging to his fur, but he was alive and well. He grimaced as he waved back. "Thanks, Abominable!"

Abominable cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled again through the raging blizzard on the other side of the door. "Say hi to Big Foot for me!"

"He was banished, too!" Sulley shouted back.

"Waaaah?!"

Mike shut the door before the conversation could continue. He stared at Sora, his tone flat. "Okaaay, that was weird." Then he threw his hands up and leapt at his best friend, grinning. "SULLEY!"

Sora felt a grin of his own cross his face as he, too, leapt at the big fuzzy monster and hugged his side. He buried his face in Sulley's frigid, damp fur, just glad he was safe and sound and no longer banished. Now they could all find the keyhole together and make things right.

"You guys alright?" Sulley asked.

Sora felt his big fingers brush against his forehead, which suddenly stung under the pressure. "Ah—"

Sulley glanced down at him, frowning as he inspected an area of Sora's forehead where his bangs stuck to his skin. "Blood. You're cut."

"Yeah, I hit my head when Randall threw me," Sora explained, though he hadn't realized he had been bleeding. Too much had been going on for him to realize he might have been hurt. "I'm alright though!"

Mike leaned an elbow on Sora's shoulder, a proud smirk on his face. "And we make one heck of a team. You should have seen the kid fighting off those heartless things!"

"And you should have seen Mike when he rescued me from getting my heart stolen!" Sora laughed. "He was like a big, flying lime of DOOM."

And as Sora's laughter rang through the room, something happened.

The lights snapped on and grew brighter and brighter, the monitors flickered and screeched, all of the lights on all the consoles flashed, and the mannequins in the simulation chamber began going haywire, until—

Sora's laughter died with surprise, and everything abruptly shut off.

"What in the..." Mike began.

"That happened last time you laughed," Sulley realized. "Last night, on the scare floor."

Sora remembered. The lights had fritzed then, too, right before the heartless had shown up. So it was laughter that did it? He shrugged, not really understanding what the big deal was.

But Mike and Sulley exchanged knowing looks.

Then, with a confident smirk, Mike patted Sora's shoulder. "Come on, kiddo. Let's save the world."

-o-o-

Cold, familiar darkness—but not the darkness of unconsciousness.

When the darkness cleared, the weight was gone, and Riku rolled onto his side gasping for air, confused but grateful he was free.

Someone's hand tightened around his.

"Riku!"

Milo and Kida's voices, at a distance.

Then whose hand—?

Riku's eyes snapped open, and through his watery gaze, he saw the silver sheen of Yami's coat cast crimson by the crystal's light. Yami was crouched beside him, and his expression was grim, focused on the crystal nearby, who let loose another deafening roar when it saw Riku had escaped its crushing force.

Riku struggled to sit up, but pain seared through his chest, tearing a rasped cry out of him. Yami gently pushed him back onto the ground, and Riku felt him tense beside him as the ground shook beneath them—like something heavy was charging straight towards them.

Yami released his hand and sprang to his feet, running to meet the crystal. He was going to get killed!

Trying to sit up again, Riku trembled and winced, lightheaded from the pain that was beginning to radiate throughout his entire body. Both Kida and Milo kneeled beside him, Kida's fingers grasping his bare shoulder as Milo yanked off the glowing crystal necklace Riku still had around his wrist.

"Hold still," Milo instructed, and he pressed both his necklace and Kida's against Riku's throat, drawing a straight line down his body to his waist. The turquoise power seeped into his skin and filtered throughout his body like a slow-moving wave, easing away his pain.

As soon as Riku could breathe without grimacing, he clambered to his feet to stop Yami. Though his mind spun, he kept his balance and watched as Yami ducked between the crystal's swinging faces with all the agility of a rabbit evading a fox's paws. He whirled around to swing Soul Eater and sent a storm of lightning spells at the murderous stone goliath, but his magic seemed to just bounce right off the rock faces.

Yami couldn't beat that thing on his own... but how was Riku supposed to fight without a weapon?

"Kida—" Riku spun towards her and threw an arm out to gesture at the fight transpiring right next to them. "Can't you or Milo just tell it to _stop_?! You're the queen and king!"

She shook her head and clasped her necklace to her chest. "It will not listen to us!"

"We _tried_," Milo insisted, and the hopeless honesty on his face was enough to convince Riku he was telling the truth. Then, behind his glasses, his brown eyes widened with fear, and he grabbed Kida to pull her close to him. "GET OUT OF THE WAY!!"

Riku didn't have to turn to know that the crystal was heading in their direction.. The thunderous slams of its stone-face feet quaked the ground, making it hard for Riku to stay standing as it stormed right for him.

He stumbled and ran for the fringes of the bottomless lake to draw the crystal away from Kida and Milo, but it bore down on him faster than he'd anticipated.

A stone wall crashed into him from his left, sending him tumbling back to the ground and sliding to the lake's edge. Scrapes burned along his arms, legs, and chest as he slid to a stop. He dragged himself onto his knees with a stifled wince, but he bit back the sting to focus on the crystal monster towering above him.

It lifted a stone slab to swing at him again. Riku shifted onto his feet into a crouching position, ready to dodge even though he was sure he wasn't going make it.

But as the giant face came hurtling towards him, Yami materialized in front of him in a flash of darkness.

The stone connected with Yami, who cushioned the blow and slammed into Riku. The impact threw both of them over the lake, and Riku felt Yami grab onto him with one arm as he swung Soul Eater out with the other.

A blast of frigid air plunged into the lake—a powerful blizzard spell—creating a thick island of frozen water on the surface.

Riku twisted their bodies around in midair right before they hit the ice, putting him on bottom to cushion Yami's impact in return. The ice cracked beneath them but didn't shatter, and they only slid a few meters before Yami stabbed Soul Eater into the ice to stop their momentum.

The ice burned against Riku's bare skin and raw wounds, but he wasn't going to complain. He was alive and breathing, if not a bit dazed.

He wasn't going to last much longer like this... And Yami couldn't keep taking all of his hits like that or they would _both _die.

He reached a hand out to try summoning Oblivion again.

For just a second, he thought he felt the familiar connection of power, but it never blossomed into the keyblade's full-fledged blanket of energy. When Riku tried to reach it again with his heart, it was already gone.

The keyblade still wasn't obeying his calls.

He gritted his teeth as frustration boiled up inside of him, and he punched a fist against the ice, screaming. "What am I supposed to do if I can't use the keyblade?!"

"Just keep your head on your shoulders," Yami cautioned, his amber eyes narrowed in the crystal's direction as it vaulted off the ground and back into the air, keen on finishing its vendetta against them. As it quickly closed the gap between them, Yami shifted onto one knee and arched his arm back.

With a fierce swing of Soul Eater, a wave of darkness launched out of the lake and coiled tendrils around the stone faces of the vengeful monster, locking the transformed crystal into place. It writhed against the darkness and released an ear-piercing howl, but Yami's expression remained steadfast, Soul Eater held firmly outward between two hands as if to keep command of the darkness.

"If the darkness overran Atlantis so long ago, how does this world still exist?" he demanded, his voice carrying well across the cavern as the crystal's howl faded. "How does it still thrive? This is not a dying world! What happened to the darkness and the keyblade master who invaded your city?!"

Back near the dais where Milo was pouring frantically through his journal for some kind of answer and Kida had her tiny dagger out as if prepared to leap into the fight, they both paused and exchanged glances as Yami's question echoed around them.

Despite the torrent of pain and grief he was going through, even Riku felt a touch of awe, feeling so incredibly insignificant in the face of the darkness's strength holding the world's heart and all of its power at bay.

Milo slowly nodded to his wife, who slipped her dagger back into her skirt and approached the trapped crystal from behind, tall and proud, assuming her rightful role as queen. Her steady voice addressed the crystal in her language, and Riku realized she was translating Yami's questions into Atlantean for him.

Moments later, the crystal's tone was laden with anger as it grounded out its reply, yanking violently against the darkness binding it. Yami's jaw clenched, his arms trembling from some invisible effort to keep the darkness's hold strong.

When the inhuman voice died down, Milo was the one to translate this time—but not with the majestic confidence Kida had displayed. Milo's linguist was showing. "The crystal said the people's emotions from when the darkness attacked—pain, suffering, fear—also brought out the best in them," he explained, and he no longer sounded scared, but fascinated instead. Just like the Milo Riku had met yesterday. "Love, hope, _sacrifice_."

"The people and their emotions all banded together, and that was how the crystal was born," Kida finished for him.

Milo gasped and slammed a fist into his palm, excited now. "That's it! That's how the heart of Atlantis gained sentience!"

"Then it chose its first royal host," Kida continued, calm and sober in the face of her people's past. "The world's power, its light, drove away the darkness. To this day, the crystal still protects Atlantis in times of great need. That is what the crystal said."

Riku clenched a hand into the cold material of his dhoti as he glared at the struggling crystal. "And let me guess... it still wants to drive me away, too. It still thinks I brought the heartless here."

"Riku..."

Yami's stressed voice put him back on alert. Riku glanced at Yami, noting his pained grimace, before a series of sharp snaps caught his attention. Tendril by tendril, the darkness split under the strain of the crystal's struggles, and within seconds, it was free again.

Yami collapsed onto the ice as if he'd been shoved, landing hard on his back, long hair splayed behind him. He struggled back onto his knees and pressed a hand over his face, quivering, pale.

He was running out of tricks.

The crystal's next roar splintered the ice beneath them even more, and Riku knew if they didn't act fast, _both_ of them would be crushed beneath the stone faces this time—or worse. And he didn't want to find out if this lake really _was _bottomless.

-o-o-

The scare floor was still crowded with scarers and assistants bustling around transporting screams, and overhead, doors flew to and from the warehouse in a never ending array of colors. Though Sora's costume was a little worse for the wear now after being tossed around, they had put his hood back up so no one would realize he was a human.

So much for that.

As they hurried down the middle of the scare floor looking for Randall, Randall found _them_.

An invisible body crashed into Sora and shoved him towards an activated door nearby, and Sora cried out as he grabbed onto the edge of the doorframe, not wanting to be stuck in a totally different world. Randall's scaley hands pushed at him and pounded at his fingers to get him to loosen his grip, but Sora held on tight.

"SULLEY! MIKE!"

Everything had happened so fast that neither of the monsters had realized Sora had been attacked yet. But at Sora's screams, now everyone within a hearing distance knew and was watching. Scarers stopped in their tracks, some half through doors, others in the middle of reading folders, and assistants froze in the middle of carting screams away or encouraging their scarer to do their best.

And soon, all those monsters would see Randall for the monster he really was.

"Sora!"

Sora's friends doubled back to help him, and Sora felt a growl rumble through Randall's lizard body. Dropping his camouflage, Randall slammed a purple hand down on the door's control panel—or, more precisely, the eject button.

A clamp lowered from above and latched onto the top of the door, pulling it free from the bottom clamp.

"WAH!"

Sora clung to the sides of the door for dear life as he was swung high above the scare floor with Randall. The door zoomed along the overhead rack to the exit hole that would take it into the warehouse—where Sora had no idea what would happen next.

Holding onto the frame with one arm, he summoned his keyblade with the other, trying hard to keep his grip on both despite how hard his costume's fur made it. Down below, he saw Sulley and Mike leap onto a random scarer's activated door and eject it, hanging onto it as it was lifted high into the air behind Sora's door.

They were coming to help him—!

The rest of the scare floor all had their eyes on Randall and Sora or Sulley and Mike, and though they probably had no idea what was really going on or that their big boss had been eaten by a different kind of monster, Sora had faith they'd realize Sulley and Mike weren't the bad guys here.

Heart hammering inside of him, Sora turned to Randall just as they zipped out of the scare floor and into the warehouse.

Sora felt his jaw drop.

The warehouse was _immense_.

Rack after rack after rack and thousands upon thousands of doors lined up, stretching as high and low and as far and wide as he could see, an impossibly ginormous cavern of just _doors_. Countless swung along the racks, heading through holes out into other scare floors, or sliding in to be returned to their designated areas.

And down below, there was no floor. Maybe there had been at one time, but now a thick darkness coiled and stretched along the lower racks of doors, clouding the entire bottom of the warehouse.

So much darkness... so many doors! This was practically a breeding ground for disaster! If that darkness escaped through those doors—he didn't even want to imagine it.

He didn't have to be told what to do.

Without warning, Sora swung his keyblade as hard as he could, thwacking Randall upside the head. The lizard monster had been glaring behind them, having noticed the duo following them, but as the keyblade connected with his skull, his eyes rolled up and he swooned, almost falling right off the door.

Sora prepared to strike again, but his heart leap into his throat when Randall, recovering faster than Sora'd expected, leapt to the top of the door to evade the keyblade, his expression now murderous.

"You little _brat_..."

One of his hands shot out, unclasped something, and Sora felt the door beginning to slide off its metal frame—with him hanging onto it.

Gasping, Sora scrambled to grab the metal frame, hooking an arm onto it just as the door slipped completely, tumbling into the darkness below. His keyblade hand hung downward, too heavy for him to lift and secure his hold on the frame.

He could feel his furry grip slipping against the metal, threatening to toss him right into the darkness, too.

Randall fell into a malicious smile and tapped the fingers of two of his hands together as he studied Sora's terrified face. "Looks like I'll win after all."

He swung the bottom half of his body outward, slapping the keyblade right out of Sora's fuzzy grip, and Sora watched helplessly as his weapon twirled off into the shadowy abyss below.

"Bomb's away!!"

Mike's voice ringing through the warehouse, Sora's gaze snapped up as a green cannonball swung from above. Strong fingers grabbed his own, and Sora was suddenly jerked upward, away from Randall and the doorless frame. It took Sora a second to realize he _wasn't _falling to his death but actually being rescued, and it wasn't until he felt Sulley's furry arm wrap around him that he realized what had happened.

Sulley, perched on a door on a rack above the one Randall and Sora had been on, had swung Mike down to grab Sora's outstretched arm. Sora sent them a grateful smile, not caring that his eyes were beginning to water. Now the three of them were safe on their door as Randall ride off into the warehouse alone.

Or not.

When he saw Sora had escaped him, Randall launched himself upward and grabbed onto Sora's dangling feet.

"You're not going to get away with this!" he yelled, trying to climb up Sora's furry body.

Sora felt a sharp _riiiiiiiippp! _as his costume gave way to Randall's weight, and all he could do was hang onto Sulley as the orange fur split, slipping off of his petite form. Randall screamed as he scrambled to find a new handhold, but Sulley lifted Sora away from the monster.

There was a moment of stark fear in Randall's eyes as he realized there was nothing he could do. Then he was falling, arms flailing, but no one could help him now. Sora could still hear his shrieks even as he disappeared into the darkness.

Silence spread between Sora and the monsters as they stared down into the shadows, but the question went unasked. Had Randall deserved that? Sora didn't know. What he did know was that he himself had almost been pitched into the darkness, but his friends had saved him.

Sora briefly buried his face against Sulley's shoulder as he felt his heart swell with gratitude.

They weren't done here yet, though. Now he had a world to save.

Glancing up at Mike, Sora managed a shaky smile. "Believe me now?"

Mike gave a solemn nod, his hands clutched tight against the door they were riding. Sora felt Sulley's arm tighten around him in encouragement, and Sora took a deep breath, trying to calm his heart down.

Reaching out, he called the keyblade back to him.

Almost by pure luck, the air high above them began to shimmer in reaction to the keyblade, and Sora gasped as he saw the outline of a keyhole form, surrounded by the countless doors.

Of course! No doubt the warehouse had been the perfect place to look for the heart of the world!

He pointed Oathkeeper towards the shimmering keyhole, feeling another flood of power as light surged out of the keyblade and into the hole. The shape of a door faded in, followed by a sharp click of a lock turning, and Sora felt a smile pull at his lips as the door dissolved away into magic.

He held Oathkeeper out in front of him, studying its beautiful intricacy once more, and felt a swell of happiness inside of him.

He'd done it.

He'd saved the world.

Fighting back tears, he dismissed the keyblade and dug his hands into Sulley's warm fur.

-o-o-

The crystal charged them again, its weight shattering the ice island beneath Riku and Yami.

As the shards began to float apart, Riku grabbed onto the older boy, who was still having trouble getting to his feet because of the staggering amount of dark power he had used moments before.

"Move!" Riku yelled.

The crystal swung a stone slab right at their feet, cutting into the ice between them. Not even hesitating about helping Yami, Riku leapt forward, heaving him with him, and landed right on the passing stone face. Riding on one of the Atlantean faces hadn't really been part of the plan, but Riku didn't mind improvising.

He slipped against the slick wet rock but grabbed onto the edge of the flat surface, his other hand holding onto Yami's until Yami could find his own handholds. Riku felt his stomach twisting as they were swung high above the lake, and with a furious howl, the crystal whirled around and threw them off of the stone slab.

Riku tumbled through the air, heart fluttering with fear, as Yami's hand left his. The older boy went skidding across the ground near the edge of the lake, but Riku landed in the lake itself.

Hitting the surface was like a full-body slap, pinpricks of pain piercing his nerves until the frigid water finally swallowed him, muffling the sound of the crystal's fury. It was freezing, shards of ice brushing against him as he kicked at the water and broke the surface with a gasp. Whipping his soaked hair out of his face, he ignored his burning wounds and hurried to the edge of the lake to pull himself out.

He felt a rush of air as the stone monster took another swing at him, grazing past his wet skin as he vaulted onto shore. He clambered back to his feet and faced the crystal as it reared up, stone wings spread, and prepared to crush him beneath one of its faces again.

No time to run!!

Panic seized him, fueling his next desperate attempt to call his keyblade—it was the only thing he could think of to do—and his heart clenched with terror as he stretched his hand out and thought about all of the things he still had to do after he survived this battle—

Break the shell and unlock his memories...

Apologize to Sora for whatever it was he'd done to lose his trust...

Thank Yami for risking his life to help him...

Find a way home, together, with Sora.

Squeezing his eyes shut, he reached deep inside his frightened heart, and—

_I want to be able to help you, even if I'm too weak._

—warmth blossomed inside of him.

A surge of power channeled through him like a sudden storm, and the keyblade's power sprang to life. The familiar scent of metal and cherries filled the air as Oblivion swirled out of shadow and into existence, its weight clutched tightly in his grasp.

**Embrace your power.**

He almost couldn't believe it. His keyblade was _back_.

The hum of the weapon strong in his hand, Riku felt his spirit soar. With the rush of adrenaline and the sense that he could do anything he wanted again, he swung his weapon forward and plunged it into the earth at his feet, just as the crystal descended to attack.

A shockwave of dark energy raced outward from the keyblade and split the ground beneath the crystal, forming jagged cracks in the earth, and from those cracks, the dark energy erupted into the air and smothered the crystal with its intense power.

The crystal reeled from the force of the attack, and as it tried to keep itself together, it stumbled at the edge of the landing and crashed into the lake with a piercing howl. Then the purple and black magic dissolved, leaving the ground and water crackling with residual power.

The crystal thrashed in the lake, losing control of its formation, its stone faces bursting out of the water and returning to their original orbit around the crystal shaped like a woman. The simple rotation rapidly became turbulent like before, forming the crimson whirlwind once again.

Back to square one.

Across the landing, Yami threw his hand out, and Riku immediately recognized the spell he cast on the crystal—the apparition of a clock whose hands slowly drew to a stop. A stop spell.

The revolving stones froze in midair, and the gap between two of the faces left a perfect view of what they hadn't been able to see previously.

The crystal itself, the woman who had taken the place of Kida and Milo's daughter—only now, with time frozen, her eyes were a burning yellow.

"A _heartless_?" Riku asked, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"Certainly seems that way," Yami commented in a rigid tone. His eyes focused on Riku's keyblade. "Put an end to this."

Yami's "quickly" went unsaid. His spell would only last so long, and who knew if he had the strength to use another one.

Riku swung Oblivion forward and aimed at the heartless—the _heart _of the world—and connected his heart with the keyblade's power.

Its warmth surged through him, a brilliant colorful light emanating around Oblivion before it flooded outward in a thin beam, striking the heartless. Then the light spread, consuming the crystal and radiating brighter and brighter until Riku had to shield his eyes.

There was a burst of light, and then—

Silence.

Riku lowered his hand and squinted as the light began to fade.

There, hovering in front of the once-glowing stone faces, was the outline of a keyhole. The definitive click of a lock echoed through the chamber, and the world was sealed at last.

"_**Kydari!!**_"

Twin cries of relief resounded through the cavern as Milo and Kida sprinted to the water's edge, their eyes focused on the small child floating on a gentle breeze high above them. She was no longer the furious crimson or the icy blue of the crystal. She was a lush tan, only a little lighter than the rest of the Atlanteans.

As the effects of Yami's spell faded, the stones began to slowly revolve again, only this time a gentle rotation.

The Atlantean princess, released from her duty, drifted down to the surface of the water, and collapsed lifelessly on an invisible landing there. Riku's heart clenched as he watched Kida sprint out onto the water, a solid path appearing beneath her feet, softly glowing the same color as the crystal around her neck. Milo was close behind her, able to follow along the same path over the bottomless lake because of his own crystal necklace.

The couple crouched beside their daughter, calling her name and stroking her white hair out of her face. She was so tiny compared to them, just a toddler, and Riku felt his hand tighten painfully around his keyblade as he watched them try desperately to wake her.

Had he been too late to save her?

After all he had just been through—he had failed?

He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, wondering why the keyblade had come back to him only to result in _this._

Then, between Milo's sniffles, a tiny voice:

"Mah...tim? Tab?"

"K-Ky!" Milo gasped, and there was a sobbed laugh of pure happiness as he and Kida pulled the tiny child into their arms and kissed her face.

Riku only glanced away from the reunion when he heard Yami's feet scuff the ground behind him. He sent Yami a calm look from over his shoulder, not surprised to see Yami a little worse for wear, his silky white hair a complete mess, and a bleeding cut on his forehead. It had been a difficult battle.

He hoped that the heart of Atlantis would be kinder to future keyblade masters after what they had done for the world. Though, he was still pretty confused about some details...

"I don't think I get what happened here today," Riku admitted. "How could the heart of the world be a heartless?"

Yami's gaze shifted away from the celebrating family, but he didn't glance at Riku. "The heart of Atlantis was sentient. When any kind of heart gains consciousness, even if it is the heart of a world, it also becomes susceptible to human emotions. Fear, hatred..."

Furrowing his brows, Riku lifted his eyes back to the rotating stone faces. "So you're saying that the heart of Atlantis—the _crystal_—was so full of fear and hate for the darkness that it got consumed by the very darkness it feared and hated?"

"More or less," Yami replied. "It was not consumed completely. You saved the heart from transforming completely."

"And the heartless?" Riku asked, turning to face Yami completely.

Yami regarded him with a tired look. "They arrived here naturally. Your arrival, followed by mind, spurred the world's heart into its self-destructive course. It no longer had the light to sustain its protective barriers, and so... things fell apart." He shifted his feet, kicking a pebble loosened by Riku's attack from earlier. Kneeling down to retrieve the pebble, he continued, "But you cleared the darkness from its heart. The world will begin to thrive once again, and the heartless will no longer threaten it."

He lifted the pebble into the soft turquoise light radiating from the stone faces above. It was a multi-colored shard that didn't look like it belonged down there. With a knowing look, Yami offered him the colorful rock.

"Gummi. Seems rare, though I cannot be sure. I am no expert, but I know you know one."

Riku took the piece of gummi, thinking immediately of Cid and Traverse Town. That was when reality came rushing back to him, and he realized Yami _had _stayed and helped him. Yami had even saved his butt back there a few times. Not to mention—Yami was going to take him off this world.

He met Yami's eyes, unsure of what to think about him anymore. Yami's amber gaze held his for a few seconds before shifting away, focusing on the deep red heartless emblem on his wrist.

Riku couldn't tell for sure from this distance, but he couldn't see any traces of white left. Why had it turned completely red?

A hint of worry passed over Yami's expression.

Before Riku could ask about it, Milo's happy laughter interrupted him.

"Riku! Yami! She's okay! She's—_whoa_!"

That last _whoa _had been Milo almost tripping as he and Kida carried their daughter towards them. Kydari's big brown eyes focused on Riku and Yami, and she asked something to her mother in Atlantean before Kida chuckled and nodded.

Milo composed himself and adjusted his glasses, gesturing excitedly at his daughter. "Guys, this is Kydarigamylo. It's a mouthful, I know." He rubbed the back of his head and laughed. "Atlantean tradition!"

"It means Precious Time, daughter of Milo," Kida explained with a proud smile as she tidied up her daughter's nest of hair. "Which we now have because of you. We thank you, warriors of the key."

Riku felt himself smiling in return as he stepped forward and stroked a hand through the child's soft hair. "You're welcome... Thanks for putting up with me. For believing me. And for, well... saving me."

Laughing, Milo clapped him on his shoulder, where most of his blue paint had been washed, rubbed, or scraped off. He was surprised his dhoti had even stayed on considering it was just a folded strip of cloth, but he wasn't going to complain.

"No problem," Milo said with a fond grin. "How about you stay and celebrate tonight?"

Yami tensed, and Riku didn't miss the movement.

He shook his head, giving Milo an apologetic smile. "Sorry, got other worlds to save. Celebrate for us, okay?"

Milo's eyes widened. "Oh, right. Sorry. Must be a tough full-time job, huh...?"

"Well, so is being king, right?" Riku said with a teasing smirk.

With a sharp laugh, Kida smacked Milo on the back as Kydari glanced between her mom and dad with curiosity. The embarrassment on Milo's face said it all: apparently Kida was the one who did most of the hard work. No wonder she was such a free spirit when she could get a chance to be.

Milo shrugged and gave a sheepish grin.

After a series of goodbyes that were strangely more cheerful than he expected them to be, Riku turned to Yami expectantly. Dismissing his keyblade, he held his hand out for Yami, clasping his new piece of gummi with his other.

"Let's go."

Yami focused on his outstretched hand, his gaze intense as he seemed to fall into deep thought. Riku waited and watched, wondering what was so important that Yami had to hesitate for so long.

"Uh... Yami?"

Amber eyes slowly blinked back into focus, but they didn't meet Riku's. "Yeah."

He slipped his hand around Riku's, his cold hand almost as hesitant as his gaze. Then, one last time, Yami lifted his wrist and studied the fully red heartless emblem marking his skin.

As if coming to a decision, he released Soul Eater from his grasp, letting it disappear back into shadow, and he nodded.

He curled an arm around Riku's waist. "Hang on."

Riku clenched a fist into Yami's silver coat and watched as the shadows sprang out of the ground, a now familiar sight as tendrils snaked upward. They wrapped around their bodies and enveloped them, plunging them into complete darkness.

And even though it was Yami whose arm held him close as they traveled the bitter cold black world, he couldn't help a shiver as he imagined a different, deeper whisper kissing the shell of his ear.

**Perfect.**

-o-o-

Sora hadn't been expecting a welcome back party when he and Sulley and Mike returned to the scare floor.

There were gasps and screams all around as monsters took one look at the disguiseless Sora and realized he was a human child. They panicked and fled, falling over each other and shouting emergency codes.

Alarms went off. The shutters on the windows overhead opened.

"Here we go," Mike sighed. "The CDA."

Within seconds, monsters in yellow suits rappelled down to the scare floor and surrounded Sora.

What surprised Sora the most was that he wasn't chained up or dragged away. Instead, the CDA herded all the outside monsters off the scare floor, leaving Sora, Mike, and Sulley with semi-privacy. Far towards the entrance of the scare floor, Sora could hear Celia's shrill voice screaming things like, "Let me through to my Googley-bear!" and "Mike Wazowski, if they don't decon you, I'm gonna make you wish they had!!"

Mike himself looked ready to bolt, but Sulley stood his ground, one hand squeezing Sora's shoulder in reassurance.

Then, through their filtered helmets, several of the CDAs began shouting.

"Make way for Number One!"

"Number One coming through!"

The sea of yellow suits parted to let "Number One" through to Sora and his friends, and when Sora saw the gray cowlick, thin-eyed sneer, and pointy silver glasses, he was just as shocked as Mike.

"_Roz_?!"

"Mike Wazowski," the slug-lady said in her grating, toneless voice. "I shoulda known I'd find you mixed up in this."

The ensuing events went by in a blur for Sora as Roz explained that she knew children weren't toxic, but it was an illusion they'd created to make sure the world borders between humans and monsters remained in tact. She had been posing as a records lady in MI for years to keep an eye on things, and she had grown suspicious recently when so many dead doors had been showing up.

She'd been trying to uncover the truth, but so far had only traced it back to Randall and the door Sora had come out of.

"But I had no idea the conspiracy went all the way to Waternoose," she said.

"Howwww.... did you know Waternoose was involved?" Sulley asked, looking bewildered.

Roz's frown pulled into the tiniest semblance of a smile, which sent a shiver through Sora. "Like I told Wazowski. I'm alllllways watching."

Sora rubbed at the goosebumps on his arms and tried not to laugh at how creepy she was. As Sulley and Mike continued speaking with her, Sora glanced at his wrist where the once-pink heart symbol was almost completely black, just a sliver of pink left along the edges.

He had to leave soon.

"What's going to happen with Waternoose missing?" Sora heard Mike ask.

One of the nameless CDA members ran up to Roz and handed her a clipboard, which she took and signed as she replied to Mike. "We're shutting down the factory."

Sora and Mike had the same reaction. "What?!"

Sulley, especially, looked dumbfounded and angry. "There's no reason for that!"

Roz handed the clipboard back to the CDA member, commenting dryly, "It was a joke. Haaaa. Haaaaa. Haaaaa."

Visibly wilting with relief, Sulley and Mike started laughing.

"That reminds me," Sulley said, curling a hand beneath his chin with an entrepreneurial air. "Mike and I discovered something that will revolutionize Monsters, Inc. forever. After today, we won't need to collect screams anymore, and best of all—there won't be any scream shortages. There'll be plenty of energy for everyone."

Sora gaped at them, hoping he wasn't talking about using hearts as energy like Randall was. "Wait a minute, but...!"

"Laughter," Mike cut in, folding his arms and looking pleased, "looks like it's several times stronger—if not a lot more!—than screams. If we collect laughter instead of screams, POOF!" He waved his hands. "No more energy shortage."

Oh, of course! Sora's laughter had caused all the electricity to go haywire—the electricity that was usually run by screams. That made sense. Grinning, Sora nodded at them, proud that they had figured that out. Laughter was so much more productive than screaming. He had a really good feeling about this, and no doubt Mike and Sulley were the perfect monsters to reform Monsters, Inc.

"Do whatever you want," Roz said. "And that's something I don't want paperwork on, Mr. Wazowski."

With a sharp laugh, Mike saluted. "Music to my ears, my succulent garden snail." He exchanged a grin with Sulley, who looked just as happy with the turnout of the day.

"Now that that's over with, it's time to say your goodbyes."

Sora's heart sank. Even though he knew goodbye had been coming, it still saddened him that he'd have to leave behind two good friends, even if he'd only met them last night.

He glanced up at the two monsters, managing a smile. "Thanks for all the help, guys," he said. When Mike started to get teary-eyed, Sora gave a short laugh (the lights flickered) and wrapped his arms around the round green monster. "Don't worry, I can come back and visit, right?"

"Policy states that the door you came from must be shredded," Roz said, not missing a heartbeat. "That's the way it has to be."

"Oh..." Sora hesitated to try coming up with something else that was optimistic.

"However," Roz continued, "it states nothing about any doors the child may have access to elsewhere."

Sora brightened immediately, thinking about his door at home. _His _home on Destiny Islands. It would have been marked inactive when the islands had fallen to darkness, but none of those doors should have been shredded yet. If they restored Destiny Islands, Sora could always come back and visit MI through his own closet door.

After all, he had every reason to believe in monsters.

"Then look for me on Destiny Islands!"

The three of them exchanged fierce hugs, and Sora even thanked Roz, but she said nothing in return, aside from a slight curl of her heavy frown. Sora pulled out the cardkey he and Mike had swiped from Randall's folders earlier, and Mike did the honors of sliding it into one of the empty stations nearby.

The door from Hollow Bastion came sliding out of the warehouse and the clamp rose out of the floor to hook onto it and lower it into the docking station.

There it was, even with its same childish drawings of flowers. The red light switched on, and Sulley creaked the door open for Sora. Beyond the threshold, he could see a little girl's bed and vanity.

Back to the bastion...

Back to being an adult... Well, almost. Did being a teenager count? Either way, he was going to miss his brief return to childhood. He hadn't thought he'd miss it this much.

He backed towards the door and paused, giving the monsters a small wave. The mark on his wrist may as well have been pitch black now—he couldn't see traces of pink anymore.

"Bye guys!"

And with a sad smile from both Sulley and Mike, Sora passed through the door.

He felt like he was stepping uphill for a second, and when he looked down, he saw his teenage-sized feet and teenage-sized hands, and he knew he was back to normal.

He glanced behind him and smiled at the two monsters still watching him. Now they knew what he really looked like. He'd told them he wasn't really a kid—maybe now they'd believe him!

They waved as the door closed between them, shutting their worlds from each other.

With a sigh, he lingered in front of it a few seconds, already missing them.

Patting his pouch, he pulled out the slip of paper he had stuck in there earlier. It was that page that looked like it had come from some sort of kid's book. He'd ask Yami about it later. Folding it up, he tucked it back into his hoodie.

Yami... he needed to find him. Had he kidnapped Riku? Were they with Maleficent by now?

But before he turned to leave the little girl's room, curiosity got the best of him.

He hesitated, glancing back at the closet door, and decided to open it one last time. The door creaked open as if saying hello, but instead of finding Monsters, Incorporated behind it, it was just a normal closet, complete with cute little dresses and a few pairs of sandals and sunhats.

Sora recalled the picture of the girl in the folder, the girl whose room this supposedly was. The door had been marked inactive over nine years ago... Was it a coincidence?

"I see you've decided to make an appearance after all."

Sora stiffened and turned around, looking caught.

Maleficent's voice was calm but dripping with an underlying venom. She didn't seem happy at all, even less than usual. He hadn't even heard her enter the room—and she definitely hadn't been there a few seconds ago.

"Your resolve has strengthened," she commented, studying him close. Her crow was absent at the moment, and for that Sora was grateful. He didn't think he could stand both of them eyeing him as if he were a frog waiting to be dissected. "But you fulfilled your mission, and so I will fulfill my end of the bargain."

With a short, almost bored wave of her staff, Sora felt a slight sting on his wrist. He glanced down at it and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that her curse was gone. He'd met his deadline.

But wait...

What about Yami?

"Now, bring me the traitor," she said coolly, turning away from him to leave the room. "No time limit this time. I merely want him here where I can see him."

Sora wondered what made her think he would keep being her minion, especially after the curse she'd put on him. But then... maybe she didn't expect him to be. Maybe it was another test. He would have told her to do her own dirty work, but he wanted to find Yami anyway.

It was possible Yami was still planning on bringing Riku in—or worse. Riku was in an awkward situation without his memories, and who knew what was going on in Yami's head!

If Yami wasn't in the bastion, where else would he have gone? They had left Atlantica about two days ago, since that was when Maleficent had given them that curse—and that was enough time to travel from gummi ship back to Traverse Town.

That was as good of a start as any.

Taking a deep breath, Sora decided to see if the dark force sharing his body had returned or not.

_Id?_

There was nothing at first, but then he felt it—that sweep of consciousness that wasn't his own, a cold night breeze against his soul.

_Where the hell did you go?_

Sora frowned, not liking being talked to like that, especially by some jerk living in his head. _What do you mean where did __**I **__go, where did __**you**__ go? You disappeared for a whole day!_

_I was thrown out of you when you ran like an idiot into that closet yesterday, so you tell me._

Wait—so Id hadn't left him while he'd been in Monsters, Inc. He had been repelled somehow. So then was it possible to figure out how to get rid of Id for good?

_Oh, well... _Sora hesitated, trying to come up with a convincing half truth. _I don't know._ _The door led to a completely different world. I found the culprit, though—the one messing with the heartless machine. So I'm not cursed anymore. _

_Good for you_.

Id didn't sound impressed at all. Maybe he knew Sora was hiding something from him.

It didn't matter to Sora, either way. Now that Id was back, he could use the darkness to reach Traverse Town, and that was exactly what he did.

A few minutes later, he stepped out of the darkness and into an empty alley. Ahead he could see the flashing fluorescent lights of a shop's sign, and he smiled at the familiar sight. Though he hadn't been here in forever, the town still felt like home to him.

He left the alley and entered the second district, deciding he'd go to his and Riku's small house to see if Riku was there. He had no idea what he'd say to Riku if he _was_ there, but—it would be a start.

Smile spreading into a grin, he glanced around.

A little boy stood stock still in front of him, his brown eyes wide with fear. Sora paused, his smile fading into a confused frown, and when the little boy saw that Sora was watching him, he let out a scared cry and took off running.

What in the world...?

_Don't expect a warm welcome, remember?_

Id's words brought back the memory of what Leon had revealed to him on the beach in Atlantica. Id had attacked Traverse Town in _his _body. The people who had once been his friends here would be now be terrified of him.

Sora closed his eyes and sighed, curling his arms around himself. If that was the case, he'd better hurry. He didn't want to cause a panic.

Trying not to feel discouraged, Sora kept to the alleys and made it to their tiny house without incident.

The hovel was exactly the way he remembered it. Even when he creaked the door open and stepped inside, everything looked as though it had over a month ago when he had left here, just a little dustier. Had Riku been sleeping somewhere else?

Sora checked their bedroom, finding some relief that not everything was the same here. And in the bathroom, traces of silver hair on a hairbrush that hadn't been there before...

So, Riku had been staying here alone. How had he been doing? Was he lonely? Was he as sad as Sora sometimes when he tried to sleep at night?

Sora wanted to sit him down and ask him a hundred questions like those. And his memories—had Riku gotten his memories back yet? How was he handling them? Was Sora ever going to hear the apology he'd been waiting for...?

Clenching a hand over his heart, Sora turned away from the bedroom and began to leave their small house. Too many emotions lingered here, and they were the kind of emotions he didn't want to handle right now, not without Riku. Riku wasn't here.

Sora was supposed to be looking for Yami, anyway.

_Incoming. _

Sora froze at Id's warning, not understanding it at first, but then—he felt it.

Darkness.

Something was coming!

Sora shut the front door and backed into the house, heart pounding, though he wasn't sure why. Id was on his side again, so if it was heartless, he could just control them, right? Or if not, he had his new keyblade...

Swallowing, he crept to the window beside the door and pulled the curtain back just a few centimeters to peek out.

His heart skipped.

Yami.

Riku.

Outside.

Yami's arms around Riku, who didn't look uncomfortable about it.

Riku, who was hardly wearing anything, just some sort of wrapped _sheet._

Sora's fingers clenched into the curtain as he watched them, a surge of emotion rising inside of him. He wasn't imagining this, was he? Ursula's shell was still around Riku's neck, so his memories were still trapped. Maybe Sora was overreacting... Maybe—

Maybe Yami was being friendly with Riku because he was going to kidnap him and take him to Maleficent!

Sora released the curtain and started to reach for the door to barge out there, but Yami let go of Riku and suddenly winced. Yami was hurt? The pained expression on his face made Sora hesitate and watch, listening to Riku's muffled, "You okay?"

Yami brushed Riku's hand away when Riku tried to check to see if he was injured, and as Yami pulled away from him, he glanced towards the house. His amber eyes shifted straight towards Sora's position.

Their eyes locked.

Sora felt his heart skip again, but he wasn't the only one surprised he had been caught eavesdropping.

Yami's eyes widened, and without even giving Riku an explanation, he hurriedly told Riku he had to leave. Sora watched Riku tried to stop Yami, an angry expression taking place of his concern from moments before.

"Wait a minute—what about—"

But Yami disappeared in a quick swirl of darkness before Riku could finish his question. Sora resisted the urge to take off right away, too, worried about getting caught by Riku—though he wasn't sure why.

For a long moment, Riku just stared at the spot Yami had been standing, his silver brows furrowed with something more than just anger now. He seemed almost... upset. Sora could only imagine what Riku would be upset with Yami about, and it was the kind of thing he _didn't _want to imagine.

When Riku finally seemed to accept Yami wasn't coming back, his shoulders sagged with a sigh, and he turned towards the house.

Sora leapt away from the window, heart racing as he panicked about what he should do. Stay here? He wasn't ready to face Riku yet, not after what he'd just seen! Now would be a bad time!

D'oh, and _Yami_! He needed to check on Yami, he was hurt, and Maleficent—

Just as the doorknob began to turn, Sora teleported away through the darkness before Riku could see him, heading straight back to Hollow Bastion.

_I'll be back, Riku, I promise!_

After he took care of some things first.

But as he appeared in the bastion's library, he curled his arms around himself, feeling a little guilty about running from Riku. Sora couldn't shake what he had seen, though. His feelings were all messed up again.

Why had Riku been dressed like that? Why had he been acting so nice to Yami after Yami had taken Sora away from him in Atlantica? Did... Did Riku really like Yami that much? Riku didn't even have his memories of what he had done with Yami, and he was already being all buddy-buddy with him.

Sora pressed his hands over his face as his emotions swelled inside of him again, making him dizzy.

"Are you crying?"

Jolting with surprise, Sora twisted around to find Yami standing right behind him. "N-No!" Well, he hadn't been crying _yet_. "Don't sneak up on people like that!"

Yami folded his arms across his chest, undeterred by Sora's change in subject. "You should have stayed in Traverse Town," he said. "With Riku." And the way he said it, with such finality—

Sora came to a sudden realization.

Yami hadn't brought Riku back with him.

Reaching out, Sora grabbed Yami's wrist, and even though Yami tried to pull his arm back, Sora caught sight of what he'd wanted to see. The heartless symbol on Yami's wrist was completely red now.

His time was up.

Yami had _chosen _not to bring Riku.

"Why...?"

Sora searched Yami's eyes for an explanation as he released his arm, but the older boy looked away with a distressed expression on his face.

"You put your trust in me," was all he said.

Sora felt his throat tighten with emotion. "Yami..."

The rap of a staff against the stone floor announced Maleficent's arrival.

Yami's shoulders stiffened, and only Sora turned to face her.

"Fool," she chuckled, her eyes narrowed in Yami's direction. "You willingly return here without fulfilling your end of the bargain. Are you that eager to become a heartless yourself?"

This time Maleficent's raven was perched on her staff, and with an almost mocking flair, it spread its wings and cawed at him. Yami said nothing, but Sora saw the curling of his fists and the tension in his shoulders as if he wanted to act but... _couldn't _somehow.

Sora glanced between the two of them, almost scared to breathe as if the slightest catalyst would set the two of them off. He wanted to help, but what could he do? Would the keyblade be enough to fight against someone as powerful as Maleficent? She knew way more magic than he did—!

_You're better off staying out of this, _Id advised, sounding grim.

_But—what about Yami?!_ Sora demanded.

Maleficent's crow suddenly took to the air, and Sora flinched as he _felt_ her power coming.

Darkness launched out of the ground, a wave of pure shadows, and thick tendrils snapped around Yami's arms and legs, as Maleficent's goblin heartless came popping out of dark portals to apprehend him.

Wait, no—not Yami—

The heartless came for _Sora_, who let out a cry as they grabbed his arms.

"Hold still," Maleficent cautioned in a tone laced with poison. "I don't want you interfering like last time."

But every fiber of his being was screaming at Sora to do just that—to interfere, to fight for Yami because Yami wasn't doing _anything_!! Sora struggled against the heartless, prepared to summon his keyblade, but just as he pulled an arm free to do so, he caught sight of Yami's face.

Yami's eyes met his, and Sora sensed a warning there. A warning and a plea. _Don't get in the way_, it said.

Sora's heart fluttered with uncertainty.

Then the darkness yanked Yami to his knees and the remaining goblin heartless pounced at him.

"STOP IT!!" Sora cried, feeling tears spring to his eyes as he watched the heartless smother him, sink their hands into him, draw darkness out of him. It was like watching Waternoose all over again, only endlessly worse because Sora _knew _Yami, and they had saved each other's lives more than he could count by now.

Sora shook his head, his eyes watering even more as he fought not to _fight_. Yami didn't want him to.

The darkness billowed outward into a swirling sphere of energy, and Sora knew that when it faded, he'd see a shadow heartless standing there, just another dark pawn, and Yami would be gone.

Yami—_gone_—just when he had finally started to do the right thing!

But...

The darkness didn't fade like it was supposed to.

There was a sharp ring in the air, and then a _flash _of brilliant light that exploded out of the darkness.

_What...?_

Sora squeezed his eyes shut to protect them, but even then the light left a burning afterimage. The heartless abruptly released Sora and shrank back, and Sora stumbled forward, still shielding his face with an arm.

Then, as the light began to fade, Sora risked a peek to see what had happened, and was confused and shocked and relieved all at once at what he saw.

Not a heartless. Not even darkness.

Yami. Just Yami.

He was huddled on the floor on his hands and knees, breathing raggedly, his skin a sickly pale. His white hair hung in his face, but Sora could see his hands trembling hard against the floor.

The light had completely obliterated both forces surrounding him.

_That was a close one, _Id commented with relief.

Wait a second—was Id _glad _the light had somehow saved Yami?

"What?!"

Even Maleficent sounded taken aback, and Sora would have found it funny if he hadn't been so confused.

Then Maleficent's surprise faded into dawning realization. She pressed a few fingers to her forehead as she stared at Yami, her lips spreading into an amused smile, wider and wider, until she began outright laughing at him.

"You... hahahahaha!"

She swept an arm through the air and pressed a hand against her heart, laughing even harder. Sora felt his nerves crawl as he listened, not liking the rising pitch to her voice as it turned almost maniacal.

"Oh, why didn't I see it before?!" she said, her voice echoing through the chapel. Yami didn't make a move to get up, even as Maleficent began to close the distance between them, tap by tap of her staff. "All this _time_, right under my nose." She paused beside him and, with a graceful kneel, she pressed her staff beneath his chin to lift his face. "You _wretch._" She said this last part with an almost admiring lilt to her voice, and then, as she brushed his white bangs out of his face, her tone turned too saccharine to be pleasant. "I will keep you where you belong."

Rapping her staff against the floor again, the heartless that _had_ survived swiftly charged forward, grabbing Yami instead and hefting him to his feet. Sora automatically started forward to save him, only to remember the look Yami had given him. Yami didn't want to be saved...

"Take him to the dungeons," Maleficent hissed, flicking her robe behind her. She stretched her arm out, and her crow swooped through the air to follow the heartless and Yami.

Sora stayed behind, frozen in place by confusion, as he watched Yami get dragged off by the heartless. Yami didn't even have the strength to walk on his own, his head hanging low with his hair shielding his face. Sora squeezed his eyes shut again and listened to the soft drag of Yami's feet as towed away.

Why didn't Yami want to be saved? A dozen questions ran through Sora's mind as he tried to make sense of everything that had just happened. Where had the light come from? Was Yami okay? Why wasn't Maleficent going to turn him into a heartless anymore?

Well, Sora did know one thing for sure now.

Regardless of what Yami wanted, Sora couldn't just run back to Riku.

Not now. Not yet.

Not when Sora had a friend to save.

-o-o-

* * *

The feedback you guys leave me is staggering and always boosts my confidence. Thank you so much, I can never say this enough! Thank you for sticking with me this long. Over the years, even quite a few of my close friends have dropped this story or lost interest, so seeing familiar reviewers—and new faces!!—is always such a great relief. This story isn't going to die. I will make it to the end, even if there's only one reader left!

The _**real**_ fun starts now! You definitely don't want to miss this next chapter, mwahaha.


	42. Ch 25: The Pure Heart

_Author Notes: _

This is the big one, folks. I've been waiting to write this chapter for SIX YEARS. Words cannot convey my excitement!

Thank you to all my friends who have helped me reach this point of the story. And thank you, Yami fans and Yami haters, for helping him grow.

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-five: **__The Pure Heart_

-o-o-

"Wait a minute—what about—"

_Sora._

Yami didn't even spare him another glance. The darkness leapt out of the cobblestone and whirled around him, cutting him off from Riku, who felt the vise of sudden betrayal tighten around his heart as he watched Yami disappear before his eyes.

Riku was safe finally, but as he stared at the empty space Yami had been standing in just seconds before, he couldn't have felt more stranded.

After what he had just been through with the other boy, Yami still had no qualms about up and leaving him without an explanation or even some kind of reassurance that Sora would be okay. And what was with that sudden grimace? Yami had been hurt and he hadn't even told him!

What stung most of all, though, was not knowing about Sora. Riku knew he shouldn't have trusted Yami about dealings with Sora, but with the way Yami had been acting on Atlantis, and had even helped him... he'd assumed Yami would take him to Sora.

Now it seemed like Riku was back to square one. He'd have to find Sora on his own...

With a heavy sigh, he lowered his eyes and turned towards the door Yami had deposited him in front of—his Traverse Town "home" (though it still didn't quite feel like home). He wasn't really in the mood to wallow in self-pity, so he decided he would change out of his Atlantean garb, get cleaned up, and go see if Leon and Cloud had returned.

He pushed open the door and paused in the threshold, taking in the familiar smells of his musky place: dust, old wood, and Sora's shoes.

Wait—Sora's shoes?

The thought had come unbidden, something so natural that he may not have minded it otherwise. Except... Sora's shoes shouldn't have been here.

He glanced down at the small pile of them next to the door, his heart giving a startled leap when he saw Sora's old yellow shoes sitting on the floor. What the...

Had Sora been here?

Kicking the door shut behind him, he started turning lights on, noticing other traces of his best friend—a stray shirt hanging off a table in the hall where Riku set down his new piece of gummi, a pair of dirty socks on the floor in the living room where Riku knew he wouldn't have put them, Einlanzer's sheath propped against a wall—

The sheath was coated with a thin layer of dust. It hadn't been placed there recently.

Riku entered the bedroom, getting the distinct feeling he was missing something important. Sora's stuff was everywhere, mixed with his, as if...

Well, as if Sora had been living here. With him. Which meant Sora hadn't always been in Hollow Bastion and hadn't always been working for Maleficent and hadn't always been fighting with him.

Riku clenched a hand around Ursula's necklace and yanked it off. Why would the witch have taken _that _memory? Or had it just been cause and effect from the one she had chosen...?

He wanted to know the truth, as much as it terrified him. But he remembered Yami's warning about what regaining his memory could do to him. Before he did anything that risky, he needed to let everyone know he was back in town first.

Leon, Cloud, Donald, Goofy... Even Mushu. He could talk to Merlin about the keyblade, maybe, and see Cid about the gummi Yami had given him.

He had only been separated a few days, but just thinking about them made him realize just how much he had missed everyone.

Setting the necklace on the bed, Riku decided he needed to get cleaned up before he went anywhere else. He could already hear Mushu and Cid's teasing about his dhoti and body paint...

He closed the bathroom door behind him and took a long, hot shower to soothe away the aches of battle and cleanse his mind after everything he'd learned that day. When he was done, he wrapped a towel around himself and returned to the bedroom.

Something on the bed caught his eye.

A small stack of items was resting there with a note on top, and Riku was pretty sure that hadn't been there before he had stepped into the shower. Beneath the note were the clothes he had left on the gummi ship before exploring Atlantica. His journal was here, too, along with a few potions and a warm box of food.

The note was from Aerith, and Riku felt his mood lighten as he read the elegant handwriting.

_We noticed the lights on in the house and came to check to see if you were back. _

_We're relieved you're safe. Donald and Goofy, and Leon_ _and Cloud have been taking shifts combing different worlds for you—they were so worried! We all were. You should have heard Mushu when they told him you and Sora had disappeared again. _

_I don't know exactly what went on or where you've been, but what matters is that you're home now. (Leon was worried sick, not that he would admit it.) Eat up and rest. Please come talk to one of us—maybe not me, but someone._

_- Aerith_

Riku cracked a smile and set the note down. Inspecting his clothes, he noticed they had been washed and that the tears in his hoodie had been mended.

Somehow, the note and care package reminded him of something Sora's mom would have done, and Riku couldn't help the sudden wave of nostalgia that hit him. He brought his hoodie to his face and breathed in, but—of course—instead of the detergent Sora's mom would have used, he smelled a subtle hint of flowers. Aerith.

Slipping his clothes on, he towel-dried his hair and brushed it, wincing at the sheer amount of knots it had. Then he settled at the edge of the bed and opened the small, warm box.

Inside were two large baked buns, and they smelled delicious. He tore one in half, taking a moment to savor the aroma of the meat and cheese filling it. His stomach rumbled. Pulling open a potion, he began to eat, sipping the potion in between bites, feeling it soothe away his scars from Atlantis.

When he was all done, he released a contented sigh and relaxed a moment on the bed. He already felt better, but he couldn't rest like Aerith's note had suggested. He had things to take care of.

Retrieving Ursula's necklace and the piece of gummi he'd gotten in Atlantis, he stuffed both into his leg pockets and left his house.

Traverse Town's cobblestone was a welcome familiarity beneath his boots, as were the neon lights and the scattered stars above. He passed through the districts, spotting familiar faces who paused to wave at him and smile, including the waitress of the restaurant café he liked to frequent.

And just before he reached first district, a little boy and girl darted past him, the boy with a trashcan lid as a shield, and the girl with a plastic plumbing tube.

"Haaaaah!" she cried, swinging the tube at the boy. "I'm the keyblade master!"

"How come you always get to be him?!" the little boy whined as he lifted the trashcan lid over his head.

Neither of them seemed to have noticed Riku walking nearby. The sight of them playing around like that reminded him so much of himself and Sora when they had been little, up to a few months ago before they had left the islands. Nothing had been more exciting than roleplaying with his best friend. Pretending to be pirates, knights, warriors, always fighting to save a princess or find some kind of treasure, coming up with wild adventures and making promises to explore foreign lands one day, together...

He missed being a kid. He missed that innocence. Most of all, though, he missed sharing that sense of adventure with Sora.

Curling his arms around himself, he passed through the open doors to first district, heading straight to Cid's garage.

Judging from the way Cid was stretched out beneath a new gummi ship—the one Riku had woken up in after his close encounter with Ursula, he realized—Cid had been very busy lately.

Riku stopped near Cid's legs, which were sticking out beneath the ship, and nudged one of them with his foot to get his attention.

"I heard ya comin', hold your horses, Spike. Hand me that gummi solder gun if you're just gonna stand there like a damn lamppost."

_Still as grouchy as ever._

Riku's smile returned. "It's Riku."

Cid abruptly tried to sit up, only to bang his head on whatever he was working on, and with a loud curse, he flopped back onto his rolling board and pushed himself out from under the ship. Rubbing his forehead, he glared up at Riku through a grimace. "All ya damn pretty boys with your belts and zippers and boots, ya all sound the same."

"Blame the girls," Riku laughed.

He held out a hand, but Cid opted to ignore it and helped himself to his feet, grunting as he popped his back and rolled his shoulders.

Then a sliver of his grumpiness seemed to fade as he eyed Riku. "Glad to see you're still in one piece, kid." He stroked the stubble on his chin. "Don't remember ya being that scrawny, though."

Riku recalled the plea in Aerith's note for him to talk to someone about what had happened in the last few days, but as much as he admired Cid's constantly crass demeanor, he didn't think it would help him much in dealing with his memory issue. He had someone else in mind, but after he took care of this first.

He reached into his pocket. "It's good to be back," he admitted as he pulled out the piece of gummi. He held it out for Cid. "And... I found this."

Cid took one look at the gummi fragment and let loose a long, impressed whistle. He lifted it into the air, letting the light of the garage reflect off its plastic-like surface. "Well, what do we have here! I can't be sure until I test it, but if I'm not mistaken, this here's a Navi-G. Rare suckers, and valuable!"

"What's it do?" Riku asked, leaning close. "That tiny rock is actually worth something?"

"Hell yeah. It'll take ya farther _and_ faster than before," Cid said, planting a hand on his hip. "You'll be able to reach some of those worlds on the outer rim finally. Who knows what's out there..."

That last comment sent a subtle chill creeping up Riku's spine. He was right. Maybe this gummi was a good thing—maybe it'd lead him right to Hollow Bastion. But maybe it'd lead him to a world that would be worse than Atlantis...

"Good," was all he said, though. Either way, there would be more people to save and more worlds to seal. As Cid started to turn away with his shiny new gummi in hand, Riku stopped him with a last question. "Hey—Cid. Where's Leon and Cloud?"

"Hell if I know," he replied distractedly as he set the gummi under a microscope-like device to test it. He adjusted some of the controls as he muttered, "Screwin' like chocobos probably..."

With that awkward mental image, Riku decided it was time to leave. The shell in his pants pocket was a warm weight reminding him he had one last stop to make before he did search for his friends. Bidding Cid goodbye, who just grunted at him in return, Riku left the garage and headed to third district.

Merlin's house hadn't changed much since he had last seen it.

As Riku walked through the hanging curtain, the anti-Riku—Rikyu?—lifted its head. For a second he had forgotten Merlin had been keeping the thing, so when it gave a soft _kyu _at his presence, Riku flinched with surprise.

"Guh... Merlin, you're still keeping this thing?"

Merlin's pointy hat was the first thing Riku saw of him as he peeked out from behind his tall chalkboard. "By my beard—" He blinked at Riku and adjusted his spectacles. "—that's the most he has reacted to anyone in days! My boy, Rikyu definitely has quite an interest in you."

"It has my _face_. Why _wouldn't _it be interested in me?" Riku said, stepping around the cage of light containing it. "Have you even learned anything from it?"

Eyes narrowing behind his spectacles, Merlin puffed out his chest and stroked his beard. "I most certainly have!"

Pulling out his wand, he gestured at the chalkboard, which turned towards Riku on its own and, before his eyes, chalk began scribbling out accurate images of various different heartless, just like it had done the day Riku had dived into the anti-Riku's memories.

When the pieces of chalk finished drawing, there were two distinct groups of heartless. On the left, there were the common shadow type heartless, along with an anti-Riku, and one of those tall neo-shadows he had encountered the day Id had attacked Traverse Town. On the right side were other types, each of these marked with the heartless symbol.

"The heartless on the left are _natural_, heartless born from pure darkness," Merlin explained. He tucked his hands into his billowy blue sleeves as he turned towards Rikyu. "You said Sora created these anti-Rikus..." Trailing off, he shook his head and sighed. "But it would take a _master_ of the darkness itself to create a heartless in such a way."

"And Sora isn't exactly what you can call a master of the darkness," Riku pointed out.

"Yes, however, it seems as if Id may be." Merlin stroked his beard again as he studied the anti-Riku within its magical cage. "Id is a curiosity. How such a dark entity could exist in such a bright young boy, I'm having a difficult time trying to understand..."

The way Merlin had said that, as if he himself had _known_ Sora, reminded Riku of what he had seen in his little house: Sora's stuff strewn everywhere. Had Sora lived here? Had Merlin known Sora? The question was at the tip of his tongue, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to ask the obvious just yet. Riku _had _come here for counsel about his locked memories, but—what would Merlin say about Riku's reckless contract with Ursula?

"But despite how much power Id may possess," Merlin stated as he turned back towards Riku, "he isn't the only one you should concern yourself with." He slipped his hands out of his sleeves and waved his wand at the chalkboard. The chalk circled the group of heartless on the right. "These particular heartless were manufactured," he said with a scowl. "Someone literally has taken hearts and created a multitude of different heartless. They're easy to identify because of the creator's emblem located somewhere on them—a pretentious thing to do, if I do say so myself. Nevertheless, because of the mark, we have begun calling them Emblem Heartless."

Riku frowned as he studied the drawings, thinking back to all of the "emblem" heartless he had destroyed. When he struck them with the keyblade, hearts _were _released... And now that he thought about it, hadn't someone once told him that any of those heartless could have been his friends or family?

Or—had he made that up? He couldn't remember anymore.

He lowered his gaze and glanced at Rikyu, who was sitting now in the corner of his cage, still staring at them. "I don't understand how someone could just take people's hearts and create heartless with them," Riku admitted. "Is it really that easy?"

Merlin barked out a laugh. "Not at all!" He turned back towards his large desk, already piled with books, and began piling more books and scrolls on top of it. "If it were that easy, anyone with half a brain and lust for power would have his own army of heartless!"

Adjusting his spectacles, Merlin leaned over a thick tome as he pulled it open and began flipping through the worn pages.

"The process seems simple, but it's actually quite complicated to replicate in artificial conditions. The creator of these emblem heartless would have to have been someone either exceptionally powerful, or exceptionally _smart_." He lifted a finger into the air. "Ah, here it is!"

The chalkboard suddenly erased itself, and Riku studied it as a new diagram began to appear on it. Something dealing with the heart and a whole slew of equations he didn't understand.

"You see, heartless don't actually steal hearts, m'boy," Merlin said as he pulled away from the desk, his beard now covered in dust. He muttered a curse before he began to brush himself off. "They steal the _light _within hearts. They stifle it. And when the darkness of the heart becomes too much to bear, the heart collapses, the darkness takes over, and a heartless is created from that collapsed heart."

But when Riku had sifted through Rikyu's memories, it really had seemed like the heartless had stolen that little boy's heart. So what it had actually done was steal the light and devour _that_? Then the boy had disappeared...

Riku shuddered at the remembrance, the child's scream still clear in his memories. Why couldn't Ursula have taken that memory, too? Riku would like to forget everything about that night. The attack, the heartless, Id's appearance...

"How do you know it's not Id?" he asked quietly. "The one controlling the emblem heartless."

"Id _is_ your enemy, that much is obvious," Merlin conceded, "and he _could_ be behind some of the heartless infesting the worlds. But if he has enough power to create natural heartless, he wouldn't need to _manufacture_ heartless. No, the emblem heartless are being controlled by another party altogether."

Well, if it wasn't Id, Riku could only think of one other person with the power and motive behind using heartless. "It could be Maleficent," he suggested.

Merlin's scowl was back, and it was the kind of look that told Riku that Merlin had had some bad history with her. "Yes, it could be," he said with a grumble. "We know she's responsible for the destruction of many worlds and freely wields heartless as her minions. Her power is great—a _terrible _great, but great nonetheless." He cleared his throat and puffed out his chest again as he approached Riku. "But what she doesn't have is _you_."

"Me...?"

"Yes, you." Merlin moved forward, lifting Riku's arm high into the air. "Do you see? The keyblade _purifies_ darkness, especially that of the heartless, and releases the heart trapped within."

Riku glanced up at his empty hand. Despite Merlin's encouraging words, Riku's heart wasn't really into sharing the old wizard's enthusiasm. All he could think about when he looked at his outstretched hand was how lost he had felt when the keyblade hadn't responded to his call.

Squeezing his eyes shut, he lowered his face and tried to focus on what Merlin had said. So the keyblade purified the darkness that made up the heartless. But what happened if the one with the key lost that key?

Pulling away from the wizard, Riku raked a hand through his hair, feeling a hint of the panic he had felt back in Atlantis, even though the keyblade had come back to him in the end. "Yeah... the keyblade," he replied with a tinge of resentment, distracted by his own thoughts. "Is there a reason why it would start ignoring me?"

For a second, Merlin sounded genuinely befuddled. "Well, it—uh... what?"

Yami had sounded surprised about it, too. Two of the smartest people Riku knew couldn't give him a straight answer about his disobedient keyblade, and that fact didn't sit well with him. If they didn't know what was wrong, what would he do if it happened again?

He stared down at his empty fingers. He could feel the keyblade's power inside of him now, waiting to spring to action, but... things were different now. Riku wasn't sure he could give the weapon the same unquestioning trust he'd given it before.

"The world I was just on, right when I needed the keyblade the most, it just... wouldn't come to me." He closed his hand into a fist and sighed, shaking his head. "I don't know why." He glanced at the old wizard for an explanation.

With a stroke of his beard, Merlin eyed him closely. "Can you call to it now?"

Wordlessly, Riku opened his hand and connected with the keyblade's powers, and after its soft glow faded and its weight rested in his fingers, he lifted it into the air. Oblivion's beautiful intricacy still filled him with its comforting warmth, despite his shaken faith. The keyblade's power was unwavering.

It had always been unwavering.

But him?

Maybe it wasn't the keyblade that had betrayed him, but... the other way around. His heart hadn't been at its strongest lately.

"Maybe I'm not worthy of it anymore, after the things I've done..."

As Riku trailed off, he wasn't sure what he was expecting Merlin to do. Offer sympathy, maybe, or try again to explain the problem.

What he wasn't expecting was for Merlin to rap him over the head with his walking stick.

"Fiddlesticks!"

"OW!" Riku rubbed his stinging skull and sent him a bewildered look. "What was that for?!"

Merlin shook his stick at him. "Don't you start talking like that. There's a perfectly logical explanation behind its disappearance."

"_Like_?"

"Er—well." Straightening himself, Merlin cleared his throat again and set his stick down with blunt force. "That I don't know yet, you see, but—" He wagged a finger at Riku. "It _must_ deal with the strength of your heart."

Even though Merlin didn't have an answer, it seemed like he wasn't going to just give up on it, and that provided Riku a little comfort.

Merlin conjured up a chaise lounge and, with a wave of his wand, forced Riku to sit on it. The cushion was stiff, so Riku didn't bother making himself comfortable even though he sensed an Important Talk was about to ensue. Merlin himself settled in his large armchair, fingers steepled as he studied Riku with narrowed eyes.

"Now, let's focus on the elephant in the room."

The elephant? Riku glanced at the anti-Riku in question, wondering what the heartless would have to do with his faulty keyblade.

"No, no, no—not _him_," Merlin said, the _tsk _audible in his tone even though he didn't say it. "_You_, my boy. I could sense it the moment you walked in here!" Before Riku could even ask what the heck the batty wizard was talking about, Merlin continued, punctuating the air with his finger. "You have lost faith in your own power."

Riku's cynicism rose to his defense. "_What _power? All I do is swing a keyblade around," he pointed out, looking away with a glare. "Without it, I'm..."

In search for the right word, he faltered.

"Ordinary?" Merlin offered.

Ordinary. That was exactly how he had felt. Ordinary, helpless, someone who just got in the way and made things worse. Leon, Cloud, Sora—they were lucky they had reliable weapons and the ability to use magic. Which was another thing that seemed really unfair.

"If I'm the keyblade master, how come Sora's so much better at magic?" he asked.

As if he had been expecting that question for quite some time, Merlin sat back in his chair, puffing on a pipe that had appeared out of nowhere. "Some individuals have a natural talent for it," he explained calmly, "while others are not so fortunate." He gestured with his pipe. "Take Donald and Goofy, for instance. Donald is quite the sorcerer. Goofy, on the other hand..." Chuckling, he shook his head. "Well, let's just say his talent lies in other areas."

Riku formed a tiny smile at that, silently agreeing. Goofy's fighting was unconventional—what kind of weapon was a _shield_?—but he did pack a punch when he needed to, and that was what mattered.

"That doesn't mean he lacks magical properties, however," Merlin continued, resuming his more serious tone. "He merely channels his powers through other means." He pointed his pipe at Riku, his eyes sharp but sincere. "You need to find your own way, too, Riku."

Merlin's words made sense, but they were easier said than done. "How?" he wondered aloud, focused distantly on the anti-Riku, who was now pacing his tiny cage. Riku had accessed amazing abilities through the keyblade before, but nothing consistent.

"This is a process of self discovery," Merlin said. "But I will tell you this." He lowered his pipe and leaned forward, and Riku glanced at him. Their gazes locked, and the intense solemnity on the old wizard's face made Riku's heart tighten. "The keyblade chose _you_, and it chose you for a reason, boy. Trust in its powers, and you will find your own."

Riku's fingers curled firmly around the keyblade in his lap.

"It's common for someone in your position to doubt himself," the wizard continued, his eyes sincere, "but that is where your friends come in."

The mention of friends stung, and Riku's thoughts instantly leapt to Sora. He looked down at his keyblade and wondered if things would have been different between them if Sora had been the chosen one instead.

"They believe in you, and putting your trust in _them_ is just as important as putting trust in yourself," Merlin said, undeterred by Riku's dampened spirit. "They will fortify your courage, your strength, your _will_, and take you places you never would be able to reach on your own."

Though Merlin may not have meant that literally, Riku made an immediate connection to the start of all this and the start of his journey. He had been so desperate to leave home, and Sora's support had only fed that drive. And in the end, he had dragged Sora along for the ride... Friends took each other places they'd never be able to reach on their own, but those weren't necessarily good places.

Riku closed his eyes, clenching his keyblade.

Merlin was quiet for a moment, but Riku could feel his gaze on him, scrutinizing. Then, in a prompting tone, the wizard asked, "Have you stopped to speak with Leon, Cloud, or the king's messengers since your return?"

"No, I..." Riku hesitated, resting a hand on his pocket. He could feel the distinct outline of Ursula's necklace contained within. Swallowing to steady his voice, he continued. "I had something to take care of first..."

"Ah, yes," Merlin said as he set his pipe down. "I did notice a strong, residual spell lingering on you and was wondering when you were going to, uh—how do they say?—stop beating around the bush." He stroked his long beard again. "After all, you came to see me for a reason. Maybe it's time you told me what that is."

No turning back now...

Riku unbuckled his pocket and slipped his hand inside. Trembling fingers wrapped around his mark of shame, and he presented the glowing shell to Merlin, unable to meet his face.

Merlin took the necklace from him, and Riku heard the wizard release a contemplative hum as he inspected it. "This is powerful magic. Where did you get this?"

Lifting his eyes, Riku focused on the weathered hand holding his contained memories. As much as he didn't want to admit his stupid mistake, he knew Merlin could help him. "It belonged to the witch who... took my memory."

Merlin actually gave a start of surprise and fumbled for words before managing to sputter out, "Your _memory_?"

Riku avoided Merlin's gaze. "I made a deal with her," he admitted, and the angry hint in his voice was directed at himself. And as soon as he had said it aloud, a small weight lifted off his heart, and he closed his eyes, an explanation beginning to pour out of him. "She took one of my memories, but that memory turned into a whole chain of memories, and... Merlin, I think it made me forget stuff about Sora. Important stuff. Stuff I'm not sure I want to remember because Sora seemed so upset about it, and even _Yami_ didn't want to tell me..."

Again, as Riku trailed off, he wasn't sure how Merlin would react to such a confession, but this time he knew it wouldn't be pleasant.

Merlin knocked him right over the head with his walking stick again.

"Stupid, stupid, _stupid _boy!"

Riku lowered his face as he fought back the surge of emotion on the rise inside of him. Sora had called him stupid, too. He _knew _it had been stupid, but hearing it aloud from two people he trusted was so much worse.

"Well, now it's no wonder why the keyblade disobeyed you!" Merlin said with a huff. "It hardly recognizes your heart anymore."

Riku glanced up at him through his bangs. "What do you mean...?"

"I mean you are lucky to be _alive_." Merlin got off his chair and began to pace with an angry vigor, his arms gesturing wildly as he continued speaking. "The moment you let a stranger touch your memories, you're putting your entire heart and _being _in his or her hands." He stopped and whirled back towards Riku, his eyes narrowed behind his spectacles. "And of course you want your memories back!"

Brows knitting, Riku looked away from the wizard and leaned forward, retrieving Ursula's necklace from the chair where Merlin had left it. "Even if those memories might cause more damage than good?"

"_Especially _if they do," Merlin stressed. "No matter what that witch took, it was a piece of you. It _was _you. By taking that away, you are no longer wholly you. The keyblade may continue to falter as long as your heart is incomplete. Do you understand?"

"I get it," Riku said, glaring off into the room. The anti-Riku was staring at him, its head tilted to the side as if wondering what he was so upset about.

Riku didn't notice Merlin had moved right beside him until his aged hand reached for the shell.

"Are the memories contained in here?" he asked, lifting it by its strings.

Letting the wizard take it, Riku hugged himself and sat back in his chair. "Yeah..."

Merlin inspected the shell again with careful scrutiny, a heavy frown on his face. "The good news is, to unlock your memory, all you will need to do is to break this container."

"The bad news?" Riku asked in a cautious tone.

"Memories are a tricky business." Merlin held the necklace back out for him, and as Riku took it, his stomach sank with dread as he listened to the wizard. "It's very possible that returning your lost memories may damage your heart even more—or at least disorient you while your heart repairs itself." He shook his head and sighed, tucking his hands into his sleeves. "I'm not completely sure what will happen..."

Yami had said something similar, hadn't he?

But if his heart could be damaged by these memories, wouldn't the keyblade have an even harder time recognizing him?

"The choice, however, is ultimately up to you," Merlin finished, watching him in earnest.

The more Riku thought about it, the less he wanted to have his memories back, but the more he knew Merlin was right. Whatever these memories were—or whatever the _first _memory was that had caused the rest of his memories to mess up—must have been important to him. Ursula had pulled the memory from close to his heart. He remembered the panic that had filled him when she had done it.

Whatever it was, it _was _a piece of him. It had been valuable enough to upset Sora, frighten Yami, and satisfy Ursula's deal.

Besides, back when he had been ready to leave Atlantica, hadn't he decided to break the shell? Sora was supposed to have been here with him, but... maybe it was better to do it himself. He didn't like seeing Sora upset...

Drawing in a deep breath to compose himself, Riku clutched the shell and came to a decision.

As he rose to his feet, he lifted his eyes to meet Merlin's at last. "Can I do it here? Just... in case."

Merlin nodded and gestured for him to continue. "Of course."

Heart beginning to race, Riku knelt and placed the necklace on the floor, feeling both Merlin and the anti-Riku's gazes reading his every move.

He straightened himself and stared down at the harmless looking shell resting on Merlin's rug. For a second, it was hard to believe something so simple contained something that could be equally precious or devastating.

Holding his breath, he lifted a heel above the necklace.

"Here goes nothing..."

_Or should that be everything? _

He steeled himself and slammed his foot onto the glowing shell.

The hard surface crumbled beneath his boot, and the effect was immediate.

Light burst out of the broken shell with a blinding flash, a shockwave of magic rippling through Merlin's home and throwing Riku to the ground. Jars and trinkets fell off their shelves, towers of books collapsed, and dust and dirt from the ceiling rained to the floor.

And as the shockwave radiated through the small house, the cage of magic around the anti-Riku crackled and disappeared.

"Great gadzooks!"

Merlin's voice filled the room, but when Riku glanced up to see what was happening, the brilliant glow of his memories rose from the shattered shell and into the air, a wispy white ribbon of energy. He felt his breath hitch as it stretched towards him, and he climbed to his knees to catch it.

As soon as his fingers came into contact with its warmth, the ribbon looped around his arm and snaked over his skin with sudden speed, striking right through his chest and into his heart.

A cry tore out of him as his heart recoiled from the pain of the impact, which seized his body in a moment of sheer agony, his head thrown back and his back arched as the ribbon continued to feed into him like a writhing snake of fire, wrapping around his heart layer by layer by layer, sinking, searing into him.

Tears sprang to his eyes as the burning grew unbearable, and with a choked sound, he doubled over on one hand, his other still pressed to his heart as if it could stop the chain of memories from ripping him apart.

_"I was too weak. The current carried me off, and when I surfaced, everything was normal... Kairi was at the shore, waving at me, but you were gone. I remember how hurt I felt, knowing you were gone... And that I couldn't help or stop you."_

The sound of the ocean, the warmth of the sand and Sora's body, and a yellow little star-shaped fruit sitting cupped in Sora's gloved hand.

_"I want to share the fruit with you, Riku, so we're always together, even if you disappear. I want to be able to help you, even if I'm too weak." _

The taste of sweet paradise on his tongue, rich laughter interrupted by the brush of lips, and Sora's happy, hopeful blue eyes.

_"R-Riku... What are we g-gonna do...?"_

_"Shh... As long as we're together, everything will work out. I'll protect you."_

A piercing cold against his skin—snow—and a stark worry on Sora's face as the heartless surrounded them on a snowy field.

_"I won't leave you alone again."_

_"Thanks, Riku..."_

In the present, Riku pressed his forehead to the rough rug and felt his tears drip into his bangs, his breaths coming in ragged gasps now as the pain in his heart intensified.

_"Sora, I said I would protect you, didn't I? How can I protect you in a situation like that?"_

_"Well, who's going to protect **you**, Riku?!" _

A crumbling forest, stains of darkness spreading throughout the world like a cancerous wound, a young woman surrounded by terrified animals, and a new face—

_"Off to save the world?"_

A tan-skinned boy with smiling amber eyes and short white hair hugging his face.

_"Sora did not mention your impatience."_

Huddled together as the world withered around them, Sora's frightened voice asking what to do as Yami and Mushu looked on, and Riku's hand curling around his to comfort him.

_"Close your eyes. Concentrate on leaving. With me. With all of us. Concentrate on another world."_

Darkness surging up around them, carrying them safely away, and when it cleared—neon lights, cobblestone, and Sora trembling from using the darkness for the first time. Because Riku had told him to.

_"Y'know... Yami has been teaching Sora magic to use with that new sword of his... Einlanzer. How much munny did that cost again?"_

_"A week's worth of heartless hunting. But it was worth it."_

Everyone gathered in the accessory shop Cid used to own—Yami sitting quietly on the floor beside Leon, and Sora swinging his legs from his perch on the counter, smiling at Riku as he entered the shop for the big meeting. Donald and Goofy's arrival. Sora _had _been there.

_"He's scared of the dark. And besides, Sora wouldn't put me in that kind of danger."_

The smell of blood and sweat and sand and the sugariness of a cure spell. The coliseum. Sora, drenched in red, the smile gone from his face. Then—yelling. Pointless arguments.

_"You always steal the fight! Are you that addicted to fame that you won't let even **me** share it?!"_

While cleaning up, Sora's accusations of being brushed aside, and the disbelief Riku had felt.

_"I would **never** leave you for someone else, **especially** Yami."_

A comfortable bed and a full-body ache as if he had been sleeping for days. An unfamiliar ceiling, and Sora sleeping beside him. He remembered this. Hollow Bastion.

Maleficent's cold voice.

Yami's strange maturing.

And Sora's birthday quickly approaching...

_"I have a present for you."_

_"Present? Sora's present?"_

_"No. For you."_

Yami's amber eyes watching him as he studied Oblivion's sleek form for the first time, then Yami's firm chest as Riku slumped against him, having almost fallen down the library stairs. A strong arm wrapped around him, and Yami's calm voice in his ear.

_"Yami has been keeping me company, actually."_

_"I thought you hated him!"_

_"I did, but since I've hardly seen you, he started spending more time with me to cheer me up. I learned a lot from him, actually. He's not that bad, like you said."_

A sob bubbled out of Riku as the onslaught of memories continued, dizzying and excruciating, and somewhere, in the distance, he could hear Merlin yelling at someone.

But that didn't matter.

_This _mattered.

_"It's perfect!" _

The library again, this time with Sora, and Sora's happy grin as he unveiled Oathkeeper and twirled it around on one of his fingers.

_"It's also a reminder that we're bound by the fruit, Sora. And that even if you're pissed at me, you can't get rid of me."_

_"Why would I want to?" _

Sora's eyes, darkened with an emotion Riku thought he'd never see there. Arousal. Heat. Pressed against the bookshelves, the two of them groaned as they moved together, desperate and clumsy because it was their first time. Their only time.

_"Y-You okay...?"_

_"Keep moving...!"_

Riku's heart squeezed as the ribbon of memories constricted around it, fettering it with the truth, placing link after link of the chain back into place.

He collapsed completely onto the ground as his knees gave out on him, but the stinging impact of the floor was just a droplet compared to the torrent of agony he was caught in.

_"I **hate **you."_

_"I know."_

Yami's warm hands tracing his body as if in admiration, and the incredible heat that had consumed him as Yami's knee had slid up between his legs to grind against him. Falling onto the bed. The feel of Yami's feverish skin beneath his palms, his feathery soft hair spilling around them, his lips melding against his own and the taste of desire on his lips.

_"S-Stop..."_

_"I know an empty plea when I hear one."_

The vise around his heart tightened even more, wrenching a distraught cry out of him. Curling up on his side, he hugged himself and trembled, unable to believe what his memories were showing him—none of that could have happened!—_how _could it have happened?!

He couldn't have hurt Sora like that...!

But as piece by piece of the puzzle continued filling in, he remembered the desire that had consumed him when Yami had touched him, he remembered the utmost satisfaction he had felt when Yami had finally brought him to climax, he remembered the excruciating guilt that had eaten away at him when the severity of what he had done had finally sunken in—and Riku knew it had to be true. It had to have happened.

_That _was what had driven him and Sora apart and had upset Sora so much.

_That _was what Yami had been worried about him remembering.

_That _was what had made Riku desperate enough to turn to Ursula in the first place. He had wanted to apologize. He had wanted to fix things between him and Sora.

But he had forgotten it all.

_"Sora? I'm not your Sora."_

The barrage of memories continued, tearing his heart in a thousand different directions, and the downpour of emotions swallowed his panicked thoughts again.

_"You're just like the last one. Selfish."_

Sora's face, eyes as yellow as the heartless surrounding him, a horde of anti-Rikus closing in on Riku, cold fingers touching, caressing, pulling—Oblivion leaving his hand—talons tearing through his clothes, into his skin, lips trailing his heated skin as if to taste the light hidden within his heart.

_"RIKU...!!"_

A flash of white hair as Yami broke through the wall of black bodies and slipped his arms around him. Then there was darkness and Yami's quickened heart beneath his ear. Cold rain against his bruised, torn skin. His knees hit the wet cobblestone, and tears slipped down his cheeks as the deepest despair devoured his heart.

What had he done?

**Yes, revel in everything you have done wrong.**

Riku's surroundings came rushing back to him at once, and with a hoarse scream, he rolled onto his stomach and clutched himself as emotions spilled out of him. An overwhelming sense of desolation consumed him, his heart still burning and his body wracked with sobs.

The world careened, but he could feel a cold hand resting on his arm. When he pried open his eyes, all he saw was the floor spiraling beneath him, and as his stomach lurched, he couldn't stop himself from retching.

"CONFOUND IT!"

Merlin's voice—

Across the room?

The cold hand on his arm pressed to his face now, and Riku flinched, lifting his eyes. Through the carousel of colors around the room, he saw the stark yellow of a heartless's eyes, and he gave a frightened shout, swiping an arm at the creature.

Rikyu withdrew, but only because Merlin came storming over to the heartless, wielding his wand and shooting spells as he cursed at it with nonsense phrases. The anti-Riku ducked behind Merlin's round table and melted into shadow, just as Riku managed to scramble to his feet, clutching his head.

A blinding ache pierced through his skull as he stood. He had broken into a cold sweat. His memories were fresh inside of him, echoing loud and tearing holes in his racing heart, but the adrenaline coursing through him was helping clear his mind.

"The town—!!" he rasped out, grabbing onto the edge of Merlin's chair to keep from collapsing again. He didn't want another repeat of anti-Rikus attacking Traverse Town, especially not in the state he was in.

Conjuring strength out of sheer panic, he stumbled towards the door, ignoring Merlin's shouting for him to sit down and rest or he'll damage himself even more. He made it outside before he realized he wouldn't be able to cross the lake surrounding Merlin's home.

He fell back against the edge of the frame as the curtain swished shut behind him—then swished right back open as Merlin followed him, still shouting.

"You—_BOY_—!!"

He even raised his wand as if about to whisk Riku away and stuff him into a bed with a thermometer like he was five. Riku hadn't ever seen Merlin this furious before.

"Inside, _now_, or so help me, I will turn you into a bowl of sugar until you run out of harebrained ideas!"

Riku shook his head, then grimaced at the spike of pain and clutched his forehead again. "T-Take me into town first! I just need to make sure!"

Whether or not Merlin understood his request or reacted on his desperation, Riku didn't know, but after a conceding sigh, Merlin waved his wand and—in a sudden cloud of smoke—the two of them were standing in first district.

Leaning his weight against a lamppost, Riku drew in heavy breaths to keep himself from falling to pieces right there. There were no screams. No sign of the anti-Riku anywhere, at least here, but he was too weak to check the other districts to be safe.

He threw his hand out to call out the keyblade to lure the heartless to him if it _was _out here.

But the pain flared up within his heart again, and the keyblade did not come.

"There, you see? Safe and sound," Merlin said, but his voice faded out as a shrill ringing resounded in Riku's ears.

His vision blurred, and with a groan, he curled his hands in his hair and tried to fight against the acute throbbing that swept through his mind.

**You are perfectly flawed. **

The slap of running feet startled him back into focus, but the deep voice still resonated within him as he glanced up. Green and black clothes and pale skin and a familiar high pitch.

"Hey, there you are!!" Yuffie said. She came to an abrupt stop in front of Riku and stooped over, planting her hands on her knees as she drew in deep lungfuls to catch her breath. "How come you didn't say hi?!" she demanded once she could breathe again, and she punched at the air in front of Riku. "We were all worried! And Leon was looking for you just now! Donald and Goofy just got back—they're with Cid right now handing over a butt-ton of gummi, and—hey, are you _bleeding_?!"

Trembling, Riku swiped an arm under his nose where he had felt a warm trickle, and when he glanced there, a wet red had stained his arm. He _was_ bleeding.

"Wow, what happened to _you_?" she asked.

Riku wasn't listening anymore. He wasn't even sure what he was _doing _anymore. He focused on those names—Leon, Donald, Goofy—and knew, somehow, they'd help him.

"Hey, slow down!!"

Yuffie called at his back as he broke into a run, more like a fast stagger, putting one foot in front of the other so he wouldn't just buckle and pass out in the middle of the district. Behind him, he heard both Yuffie and Merlin yelling, but Riku kept going without glancing back, knowing that if he _did _look back, he'd fall right there.

But he didn't make it to the garage, not entirely.

He stumbled the final few steps and crashed into the ground, nearly squashing a passing Moogle, who let out a startled "Kupo!" and fluttered out of the way on its tiny wings.

"What—_Riku_?"

"What happened to him?"

"Gawrsh, that's not a good place tuh take a nap.

"He's hurt, you palooka!"

Hurried footsteps, Leon and Cloud's voices, then Donald and Goofy's, concerned. Merlin's shouts rising over theirs, and Yuffie's confused commentary.

Relief washed through Riku as he battled his body's limits just to make it back to his hands and knees. "Th-The keyblade," he gasped out through his ragged breaths, blood dripping from his nose.

He felt strong arms heft him off the ground with ease, and dizziness consumed him, sweeping his thoughts into a dark oblivion. When his mind cleared one final time, long enough for him to spot the sweep of Leon's hair next to his face, he realized he was being carried somewhere, and he was surrounded by friends.

Safe and sound, Merlin had said.

The _town_ may have been, but Riku didn't feel either.

As he finally gave in to the darkness blanketing his mind, he was carried into the painless comfort of unconsciousness, where he didn't have to worry about the ache of his body, his heart, or the memories he wished he had kept locked away.

-o-o-

When Sora returned to his room in the bastion to retrieve his things and say goodbye to the gloomy décor, he was surprised to find someone there waiting for him.

"_Kyuu..._"

Sora had dismissed the anti-Rikus days ago and hadn't seen them since. To find one patiently sitting at the edge of his bed was somewhat disturbing.

It rose to its feet when he spotted it, and he stiffened, afraid for a moment that it wouldn't listen to him. But he still felt Id's presence inside of him, and so he told the heartless to stay back.

It did, though its Riku-like face tilted, almost as if... confused.

"You're free now," Sora said to it as he edged closer. He sorta felt sorry for it, but he had bigger things to worry about and he was in too much of a hurry to tend to a stray heartless. "You don't have to hang around here anymore or listen to anyone's commands. You can go back to where you came from." Wherever that had been.

The anti-Riku watched in silence as Sora picked up the dark keyblade he had set on his desk weeks ago, the one Yami had given him with no explanation as to why. _It has the power to unlock hearts,_ Yami had said before leaving Sora to study its dark form alone. He had never used it. It had always tempted him in a way he didn't trust, and so he had always left it in his room.

Now he had a reason to hold it.

He clutched it tightly in his hand and tried to ignore its warm, enticing powers. He grabbed Einlanzer from its resting place on his bed and, with a final glance at the anti-Riku, he left his room—hopefully forever.

Id's presence lingered inside of him, but he was quiet as Sora hurried through the halls of the bastion and headed straight for the dungeons. No one stopped Sora, not even Maleficent or the heartless under her control, but he felt like countless unseen forces were watching him as he made this defiant decision.

When Sora arrived, Beast was pacing his small cell in anger. Sora didn't have to ask why—he remembered how angry Beast had been with Yami the other day, yet also... worried about him. Beast probably wanted to get his paws on Maleficent as much as Yami did.

Yami himself was in the cell across from Beast. Curled up in the corner on his side, he faced away from the bars of the door. He still didn't seem well, but at least he wasn't trembling anymore.

"Guys, I'm here!"

Sora hurried up to Yami's cell first, automatically trying to cast a healing spell on the older boy. A barrier around the cell flashed to life, and his spell rebounded, stinging him a little.

"Ouch! Gah..."

He rubbed his hand to soothe the pain and crouched in front of the cell, not giving up, anti-magic barrier or not.

"Yami, you okay?"

The white head of hair lifted. Then, with great effort, Yami struggled to sit up, only to slump with his back against the bars. He tilted his head back, breathing heavily, but he didn't seem as pale as a half hour ago when Sora had watched him get dragged off.

"Been better," Yami admitted in a coarse voice. "You ought to leave while you can."

"I promised to find those princesses," Sora said with a shake of his head, setting his weapons down to curl his hands against the bars of the cell.

A rough laugh shook Yami's body, but he grimaced from the movement, his voice sounding forced. "You are in the wrong part of the bastion, then."

"I came to help you first—and get some answers," Sora said. He slipped his hands away and clenched them into fists. His resolve strengthened even more now that he had seen up close how far Yami had fallen from his old confident self. "Then we can stop Maleficent together!"

Yami's eyes slowly opened, but they were focused on the ceiling, lost in thought. "The irony is beautiful here," he commented quietly. "After how hard she has tried to turn the two of us into heartless..." He released another dry laugh. "Your heart is just much too bright. She was a fool to play with you. You have even held out against Id's darkness."

"Heart...less?" Sora asked, his assurance fading under confusion. "She was trying to turn me into a _heartless_?"

Staring off into his cell, Yami recited in a grim tone, "The closer to the light you are, the greater your shadow becomes." Then, louder, as he regarded Sora directly: "She uses hearts to fuel her dark magic. That is why she keeps the heartless so close to her—to do her bidding and gather hearts for her."

He paused to swallow, and when he continued, his voice wasn't as gravelly.

"At first she was just trying to coax your heart into caving into the darkness so you could become her minion, but when it became apparent that the darkness inside of you had found a different outlet—Id's host—she tried to strengthen your heart so she could later steal it to fuel her own powers." Yami gave a derisive laugh. "And she still will try, the next time the two of you come face to face..."

"Well, I'm not gonna leave without letting you go first," Sora said, sensing Yami was about to give him that _Run now, or else_ line of his again. "Do you think you're alright enough to get off this world or fight if you have to?"

Yami gazed off into the dungeon. "I don't know..."

"If I get this door open, I can heal you if you're hurt," Sora offered. His mind was already jumping towards summoning his keyblade, but he didn't want to do it yet, just in case, since it was such a heartless magnet.

"You cannot heal what is wrong with me."

Yami said it with such finality that Sora felt a rise of hopelessness inside of him.

"Is it the darkness?" he asked.

Lowering his face, Yami sighed again. "If only if it was just the darkness." He drew his knees to his chest and curled his arms around them, silent again for a long moment. "I have been thinking... I have very little time left."

Sora banged a hand against the bars. "Don't talk like that! I'm gonna get you out!"

A frown crossed Yami's face as he met Sora's eyes, his own filled with uncertainty. "All that you have already done for me, despite what I have done to _you _and Riku..." He shook his head, his brows furrowed. "I am at a loss. Your kindness, your altruism... They confuse me. _Why_ would you help me?"

"Because even though we have a bad history, I really don't think you're a _bad _person," Sora admitted. "After dealing with Maleficent, Jafar, Ursula... and some others... You're not like them. And besides—" He offered Yami a playful smile. "Who else is gonna answer all my questions?"

Behind them, Beast snorted. Apparently Sora wasn't the only one whose questions Yami liked to dodge around.

Still, Yami caught onto the joke and, though faintly, managed a smile. "Then we should make this interrogation brief."

Sora nodded and picked up the dark keyblade from where he had set it on the floor. "First—here." He turned the weapon and stuck the hilt through the bars of Yami's cell. "I don't need this. Honestly, it gives me the creeps."

Yami took the keyblade, his serious expression back. "Your sword will not be enough to fight Maleficent when the time comes, Sora."

"I know," Sora said, "but I'll be okay."

And when Yami lifted a brow at him, Sora decided it was time to spill the beans on what had happened to him in Monsters, Inc. Taking a deep breath, he started rambling about following the invisible culprit through the closet door of the little girl's room and how he'd wound up in another world, all the way up until the point he went to Traverse Town to look for Yami and Riku and had been spotted by Yami.

When he was done with his story, he watched Yami expectantly. The older boy seemed a little concerned at first, but then he granted Sora another smile, this one encouraging.

"If anyone deserves the keyblade's loyalty," Yami said, "it is you, Sora."

Sora beamed at the compliment.

"As for why Id seemed to be absent on that world," Yami continued—since Sora had mentioned it during his retelling, "it was probably because you had been transformed into a child. Children's hearts are mostly light, and Id is a being of darkness. He most likely did not have enough power to fight that light when you were a child."

So then there _was _a way to keep Id out of him. Sora opened his mouth to ask more about Id, but for once Yami had more to say.

"But your heart is awfully bright, even at your current age," he said, no longer looking at Sora but at the dark keyblade in his hand. "For Maleficent and even Id to fail to taint it..." He trailed off, hesitating for a second. "Maleficent is a dying breed, you know. Jafar, Ursula... they were not the first. She had other associates, but... one after the other, their lust for power destroyed them. The darkness fed on their strength, and that strength became their weakness. It consumed their hearts."

Yami glanced up and leveled his eyes with Sora's.

"You and I are lucky, Sora."

"Why?" Sora breathed.

Yami's gaze didn't waver, but his voice softened. "The darkness tried to taint us, but we each had light to pull us through."

And something about the way he said it, with the smallest of sincere smiles, made Sora's heart tremble. A light to pull him through—was Yami referring to _him_?

Or... wait a minute.

Sora scooted closer to the bars, intrigued. "When Maleficent sicced those heartless on you, there was this huge flash of light. What happened? Like—why aren't you a heartless? Why did Maleficent decide to put you in here instead of—_you_ know?"

Yami chuckled at that and closed his eyes, resting his back against the bars again. "I was wondering when you were going to ask." Lowering the keyblade into his lap, he dragged a hand through his hair. "The light... was my guardian angel, so to speak. And I have something Maleficent wants. That is the only reason she has kept me alive."

Guardian angel...

Sora couldn't help thinking about his own, though Id wasn't so much of an angel as he was a menace. Though—Yami seemed to know more about the voice in Sora's head than Sora himself did.

"Yami, who _is_ Id?" he asked. "At first I thought he was me, 'cuz he's _in _me, but... the more I think about it, the more it feels like he's someone else completely."

At the mention of his name, Id's presence seemed to perk with interest, but he remained silent.

Yami's grim expression returned as he stared down at his lap. "You are merely a host for him, so no... he is not you." He glanced briefly at Sora, contemplative, as if torn about something. "Id is an embodiment of darkness. Essentially, he _is _the darkness, a piece of it, and has absolute control over it in the realm of darkness where he resides."

Sora felt Id stir, though he couldn't tell if Id was happy Yami was talking about him. Sora didn't understand most of it though—what the heck was an embodiment of darkness? Was something like that possible? Then again, if heartless could exist...

"But to be able to wield it in _this_ realm, he needs hosts," Yami explained. "He himself is not able to cross into this realm unless there is enough darkness to allow it, which is partly why the heartless have been running rampant recently..."

Wait, so it was Id's fault—at least partly—that the heartless were destroying so many worlds? Sora felt his stomach sink as he realized the enormity of what he was hearing. _That _kind of thing was living inside of him? Well, not living in him, but using him?

"Riku was meant to be his host," Yami continued, "but, well..." A self-deprecating smile touched his lips. "Things went awry, and he got you instead."

_Lucky me_, Id commented wryly.

Sora straightened, irritated that Id had the nerve to say that while in _his _body. _Like I wanted to have some embodiment of darkness using me as its personal gummi ship!_

Clueless as to Sora and Id's silent argument, Yami went on uninterrupted. "Your heart was much too strong for him to possess completely, leaving you in charge of your own body," he said, drawing Sora's attention back to him, "unless you are weak enough for him to physically take over, or unless someone else calls him out."

"Like you did," Sora realized. He recalled the confrontation in the chapel they'd had before Sora had blacked out. He had woken up in the library all groggy afterward... Sora had almost forgotten about that, but Yami _had _talked to Id directly. Sora couldn't remember telling Yami about Id before that. "So how do you know all this?" he wondered.

"I have been working for him," Yami confessed. "Much like with you, his powers have protected me, given me strength, but also... cursed me."

"Cursed you," Sora repeated, thinking back further. "You mean, the darkness in your heart."

He had stumbled across Yami suffering from the darkness more than once. In the chapel, which had been one of the first times Yami had confided in him. And later, in Ansem's study, when he had been huddled beneath the portrait of the guy who looked a lot like him. And now, after Maleficent's attempt to turn him into a heartless.

"I've noticed something, Yami," he said when Yami didn't reply right away. "When I first met you, you were really strong. You beat up those two giant lizard heartless at the coliseum in like _seconds_. And in Agrabah, you saved our butts!" More than once, for that matter. Sora would have been splattered at the bottom of the Cave of Wonders if Yami hadn't caught him. Things had changed, though... "But when Maleficent sent her heartless after you, you didn't even fight. What happened to you?"

A curiously impressed look crossed Yami's face, followed by a sad smile. "You... can be strangely observant, Sora." He lowered his eyes to study his fingers as if they had an answer written on them somewhere. "My hold over the darkness is not the same as it was a few months ago," he said in a distant tone. "The heartless ally with whoever is the strongest. The same can be said about the darkness... and because my heart has been undergoing rather dramatic changes, it is not as suited to wield the darkness as it once was. Id is not happy with that fact."

His last statement made Id give a dark chuckle. Sora tried to ignore him and focus on what Yami was talking about.

"So then you're a host for Id, too?"

Yami curled his hands over the dark keyblade in his lap. "Yes," he said slowly, "and no. It is slightly different." His head drooped, his long bangs falling into his eyes. "For you, he is a parasite using you as a host. For me, he is like my director, my... benefactor. And while he has helped me in the past, we do not always see eye to eye. Especially now."

Another laugh from Id, though this one was bitter. _Says the one who chose to let that witch lock him up._

_Shut up, _Sora snapped at him. Then, to Yami: "So you're not working for him anymore?"

"I am, but..." Yami's voice took on an ambivalent tone. "Things are far more complicated than we ever imagined." When he lifted his face, his expression was troubled. He held the dark keyblade up for Sora to see. "Do you know how this was created?"

The change in subject caught Sora off guard. He blinked at the weapon, not sure if he was supposed to know, or if it was a rhetorical question, or if it was even relevant. "Err..."

"Using the hearts of six princesses," Yami answered for him. Something had changed in his tone, like he had come to a decision. And at his revelation, Sora's eyes widened—the princesses!—but before he could go off on Yami, Yami continued with detached emotion. "Jasmine's included—the sultan's daughter from Agrabah? And Snow White, whom Riku spoke with, on the dying world where you and I met."

Sora's own heart sank as he listened, realizing what Yami was saying. Genie hadn't been able to find Jasmine for Aladdin because her heart had been taken. And Snow White—Sora remembered Riku talking about her. She had been gone, too, right around the time they _had _run into Yami.

But that wasn't all Yami had to say. He slowly turned his gaze towards the Beast's cell. "Belle's heart, as well."

A thunderous roar shook the air as Beast slammed against the door of his cell, clutching the bars with his clawed hands as if wanting to rip them open. His eyes were sharp with murder as he faced Yami, fur bristled, his body trembling with fury.

Sora flinched and drew against Yami's cell, his heart racing now, but Yami was calm, almost too calm, as he resumed speaking—as if he were reporting a crime someone else had committed.

"I was the one who snatched them from their worlds," he stated, then added quietly, "some of them." His gaze roamed over the dark keyblade, an aversion in his eyes that hadn't been there moments ago. "I made this keyblade for a purpose, but... I am not the same person I was when I had started off on this journey."

Sora watched as Yami began to pick himself off the floor, his legs trembling as he clutched a cell bar with his free hand. He didn't fall, but his words grew strained, so Sora knew he was still too weak to hold himself up.

"I regret almost everything I have ever done," he confessed, his soft voice wavering. "For _weeks_. While attempting to sleep or revise Ansem's work, or while watching over both you and Riku—all I have done is just... _regret_." He leaned against the bars, a hand curled into his silver coat over his heart. "I am tired of feeling this... _gnawing_ inside of me."

Glancing at Sora through his bangs, his shame grew solemn, and he took a steadying breath before he forced himself to face Sora completely. He grabbed the bar Sora still had clutched, and Sora rose to his feet to meet him, understanding the sudden significance of whatever Yami was about to tell him.

"Sora..." Yami wrenched his eyes shut and rested his forehead against the bars, his feathery hair touching Sora's fingers. "I still have one more mission I must do."

That spelled trouble.

Sora held his breath, his heart still pounding, but he let Yami say what he needed to say.

"You once told me that I should do the _right_ thing," Yami said, pausing to swallow and steady his voice. "I thought the path I was taking was the right one, but now I know what I need to do." He slipped his eyes open, searching Sora's face with a silent plea. "Sora, could you do me one last favor?"

Clenching his jaw, Sora breathed deep and, with a shaky nod, urged Yami to go on.

"Summon the keyblade," he said, amber eyes narrowing with resolve. "Unlock these cells. Release Beast. I will take him to find Belle, and..."

Yami lowered his face, and his sudden hesitation made Sora's heart skip a beat.

"...and I will bring Kairi to you."

A gasp left Sora before he realized it, his jaw dropping in shock. "K-Kairi?! She's alive?!" A surge of hope rose inside of him, leaving him bursting with a hundred different questions. "W-Why do you have Kairi?! Is she _okay_? Where _is_ she?"

Sora's explosion of concern only made Yami smile, his expression growing somewhat fond. "She is doing quite well. She has wanted to fight beside you and Riku this entire time, but..." Yami looked away. "I am afraid it is my fault she has not been able to."

"But _why_ hide her from us?" Sora asked, pleading for an explanation.

"She is the last princess of heart. Her heart is what Maleficent wants from me," Yami said with a heavy sigh. "I was keeping her safe. Well, trying to..."

Sora was still reeling from the unexpected news. "Kairi's been alive all this time..." He slipped his hands away from the cell door, understanding now what he needed to do. It was time to stop running. If Kairi was alive, Riku needed to know.

As if able to read the realization dawning on Sora's face, Yami nodded. "Go to him. Mend things." By now, Yami's mask had crumbled completely, his eyes reflecting the regret he had been hiding all along. "He... is in a very fragile state. I have every confidence in you, Sora. You can help him."

And no doubt Riku would be in an even worse state after he got his memories back. Sora was almost scared to see how he would react to remembering all of the things he and Sora had done, and all of the things he had done _to_ Sora.

Drawing in a deep breath to calm himself down, Sora reached into his heart and searched for the keyblade's power. Even though Id was haunting him again, the keyblade's presence was still there. For a moment, Sora was afraid it might have only been available in Monsters, Inc.

Sora connected with its energy, feeling a rush of warm magic as it sprang out of thin air and appeared in his hand in a flash of colorful light. The little paopu charm dangled from its end, and Sora automatically thought about Kairi. He wasn't sure why—the keychain had been a gift from _Riku_.

Stepping back, Sora swung Oathkeeper towards Yami's cell and concentrated. Almost immediately, light connected with the door, and with a click, it creaked open beneath Yami's weight. The residual power from the anti-magic spell around the cell fluttered around them in fragments, and Sora decided to try curing Yami again.

This time there was no backlash. The familiar sugary fragrance filled the air as the spell blanketed Yami in its gentle green light. When Yami murmured a thanks and stepped out of the cell with far more stability than before, Sora turned to unlock Beast's cell next.

As soon as the door was unlocked, Beast burst out of his cell with a ferocious roar, and Sora suddenly found himself being shoved out of the way as a wall of muscle and fur cut between him and Yami.

Sora staggered to catch his balance, and when he looked up, it was just in time to see Beast grabbing Yami by the front of his coat and slamming him into the bars behind him, lifting him several feet off the floor. Yami grimaced, looking dazed, but he peeked through the hair in his face to meet Beast's wrath.

His ears were pressed to his skull, his lips pulled back to show off his enormous fangs, and his eyes, sharp with utter fury, had been narrowed to slits. A growl rattled inside of him, like a threatened lion waiting for the perfect moment to tear out the throat of his enemy.

For once, Yami looked scared.

"Stop it!" Sora cried, grabbing onto one of Beast's massive arms. "Let him go! Don't you want to get Belle back?!"

The mention of Belle's name tamed Beast in an instant. His ears sagged, and with widened eyes, his expression went from murderous to wounded.

He roughly released Yami, who dropped to the floor like a rag doll.

Beast turned away, a growl still laced in his words. "Take me to her."

Yami shakily got back to his feet, the dark keyblade in hand, and glanced at Sora. The look there in his eyes told Sora everything he needed to know. He and Beast would be fine.

Sora was needed somewhere else right now.

"Come get us when you have Kairi," Sora said, and once he had Yami's solemn nod, he picked up Einlanzer and dismissed his keyblade.

He tapped into Id's powers, and within moments, he was being whisked away into the darkness, thoughts of Riku and Kairi dominating his mind.

-o-o-

By now, Riku was used to waking up in beds that didn't belong to him. But this time the disorienting feeling was accompanied by something uninvitedly familiar:

The sound of arguing.

That was one of the things he hadn't missed from home.

Riku cautiously squinted one eye open, and when his head didn't scream in protest, he blinked both open and glanced around, wondering where he had ended up this time. The room was dark save for the glow of streetlights and neon signs outside the curtained window. The smell of flowers was what gave his surroundings away; a bed of night lilies sat blooming on the sill.

Aerith's place. Of course—hers was the closest bed from where Riku had collapsed. She had probably smothered him with cure spells and different types of potions, too.

His suspicions were confirmed when he managed to sit up and caught sight of a few empty bottles on a bedside table. An elixir was among them. Well, whatever they had given him, he wasn't in pain anymore, and that was what mattered to him.

He glanced at the closed door and listened. No one was actually yelling, but the tension in their voices was enough to unsettle him. He kept hearing his name, too, so he had no doubt about what they were arguing about.

They were all there—Cloud's calmness and Aerith's placating somehow still cutting through Donald's squawking, Goofy's concern, Merlin's rambling, Yuffie and Mushu's persistence, Cid's gruff theorizing, and Leon's brusque moderating.

Topics of conversation?

Riku's misbehaving keyblade, his reckless decisions about his memories and Sora, and what needed to be done in order to keep him under control and (Aerith's assertion) healthy.

Riku only had to listen to a minute of it before he was sick of hearing them fuss over him.

None of them knew the extent of what he had gone through, what he had _felt_, what he'd had to do, or what decisions he'd had to make. None of them had been in his shoes before.

And from the sound of it, none of them were trying to understand, either.

"If the kid can't even use the damn thing anymore, what are we supposed to fucking do? Sit on our asses for another nine years?" Cid was demanding.

Merlin had a few choice words about Cid's foul mouth, but by then Riku had stopped listening.

He slipped out of bed, grateful that he at least had more than enough strength to stand now, and he opened the bedroom window, as silent as he could be. Thankfully, everyone was too engrossed in the argument to hear him moving the night lilies off their sill in order to hoist himself over the ledge and out into the Traverse Town street.

Trying not to think about anything at all, he trudged home by himself.

-o-o-

Sora's breath hitched when he heard the rattle of the knob and then the creaky push of the front door opening. A heavy shuffle of boots against the floor—then the quiet, forced click of the door closing again.

A weary sigh.

Sora didn't have to see Riku in order to imagine the look he would be wearing on his face. Something bad had happened.

Worry squeezed Sora's racing heart, but he kept silent, kept still, sitting at the edge of their bed with knots of anxiety growing in his stomach. He had only been here a few minutes, long enough to find Einlanzer's sheath and set his sword back in its proper place on the wall rack. It had been a simple act, but it had given him a sense of finality.

He was home.

No more running from Riku. No more letting Riku run, either.

So he waited, his fingers digging into the bed sheets, and a heel nervously bouncing against the floor.

His heart leapt when he heard Riku's boots shuffling closer, just outside the bedroom door, and then the slow _criiick_ of that door as it opened—

And there he was.

Tall and lean and slipping into the room like a shadow, shoulders slumped, his boots dragging as if made of concrete. His silver hair hung in his face, but not so much that Sora couldn't see the dark under his eyes or the distressed expression he _was _wearing.

Riku hadn't seen him yet.

He seemed so caught up in ignoring the world around him that he even began undressing, probably to take a nap. Sora remained silent, a sense of sadness filling him as he watched Riku, studying the almost aimless way Riku pulled off his boots and dumped them on the floor, and the way his fingers fumbled with his zipper as he pulled his hoodie open.

He didn't take it off, though. A weariness seemed to overcome him, and he turned towards the bed, beginning to drag a hand through his already unkempt hair.

His hand froze. Then Riku did.

His eyes landed on Sora and widened, and before Sora could really react, Riku's hand stretched out, and in a flash of light and shadow, the keyblade appeared in his hand.

Then Riku glanced down at the weapon with confusion as if it had been the first time he had ever summoned it.

Sora sat up straight, realizing that maybe surprising Riku like this might not have been the best idea, but at least Riku hadn't put the keyblade through his chest yet.

His eyes met Sora's, his brows drawn together with complete confusion, and for a moment he seemed torn about something. Then, slowly lowering the keyblade, Riku relaxed a smidgen, his confusion turning into disbelief.

"Sora...?"

And hope.

The anxiety from before quickly filled with a heartening warmth instead, and Sora smiled up at Riku, unable to resist showing him the happy relief he felt. "Yeah, it's me."

"S-Sorry," Riku said, looking away, but the keyblade remained firm in his grip. "I thought you were..."

But Riku didn't finish his statement. He just shook his head and let his silence speak for him.

Sora understood, though he doubted Id or a heartless would have been sitting patiently at the edge of the bed for Riku to show up. "It's okay, I get it," he reassured, not liking how distant Riku was acting right now. He hadn't had time to imagine Riku's reactions to their reunion, but _this_ cold welcome wouldn't have been expected. To dispel Riku's awkwardness, Sora decided to break the news early. "You wouldn't believe what Yami told me."

Riku visibly tensed. He risked a glance at Sora, but he didn't seem pleased. "What?"

Trying not to be deterred, Sora plunged onward. "Kairi's alive!"

Riku's green eyes went wide again, this time with the kind of shock of Sora would expect to see on someone who had run into a ghost. His mouth opened, but no words came out, just an sudden intake of breath—

And then he laughed, covering his face with his free hand.

It wasn't a big laugh, and it wasn't mocking or cynical or negative at all.

It sounded relieved.

"She made it out..."

Sora smiled, encouraged to continue. "Yeah, Yami said he'd take us to her."

"Wait—Yami..." Riku's frown was back in an instant, relief replaced with suspicion. "This is really sudden. What brought it up? And where's she been this whole time?"

"Yami said he's been keeping her safe because Maleficent wants her heart," Sora explained, glad he had answers for once. And man—did he have _answers_. Sora couldn't wait to tell Riku about some of the stuff Yami had told him. But first—he couldn't resist his right to brag. "Oh, and guess what!"

Riku still seemed skeptical about Kairi's sudden mention, but Sora's enthusiasm lightened him up a little. He probably wasn't used to getting good news these days. "What?" he asked, resting his keyblade against his leg.

Sora pounded a fist against his chest, grinning. "Both of us can protect her now! Becaaaaause..." Reaching out, he prepared to summon _his _keyblade. "I got a keyblade, too!"

He called to Oathkeeper, feeling his powers connect with it almost immediately.

There was a familiar swirl of colorful light and magic around his fingers as the keyblade reacted—

But in a blaze of darkness, Oblivion abruptly disappeared from _Riku's_ hand.

—and Oathkeeper shimmered to life clutched within Sora's.

For a long moment, the two of them just stared at the keyblade Sora now held between them. Sora's heart thundered inside of him with dread at the unexpected discovery they had just made.

All this time—Sora had been using _Riku's_ keyblade?

There, dangling innocently at the end of the hilt, was the paopu charm Riku had given him for his birthday. Riku's widened eyes were glued to it, and the emotion in them revealed without words why Riku had been so distant since Sora's arrival.

Riku had his memories back. He knew exactly what the keychain was and what it meant to the two of them.

But Sora had to hold his questions, especially when the disbelief on Riku's face began to darken into anger. His green eyes watered, but not enough to actually shed any tears, and a resentful laugh escaped him as he lowered his head and shook it.

"This is just great... It _figures_... I should have known..."

Sora hesitated, getting a really bad feeling about this, but he didn't know what else to do. He got to his feet and tentatively moved towards him, keeping his voice meek so as to not test Riku's quiet wrath. "Hey, um, Riku," he hedged, "I mean..."

What was he supposed to say? He hadn't _meant _to take Riku's keyblade—that much was obvious! The keyblades even looked different!

But as he closed the distance between them to mollify Riku's temper, none of those words would come. He really had screwed up this time, even though it hadn't been his fault at all...

"Riku... I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."

He trailed off as Riku started to shake his head again. "No—I don't want to hear it," Riku said in a fierce, quiet tone. He threw an arm out to brush Sora away, his eyes sharp with the sting of betrayal. "Just go—get out of here."

"Riku—"

"There can't be two keyblade masters," he snapped, this time louder, and he whirled away from Sora with an angry wave of his hands. "Just take it and leave me alone!"

Sora tightened his jaw and tried not to get upset. "Riku, I don't want you to be mad," he said, practically pleading. After all they had been through—they had come _this _far—Riku even had his memories back, Kairi was alive, and Sora had abandoned Hollow Bastion just to give _him _another chance—and Riku wouldn't even let him explain? "I'm _sorry_... I thought..."

Riku's shoulders trembled; his hands clenched into fists at his sides. He didn't face Sora. He just lowered his head and choked out, "Just _go!!!_"

Now Sora's defenses rose into place. "Hey, you don't have to yell at me!"

"You don't know what I've just been through!" Riku cried, spinning back towards him, his voice thick with rage, with despair, and even a hint of pleading, too. "I didn't need _this_ on top of it all, Sora—I don't want to see you right now! Just get lost!!"

Though Sora's first instinct was to shrink away, he stood his ground and met Riku's anger with determination. "You don't have to be a jerk about it! I didn't come here to fight, I came here to—"

"Show off with your brand new keyblade?" Riku interrupted. "I get it, Sora! You get to play hero now!" Sora tried to cut in, but Riku shook his head, pressing a hand over his face as his tone turned sour. "You know, while you were probably out there having fun, I was stuck on a world I had no way off of, a world that wanted to _kill _me, and right when I needed my keyblade the most—it wouldn't come! Now I know why—it's because _you _had it..."

Getting frustrated, Sora grabbed Riku's wrist and yanked his hand away from his face, leaning in to give him an earnest look. "Riku, I'm _sorry_!! I don't know why it did that! It's not my fault, so stop being a jerk, okay?!"

Surprise, surprise—Riku actually fell silent, though his temper didn't dampen any. He settled a glare on Sora and waited to hear what he had to say.

Sora released his wrist and swallowed hard, suddenly feeling put on the spot. But he wasn't going to let Riku get away with making this into his fault. He regrouped his scattered nerves and marched onward. "Riku—I'm not gonna run away anymore. It's the same thing over and over again," he said, as sincere as he could be. "If it's not me, it's _you_, or it's someone else getting in the way. I'm _tired_ of it. I just want my best friend back!"

Riku's next remark was murmured, but the way in which he said it—in a low, condescending, derisive tone—it didn't sound like him at all. "Maybe that's not what _I _want..."

And it was the final chink in Sora's cracked patience.

All of Sora's desperation, all of his disappointment and fury towards the injustice of what was happening to him—everything boiled up inside of him, shrouding his world in red, and just like what had happened in Atlantica—

Sora's fist slammed into Riku's face, followed by the angriest scream that had ever worked its way out of him.

"IT'S _NOT _ABOUT WHAT _**YOU**_ WANT, _RIKU!!_"

His voice resonated throughout the small bedroom, probably waking half of Traverse Town, but he didn't care who had heard him, he didn't care if he had hurt Riku, he didn't _care _if Riku got even more pissed at him—

Because it had been downright satisfying.

Riku touched his bleeding lip, dumbfounded, probably because he had never expected Sora to ever get that angry with him, let alone enough to punch him. Again. But he had deserved it—Sora was adamant about that—and he didn't regret doing it, either.

Riku's shock slowly grew into a quiet anger, and he wiped the blood from his mouth, a growl in his voice. "Sora, if you ever hit me again..."

It was an outright threat.

Sora felt his heart sink, no longer recognizing Riku; at least, not this part of him. Clutching Oathkeeper tightly within his hand, he lifted his chin and took a last stand, bracing himself for whatever Riku had in store for him. "I think I can take care of myself now, Riku."

When all Riku had to offer him was a bitter laugh, Sora felt his resolve crumble.

What was he fighting for anymore?

Eyes filling with tears, he fought back a furious pout, and he yanked the paopu charm off the keyblade. A soft light enveloped the weapon before transforming it, returning it to its original state. He dismissed the keyblade.

Riku's face clouded with confusion as he watched.

"I held onto this because I thought there was still something left to fight for," Sora said, struggling not to let his voice waver, but it was hard, and it was getting even harder to see Riku through his watery gaze. "I thought you felt the same way I did, after Agrabah... and Atlantica..." He closed his fingers around the charm, its points digging into him. He swallowed against the painful knot in his throat and continued. "Y-You have your memories back, right? How can you not feel that way anymore? A-Am I wrong?"

At the sight of Sora's tears, everything changed. Whatever darkness Riku had been stubbornly clinging to suddenly dissolved, his resentment washing away and leaving a vulnerable shell behind. The look remaining on Riku's face was close to despair.

"Sora..."

He sighed away the last of his frustration and raked fingers through his hair, his brows knitting together with uncertainty.

"You're... not wrong," he admitted nervously. "I'm just..." He forced his eyes shut. "I don't know what to think or feel anymore. Every time I think things are going to get better, something goes wrong, and things fall apart all over again..." Guilt weighed his expression as he continued, voice trembling. "I remember everything, but I don't get it... I don't know how I could have messed up so badly. I mean—" Slipping his eyes open, he stared down at his empty hands. "Not even the _keyblade_ wants me. Now I find out it's because you really _are _stronger... It's just hard to accept."

When he glanced up at Sora, defenses down and an expectant look in his eyes, Sora did the opposite of pitying him.

"Grow _up_, Riku."

Riku's expression darkened again. "_What _did you say?"

"All you're doing is feeling sorry for yourself," Sora said. He could feel his heart pounding harder, knowing he was treading dangerous ground, but he wasn't backing down from this. "You don't need a keyblade to protect people. Look at Leon and the others—they've been doing it for _years_," he pointed out, drawing closer to Riku again. "So you've messed up a lot—it's alright! No one ever said being a hero was easy work. I'm not perfect, either. There are more important things to worry about than who's stronger."

Riku fell silent, a defeated air coming over him. He combed the floor with his gaze as if struggling to find words to disprove the things Sora had said. And when he finally spoke, it was with an open honesty that almost hurt to listen to. "I _know _there are more important things—but that's one of the problems I just can't get over." Riku shook his head and covered his face again. "I hate myself for being so weak, and I just..."

Unsure of how to react to this side of Riku, all Sora could do was listen.

"...it's hard trying to figure out what's more important," Riku tried to explain, "—_you_ or... everyone else. What _I _want and what everyone else expects. One always takes me somewhere the other doesn't go." His shoulders tensed as he went on, still unable look at Sora. "I've been trying everything I _can_ to do what's right... But I just keep messing things up even _more_." Now his fingers clenched into his pants, his voice strained as he came to a point. "You sound like you don't even care that I tried. I _did_."

Riku's words were a well-aimed stab, but Sora saw through his desperation. Yami may have been right that Riku was in a very fragile state, but the Riku that Sora had grown up with had always been more fragile than Riku had ever let on. All those nights with Riku sneaking out in order to climb through Sora's bedroom window just to have the company of someone who understood him...

Sora did understand him the best. And he knew what to say to it to put Riku in his place. "I _do_ care. I kept our promise, didn't I?" he said, holding the paopu keychain out for emphasis. "The one you _broke_... And I'm not the one who gave away that memory, either. You did that yourself."

The effect was immediate. Riku's eyes filled with shame, and he lowered his head again, arms curling around himself as his shoulders began to tremble. "I-I didn't mean to hurt you," he said, though it was hoarse with emotion. "I didn't mean for _any_ of this. I just... wanted to see you again. But..."

Something dripped from beneath the curtain of Riku's hair, and Sora's heart wrenched at the sight of the small teardrop on the floor. Sora felt his own throat close up as emotions swelled inside of him at the sight of Riku's tears.

He'd never wanted to see Riku cry, yet it was happening, and—what was he supposed to do? How was he supposed to be strong when the best friend he'd always admired was falling to pieces right in front of him?

"N-Now that you're finally here," Riku continued through his hitching breath, "i-it feels like my heart is... _tearing_ itself apart j-just trying to pull itself back together." He clutched a hand over his chest, his fingers twisting into the material of his hoodie. "I don't know what to do..." Two more tears fell to the floor, and his arm tightened around his stomach as he forced out his sentences. "I want to be mad, b-but I _can't_... None of this is your fault."

There it was.

Riku claiming it was his fault. Though it wasn't entirely true—Sora still blamed himself for abandoning Riku in Agrabah, because if he had stayed, the fiasco in Atlantica may never have happened, and Riku wouldn't have been stupid enough to sell his memory away. But just the confession was enough to tell Sora that Riku had learned his lesson. Riku's tears only hurt to see.

Reaching out to Riku, Sora tried his best not to look upset, too. "I didn't come here to fight," he said, his shaking voice giving him away. He swallowed back the torrent of emotion inside of him wanting to break free. "I came here because... I wanted to see you, too."

Riku didn't pull away from Sora's hands, but his body trembled harder at his touch. Sora started by trying to wrap his arms around him, only for Riku's legs to wobble and give out on him. Soon Sora had Riku's face buried in his stomach, tears soaking through his orange hoodie, and Riku's fingers clenching the material against his back as if terrified Sora was going to disappear again.

Through Riku's muffled crying, he continued choking out barely discernable sentences. "I've... b-been trying to get back to you... to ap.. apologize... and fu-fix things..." Riku's fingers tightened even more in his hoodie. "Y-Y-You said... you wa-wanted y-your b-best friend back, b-but... c-can we... can we d-do even th_-that_? A-After wh-what I...?"

Sora laced his fingers in Riku's hair, feeling his throat constricting even more as his eyes filled with his own tears. "R-Riku, don't..." he whispered, pleading. He'd never seen Riku break down like this before, and he never, _ever _wanted to see it again.

And there, amongst the strangled sobs, came the words Sora had been waiting to hear for weeks.

"S-So.. r-ra... I-I'm s-so sor...ry..."

A world of relief lifted off Sora's heart, and he wrenched his eyes shut, letting his tears slip free.

He knew, right then, things would be okay between them. Maybe they wouldn't ever get back to the level of trust they'd once had, but—this was a good start.

Sora carefully lowered himself to his knees to meet Riku's height and wrapped his arms around his best friend, warmth filling him when he felt Riku hide his face against his neck and tighten his own arms around Sora in a fierce embrace.

Then, in a shaken murmur, Riku's one request:

"D-Don't leave me..."

Sora pressed his face into Riku's soft hair and gave a watery smile. "I won't."

-o-o-

By the time Riku's crying subsided, his mind was a groggy mess, but his heart felt more at peace than it had in weeks. Riku couldn't have been more grateful to have Sora here with him.

Every time he thought about everything he had done wrong, he would feel Sora's heart beating close to his own, and he would calm down again. Unquestioning now, Sora held him until he stopped shaking.

And when it was over, Riku almost timidly pulled away from him, face lowered, and didn't look up until Sora's hands cupped his cheeks and forced him to raise his head. Sora's shoulder was soaked.

He had a sympathetic smile waiting for Riku, but it turned teasing as he studied Riku's face. "You're a mess." He reached down and grabbed a stray shirt from the floor to clean up Riku's tear tracks and runny nose.

Riku didn't protest, though he would have any other time. Sora laughed a little as he wiped Riku's nose, and the sound automatically made Riku's spirits lift. Man, he'd missed that laugh.

Riku released a dry laugh of his own and looked away, offering Sora a weak smile.

Fingers suddenly pinched his lips and pulled them into a fake grin, opposite the grin that Sora beamed at him.

Riku tried his best to feel better now that Sora was here with him, but there was still that deep-seated guilt eating away at him. If he hadn't been so weak in the first place, he wouldn't have gotten them into this disaster of a relationship.

Maybe it would be better for them to go back to being best friends, like Sora had wanted.

"Let's make a new promise," Sora suggested, releasing Riku's lips. He lifted the Oathkeeper keychain again before pressing it into Riku's hand. "This one both of us will keep."

Riku studied the simple paopu-shaped charm, remembering the day Yami had brought it to him to give to Sora. So many things had changed since then, but... there was something that had remained constant. His confession on Atlantica had proven that. He still wanted to be with Sora. Even if that meant just being his best friend...

He traced his thumb over the paopu and mulled Sora's words over. He couldn't promise he'd never fight with Sora again or that he'd never do something that stupid ever again or even that they'd always be together—because there was no way of knowing what would happen after this. But there was one promise he could give that came from the bottom of his heart, one that he would never break.

Riku closed his fingers around the charm and shut his eyes. "I'll always be your best friend, no matter what." When he slipped them back open, Sora's grin had faded into a warm, happy smile. Riku offered him Oathkeeper back, managing a smile of his own as he met Sora's gaze. "That's a promise."

Sora took the small charm back and clenched it against his heart, his blue eyes bright with hope. "Same for me. It's a promise. We'll always be best friends."

**How quaint.**

Flinching at the sudden interruption, Riku whirled around, pressing a hand over his ear. As expected, there was no one behind him, yet he had definitely felt breath against his ear.

"What's wrong?" Sora asked.

Riku frowned, getting an uneasy feeling. "You... didn't hear that?" He started to get to his feet. He had thought that if he got his memories back, he'd stop hearing that voice, yet there it was...

Sora blinked and glanced around, also standing. "Hear what?"

So, it really _was_ just him. A chill swept through Riku when he thought about how often he'd been hearing the disembodied voice lately, and as he scanned the empty space where it had come from, he wondered what it wanted from him.

Then a drone of a dark portal announced they had a different visitor, and Riku turned towards the sound.

He wasn't surprised to see Yami when the darkness cleared, but he _was _surprised to see what looked like a keyblade clasped in his hand. It was a sleek black and red design with no keychain. His other hand held Soul Eater, whose colors had shifted again—now with a tinge of white along the very edges.

Sora faced him expectantly, confusion crossing his face when he saw what Yami was carrying—and _wasn't _carrying. "Where's Kairi?" he wondered, beginning to look worried.

Yami seemed like he was in quite a hurry. As soon as he spotted the two of them, he was all business, his tone firm and rushed. "Before I release her, I must deliver her to Maleficent."

Both Riku and Sora tensed with disbelief, but Sora beat him to the angry outburst. "I thought you were _protecting _her!!"

"I am," Yami replied, much too calm considering what he was about to suggest. "Her heart is needed to reveal the keyhole so that the world can be sealed..." A sad smile touched his lips. "And also necessary to release the other six hearts trapped within this keyblade."

Riku narrowed his eyes, sensing that Yami wasn't telling them everything. It didn't make sense—the world of Hollow Bastion was in shambles, but that wasn't because of the heartless, was it? The heartless had been there for years and hadn't consumed the heart of the world yet. Riku hadn't thought about it before, but now that he did...

He remembered what he had seen there in that room before Id had shown up—the large door, all of the machinery surrounding it, as if someone had been trying a long time to get the keyhole to appear. If the keyhole hadn't been infiltrated by heartless yet, maybe it was protected. Maybe it wasn't even _open_ yet... Maybe _that's_ what Maleficent and Yami were actually after.

"Why don't you tell us the truth?" Riku demanded, stepping towards him. "It's not to reveal the keyhole, is it? It's to _unlock_ it. I bet that's what you've been planning all along!"

At first Sora looked even more confused, but when Yami's eyes shied away, both Riku and Sora knew he was guilty as charged.

Sora's eyes widened even more at Yami. "But... why would you want to open the keyhole? Why are you helping Maleficent?!"

"And why did you wait this long if you had Kairi all this time?" Riku added.

Yami sighed, and his expression plainly said that he didn't really have the time to explain everything to them, and Riku knew that Yami technically didn't _have _to—he could just take off and leave them in the dark. Why _had_ Yami even come here?

But for once, the older boy did cave in to their questions. "I am not helping Maleficent, not directly. It is part of my mission to open the keyhole, yes—I admit that."

He glanced at Sora, then at Riku, his fingers tensing around the weapons in his hands.

"At first I was going to hand Kairi over immediately, but... Kairi convinced me otherwise. She wanted to make sure the two of you would be safe first. I almost did not listen to her, but..." Closing his eyes, he formed a wry smile. "I am glad I did. I tried to delay my mission as much as possible—which in turn made Maleficent impatient with me... but in the process of delaying everything, things... changed."

He hesitated, glancing up at Sora, and the two of them exchanged a meaningful look that Riku didn't understand.

Yami's voice grew quiet. "_I_ changed. I meant what I said, Sora. I did not want to continue my mission because I started to care... but now that I know, even if something unpleasant is to come of what I am going to do, I know that the worlds will be well protected. Sora, Riku—"

His gaze shifted to Riku now, filled with emotions Riku couldn't even put a name to. His heart gave a startled jump, not understanding such a serious look or why it was directed at him.

Yami set the dark keyblade down and lowered his eyes to Soul Eater, his free hand tracing over the ridges of the wing. A tendril of light unfurled around it and gathered together into a ball of energy.

When the light faded, a long, ornate chain was dangling from Yami's fingers, and at the end of that chain hung a strange charm—it was elegant yet sinister at the same time, made of a black material as thin as wire and curled into an elaborate design that somehow resembled a heart. Riku suddenly had the overwhelming sense of déjà vu, knowing he had seen the shape somewhere before, maybe in a dream once, but he couldn't recall.

Then Yami held it out to him, and Riku frowned at him in question. Soul Eater's colors had darkened again, though hints of orange remained at the tips.

"For you," Yami said. "Oblivion is a fine keyblade, but the battles ahead will be more difficult than anything you have faced so far, and... I will be unable to help you this time."

Riku took the keychain, feeling unsettled. He studied the heart charm again, remember how happy he had been to receive Oblivion from Yami. This new keychain brought him no pleasure. It almost felt like a goodbye...

Yami withdrew his hand, his fingers brushing through his loose bangs as he looked away. "May it remind you not to fall down the wrong paths as I did."

Uncertain of whether or not the keyblade would come to him, Riku held his breath as he stretch his arm out and called to it. He felt Sora and Yami's eyes on him as the welcome flash of light announced the keyblade's arrival, followed by the swirling shadows of Oblivion appearing clutched in his hand.

He sighed in relief, glad that the keyblade hadn't abandoned him completely despite Sora's presence.

For the first time since he had gotten it weeks ago, Riku unclasped Oblivion's crown keychain. Much like it had with Sora and Oathkeeper, the weapon immediately transformed, returning to its default form. Riku tucked Oblivion's charm into one of his leg pockets, and with a glance at Yami, he attached the new keychain he had just been given.

Shadows enveloped the keyblade, and Riku felt it morphing beneath his hand. Within moments, the shadows disappeared into the weapon, revealing its new shape—one even more wicked than Oblivion's.

It was dark and elegant, just like its keychain, curved but almost skeletal—reminiscent of an ornate wrought iron gate leading into a cemetery. It was shades of black that bled into ivory in certain places, especially around the open heart-shaped keyway, and the only splash of color came from the vibrant amber eye centered above the hilt.

Instead of the cherry and metallic tang of Oblivion, it carried the comforting musk of old books as if it had been stored in a library for years, with just a decadent hint of caramel mixed in.

Yami's words ran through his mind, making him wonder what he meant. What wrong paths had Yami taken that could have been any worse than the ones Riku already had? Still, it gave him an idea for its name.

Way to Fall.

Yami was already turning towards Sora next, and with a wave of his free hand, something appeared out of a dark portal above him and, despite its size, landed neatly in his palm. It was a thick, brightly colored but rugged book.

"I snatched this from Merlin weeks ago and tried to mend it when I could," Yami explained. He handed the book to Sora, who studied its faded cover with wonder. "Unfortunately, it still needs some work," he sighed, but a faint smile played across his lips. It was almost fond. "I believe you have one of its pages on you?"

Sora blinked, then his face seemed to light up. He reached into his hoodie pouch, putting Oathkeeper's charm away, and pulled out a wrinkled piece of paper with colored pictures on it. He studied the page, then opened the book and gasped, blue eyes wide as he scanned the pages inside. "So this is where it came from!" Bewildered, he lifted his gaze back to Yami. "How did you know I had it...?"

"Its magic is rather distinctive," Yami said with a secretive smile. "Take care of it. It is one of Hollow Bastion's most precious treasures, though you are one of the only people I know who would be able to appreciate its innocence." Taking a step closer to him, he gently grabbed Sora's arm and lowered his eyes to meet his, his smile fading with the significance of whatever he was about to say next. "Sora, don't ever change."

Riku's fingers tightened around his new keyblade as he watched the two of them, those words feeling familiar somehow. Sora's brow creased with confusion for a second, but then his entire expression lit with recognition and shock.

His lips parted, but before he could reply to Yami, the bedroom door swung open.

Leon stood in the threshold, looking obstinate about something—most likely the fact that Riku had snuck out of Aerith's bedroom without letting anyone know he was awake—but as soon as he saw Sora and Yami standing there with Riku, his lecture died before he could give it to Riku. No doubt he could feel the tension in the air.

"What's going on?" he demanded, already reaching for his belt to unsheathe his gunblade.

Yami took the interruption as an opportunity to resume his original task. He picked up the dark keyblade where he had set it, and with both weapons in hand, he backed towards the wall, probably not wanting to tempt Leon into attacking him. He settled his gaze on Riku and Sora, solemn now, but there was something there—an apprehension, a _fear_.

Riku found himself holding his breath again, his heart racing all of a sudden.

"She will be fine," Yami assured quietly. He briefly squeezed his eyes shut, looking pained, and when his eyes rose again, they regarded Leon. "Farewell, Squall..."

Darkness sprang up around him, and Sora's face clouded with worry as he moved forward to stop him.

"Wait, Yami!"

Riku grabbed Sora's arm without thinking, not wanting a repeat of what he himself done to wind up in Atlantis. Sora struggled, but Riku tugged him firmly against his chest, keyblade crossed in front of him.

Yami lowered his face and disappeared into the darkness. Riku had no doubt he was returning to the bastion to deal with Maleficent and the keyhole. And he would have Kairi there...

"Riku, let me go!!"

Once the darkness dispersed and Yami was gone for sure, Riku released Sora, who stumbled forward and almost dropped the book Yami had given him. Riku clenched his jaw, knowing what had to be done. They needed to go after Yami, they needed to save Kairi, Riku needed to seal Hollow Bastion...

He turned to Leon to explain what was going on, but the older man was pale, staring at the empty space where Yami had been. That hadn't been the first time Yami had called him Squall, Riku remembered, but the look on Leon's face... it was as if he were reliving his memories all over again.

"Ansem," he breathed, eyes darkening with anger.

Both Riku and Sora looked at him before at each other, and Riku saw the same wheels turning in Sora's head as his. Yami was definitely connected to Ansem somehow, but there was something they were missing, some bigger piece of the puzzle they had yet to connect.

"We're going after him," Riku announced.

Sora nodded. Handing Leon the tattered book, he mustered a grateful smile. "Hold onto this for me, okay?"

Leon took the book and studied it, gray eyes sharpening. "This is..." The scar on his forehead wrinkled as he traced the cover with his gloved fingers. "Where did you get this?"

"Yami," Riku explained. He dismissed Way to Fall and zipped up his hoodie. "Leon, I'm going with Sora to Hollow Bastion to stop them from opening the keyhole. Gather the others, tell them where I'm going, and tell Cid to hurry up with that gummi ship."

As Sora ducked out of the room and returned with Einlanzer in its sheath, Riku hurried to the corner where he had dumped his boots. He stuffed them on and fastened them closed as he continued talking.

"Sora and I will be back as soon as we can, but I get the feeling we're going to need that ship _very_ soon."

When he glanced up, Leon stiffly nodded in understanding. "Be careful."

Riku took the hand Sora already had outstretched for him, and he laced their fingers together. His nerves were on edge, expecting the worst when they got to the bastion, but when he felt Sora's hand squeeze around his in reassurance, he knew they would pull through together.

Riku leveled his gaze on Leon's and nodded back. "Don't worry about us." Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and squeezed Sora's hand back. "Let's go."

Sora held Einlanzer tightly, and Riku heard him drawing in a deep breath, too. "Right."

Slipping an arm around Sora, Riku pressed closed, already feeling the cold wash of darkness as it leapt around them at Sora's silent call. As it closed in around them, Riku's heart wavered at the unwanted familiarity.

**Are you sure you have enough power to face what's to come?**

_No_, was his heart's instinctive reply. He didn't know what they were about to walk into, and he didn't know if the keyblade was going to continue listening to him as long as Sora was there, but—

Sora _was _there, and that alone gave him enough courage to meet it head-on.

When the darkness cleared, Riku released a shaking breath and surveyed their surroundings.

They were standing in a dim hallway lined with blue-flamed braziers, and the runner stretched beneath their feet proudly displayed the heartless emblem.

When Sora gave a startled cry, Riku understood why. The walls were portioned off into six separate showcases, each presenting a pretty young woman trapped in crystal, her eyes closed in an eternal slumber. It was as much of a trophy room as it was a tomb.

Riku had been here once before. His eyes immediately sought out Snow White's still form, unchanged from when he had first been led to this hallway weeks ago by Dark Sora—or Id, as he now knew.

"Where are we?!" Sora asked, whirling around in shock. "Are these the princesses?!"

Riku summoned the keyblade, forgetting for a moment that it was no longer Oblivion when he saw Way to Fall's dark design. "Yeah..." He examined Sora with a puzzled frown. "You've been here for weeks—you've never seen this place?"

"N-No! I've been looking for it, though!" Sora turned to gape at him. "I wasn't even trying to come here—I was thinking about saving Kairi!"

A roar reverberated down the hall, and Sora jumped, raising the sheathed Einlanzer as if expecting an attack—but then he gasped, expression flooding with worry.

"Beast!!"

"Huh?"

"Beast!!" Sora cried again, grabbing Riku's arm, already dragging him down the hall towards the roar. Another one rang out, this one weighed with anguish, and Sora's eyes filled with pain as if he were the one being tortured. "We have to help him! He's my friend—he was locked in the dungeons—he came here looking for his girlfriend Belle, she's one of these princesses! We have to—"

Riku interrupted his panicked tirade by breaking into a run. "Then let's go!!"

Sora gasped and followed close behind him. Their destination was right ahead, and already Riku could see the crackling energy of the machinery connected to the doorway to the heart of the world.

As they drew close, the roars grew louder, but beneath the Beast's bellowing was a second voice, ringing out in a shrill, vainglorious cackle. Maleficent. Riku would recognize that cackle anywhere—it had haunted him for days after the anti-Rikus had gotten hold of him.

Sora and Riku flew into the room side by side and skidded to a stop at the sight of the witch—standing tall on the wide dais in the center of the room, her scepter raised into the air and her head thrown back in victory. Behind her, the heart-shaped doorway swirled with multicolored clouds, still deactivated.

"MALEFICENT!!"

Sora's voice cut through her sharp laughter, and when she lowered her head to acknowledge their presence, her eyes were wild with malice. She swiped her scepter downward, and Riku tensed, ready for her attack—

But he wasn't expecting a mass of fur to drop from above and land at their feet in a crumpled heap. Blood dotted the creature's brown fur and frayed clothes, and Riku took one look at its curved horns and animal face and knew this had to be the beast.

Sora leapt back at unexpected gift, but as soon as he saw _who_ Maleficent had given them, he released a dismayed cry and knelt beside the beast, dropping his sword to dig his hands into the thick fur. As the glow of a cure spell enveloped the beast's motionless form, he gave a weak growl of thanks, his eyes still wrenched shut.

Sora's face lifted towards Maleficent, his fright darkening into a sudden, righteous anger. He stood, his body rigid as he unsheathed Einlanzer and tossed the scabbard to the floor.

"Hahahahaha, you _fools_!" she crowed. As her scepter rapped sharply against the dais floor, her robes coiled around her like the darkness itself, and she lifted his arms into the air. "You willingly return here knowing the sheer _wrath_ you face? You are no better than the mindless heartless driven to the keyblade's sweet power—only to be vanquished by it!" She swept her hand forward, fingernails turned upwards as her expression filled with sadistic delight. "Now I will have your hearts and enough power to make all the worlds bow to _my _will!!"

Riku tightened his grip around Way to Fall. For a moment, its name felt more appropriate than ever—would this be where his luck ran out? Would this be where he and Sora met their match?

But as he narrowed his eyes at the evil witch, he recalled everything he had gone through to get to this point—all of those battles, all of his bad decisions, all of that pain and toil—and he no longer felt afraid. Maleficent _was_ powerful, but that only gave him more reason to gloat when this was all over.

He readied his keyblade, and as if coming to the same conclusion, Sora shifted into a battle stance beside him.

Both of them had been too preoccupied with Maleficent and Beast to wonder where Yami was.

"Your overconfidence leaves you at the disadvantage, Maleficent."

The older boy's voice drifted past them, and Sora and Riku turned as one to watch Yami as he calmly passed between them to face Maleficent. Both of his weapons in hand, he paused just in front of them, the split tails of his silver coat swishing to a stop at his ankles.

"Hahaha, _me_?" Maleficent asked, pressing a hand to her heart. "At a disadvantage?" Her painted lips split into a cruel grin. "We shall see about that!"

She threw her hand out, and pools of darkness instantly began to grow all along the ground and the sides of the dais in front of them.

"Come my faithful pets! _Rise _out of the shadows!" she called, her voice thundering throughout the room. The heartless crawled out of the darkness without question, distorted and ugly, shaped like goblins and gargoyles and hideous fairytale creatures. "Fetch me those hearts!"

Then, her eyes thinning to murderous slits at Yami as the heartless began to creep forward to obey her commands, she hissed:

"Starting with this... _sheep _in wolf's clothing."

Yami's jaw clenched, and Riku lifted Way to Fall once again to prepare for the oncoming battle.

To his surprise, Soul Eater dispersed into shadow as Yami dismissed it and lowered the dark keyblade, as if purposely _not _anticipating a fight. Before Riku could demand what he was doing, Yami lifted his free hand and stretched his fingers towards Maleficent with calm confidence.

Just as the heartless gathered in front of them to attack, the creatures suddenly paused. Waited. And lifted their heads as if listening to something Riku couldn't hear.

"_What_?" Maleficent gasped. "What are you waiting for?! Attack, you imbeciles!"

"They will no longer obey you, Maleficent," Yami stated, his tone edged with ice. The faintest of smirks curled at the corner of his lips, filled with a malice that Riku had never seen Yami display before. "What was it that you once told me?" His face lowered just a fraction, his venomous eyes watching Maleficent from beneath his bangs as he recited her words. "Were you not the one who gave precautions of using the darkness unwisely? That it can easily take root in a heart and consume it from within? That the darkness is very well capable of manipulating its wielder?"

Riku heard Sora's sharp intake of breath as he recognized whatever Yami was saying.

Yami's smirk spread, his eyes now burning with a vindictive hate. "Yes, I _was_ the one who warned you. And you should have heeded those words. I am interested to see what kind of heartless you will make," he said, his voice darkening even more, "considering the amount of darkness already festering within that cold cage hardly worth being called your heart."

Her heartless minions slowly turned towards her, and Riku looked on in amazement as more and more of them rose out of the ground and walls, converging around the witch as she cried out in disbelief, throwing her scepter out and scattering lightning amongst the creatures to hold them at bay.

"This can't be!!"

But it _was _happening. For what heartless were destroyed by her magic, more appeared out of the shadows growing around her, and they only seemed to be _more _drawn to her in her struggles.

A piece of Riku knew this was wrong, that even as evil as Maleficent was, she didn't deserve _this_—but deep down inside of him, he enjoyed the sound of her panicked cries as he continued to watch, unable to help thinking this _was _the perfect end for her.

Sora rushed forward, grabbing Yami's outstretched arm, the look on his face clearly showing that _he _didn't think this was right. "Yami, let her go!! You don't need to do it this way—you're not _evil_!! Remember?! You're not like her, you're not like Jafar or Ursula!"

Even though Sora managed to lower Yami's arm, the heartless continued to mob, pushing past her desperate defense of magic and now overtaking her. A green fire sparked up around her and consumed her dark form, the heartless unaffected by its blaze, and beyond its deafening roar, Riku could hear her shrill voice once again.

"The _darkness_!!" she cried, dissolving into hysterical laughter. "_This _is the darkness!!"

Yami slowly looked away from her and turned towards Sora, the cruelty gone from his eyes as he faced the younger boy. "You weren't wrong about me, Sora," he said, beginning to back away from him and Riku. "This is me doing the right thing." His eyes flicked upward as the raging fire grew more intense. "The heroes defeat the monster and save the princess. Am I right?"

Riku whirled around as something massive shook the ground behind them, and as the green fire died away, he saw what Maleficent had transformed into. A huge dragon perched at the edge of the dais directly above them, midnight black scales with a deadly nightshade underbelly, with its long, slender neck arched high. Smoke curled out of its—her?—nostrils, and her head was tipped with curved horns similar to the headdress she had been wearing minutes before. Large pointed wings stretched wide behind her, semi-transparent and hardly veiling the crackling energy of the doorway and its machinery.

And when she opened her maw, the inside glowed as if her throat were made of smoldering embers. Her heartless-yellow eyes thinned as she spotted Riku and Sora standing there, and she thrust her head forward, releasing an ear-splitting howl.

"_Why _does it always have to be something _big_?" Riku complained.

A thick rustling caught his attention, and he glanced back in time to see thorny briers rapidly growing behind them, stretching across the hallway in endless, wrangled branches, cutting off their only escape—and separating them from Yami and the Beast's still breathing body.

The brambles continued to grow all throughout the room, snaking over the machinery and piercing through the orange pipes, twisting around the banister surrounding the dais and growing in tangles down the stairs, and extending upward to the ceiling high above, which was already shrouded in darkness.

"And _why _does it always have to be somewhere dangerous?!" Sora added, inching close to Riku's side.

The two of them exchanged a quick look, and for a fleeting moment, there was that familiar old excitement of sharing the adventure and understanding instinctively what they each needed to do. It was like returning to the beginning again and standing in the snowy campsite on Mulan's world, facing that first heartless dragon with his brand new keyblade.

Except—he and Sora had come a long way since then. Sora had found confidence in himself, and Riku had learned his own limits. This time they were on equal ground.

Riku nodded at him in encouragement, and Sora's face lit with a smile that told him everything would be fine.

Maleficent let loose another furious howl, and—together—they turned to face their biggest challenge yet.

Body tensing, she dug her talons into the edge of the platform above and drew her head back, the smoke curling out of her snout thickening, sparks of flame escaping from the sides of her mouth.

Just as she shot her head forward and opened her maw, sending a fierce jet of green flame at them, Sora swung Einlanzer and cried something. A warm wind eddied into existence around him and Riku, the swirls of magic deflecting Maleficent's fire, which spread throughout the bottom of the dais into a deadly conflagration.

Sora's aero spell was strong, but they needed to get to better ground; staying down here would be a death trap. Without acknowledging each other's plan, Riku ducked up the right set of stairs as Sora bounded up the left, trusting the other's instincts without fear.

Riku reached the top of the dais behind the dragon and realized just how enormous she had become—she almost filled up the entire platform, leaving Riku and Sora hardly any room to maneuver without backing into a dangerous tangle of thorny briers. Which meant it would be harder for _her_ to move around, too... Like a cat trapped in a bird cage.

Over the ridges of Maleficent's wings, Riku caught a glimpse of Sora carefully maneuvering across a thick brier to reach a wide ledge against the far wall. Maleficent was paying him no attention.

Her fury turned right towards Riku.

She launched at him, fangs snapping centimeters from his face as he leapt back, swiping the keyblade across her throat. Her neck arched away with a growl rumbling inside of her, but her eyes never left his figure, stalking him as he edged behind her, weapon at the ready.

When she lifted her tail and its shadow cast over him, he knew that had been a mistake.

"Thunder!!"

Sora's spell crackled around the dragon and struck hard, multiple lightning bolts leaving her reeling, and Riku dove out of the way as her tail came slamming down beside him. The impact shook the dais beneath his feet, but he managed to keep his balance and not fall into the snarl of briers behind him. He glanced in Sora's direction, worried she would be going for him next, but Sora was aiming Einlanzer for another spell, face filled with determination.

"_Fire!!_"

A stream of fire balls erupted from the end of his sword and crashed into the side of her head, and even from this distance Riku could smell the scorched skin and smoke. With a screech of pain, she whipped her tail around to swat at Sora, who ducked and tried to slice at the passing limb. But Einlanzer bounced right off her dense hide like a twig off a brick wall.

Riku took advantage of the distraction and grabbed the end of her nearest wing, using it to climb up the side of her massive body. The wing snapped outward, trying to throw him off, but he held on tight, his heart leaping inside of him as her head swiveled around to find him again.

_The keyblade_, he realized. As long as he had the keyblade, he'd be her main target. And whether or not this dragon was her heartless or just a byproduct of her magic and darkness, the keyblade was probably their main hope at stopping her.

She lunged for him again, but Riku arched his arm back and hurled the keyblade at her, striking her face again, before it ricocheted off towards Sora's direction.

"Return serve!" Sora called, sounding like he was having fun, and Maleficent's head turned just in time to see Sora swat the keyblade with his sword, deflecting it back in Riku's direction with a sharp _clang_.

Using her wing to hold his weight, Riku swung himself forward and stretched his hand out, calling Way to Fall back to him. It spiraled through the air and hit his palm just right, and he felt his spirits soar with the knowledge that not only did he have Sora's back-up, right now he had the keyblade's loyalty, too.

But before he could deliver another attack, Maleficent flicked out her wing with such abrupt, violent force that Riku felt his hand slip before he knew what was happening. He cried out as he was thrown high into the air, his mind screaming with panic as he kicked his feet and twisted his body in midair, preparing himself for an impact.

He slammed feet-first into a clutter of orange pipes elevated far above the portal to the heart of the world, and as gravity began to pull him back towards the ground, he stabbed his keyblade into the nearest pipe, letting loose a stream of scintillating blue energy that had been contained within. The keyblade held his weight, but he wasn't sure for how long.

Swallowing past his pounding heart, he glanced down at Maleficent and felt his stomach churn when he saw how far he had flown. He couldn't dangle here forever, not with her sharp yellow eyes still watching him. He scanned his surroundings, noticing Sora was almost directly below him, eyes widened with worry.

Getting an idea, Riku swung himself upward and carefully balanced himself on his thin keyblade, amazed it didn't buckle under his weight. As Maleficent shot another jet of green flame at him, he leapt forward to avoid it and landed on a larger orange pipe, surfing down its slanted face towards a tear in the metal. As he reached the gaping hole, he pushed off the pipe and sprung over it, spotting a river of blue lightning coursing through the tear.

As he landed on the other side of the hole and continued sliding down, he called Way to Fall back to his hand just to cut it into the metal behind him, slowing his descent so he could drop down beside Sora with perfect ease.

Sora released a relieved laugh and punched Riku's arm. "Show off—don't do that again!"

Riku only offered a shrug and a smirk, just glad he hadn't fallen and broken his neck.

Maleficent whirled towards them with a shrill howl, and Sora tensed as he no doubt remembered they were still in the middle of a fight. Her long tail came whipping towards them with the intent to swipe them right off the ledge, but Riku had other plans.

"Grab on!" he yelled.

As the tail swept across, he threw himself onto it and grabbed onto one of its slender spines. Just behind him, he heard Sora's _oof! _as he did the same, then yelped as he began to slip away. Riku swung his keyblade out for Sora to grab, and when he felt Sora's fingers wrap around the keyway, he held on tighter, feeling Maleficent's powerful tail thrash outward to throw them off.

"W-Whoaaaa!!" Sora cried, his feet suspended in the air for one terrifying moment, but Riku felt Sora's grip on the keyblade remain steady, and when he looked, Sora still had Einlanzer clutched in the other.

When she failed in shaking them off of her, Maleficent arched her tail high to dangle them above her open maw.

As her head lunged upward to catch them, Sora yelled out in alarm and thrust Einlanzer forward.

Even though the sword hadn't even made a dent against her skin before, he had better luck force feeding it to her. The sword entered her jaw almost perfectly vertical, the point jabbing into the roof of her mouth as the hilt was shoved just past her fangs so her forked tongue couldn't push it out. If she close her mouth, the blade would pierce right through her skull.

Shrieking, she lashed her tail out and wildly shook her head, clawing at her jaw, and this time Sora held onto Riku as the momentum did throw them off. Unable to stop the impact this time, Riku crashed into the ground with Sora on top of him, sliding several feet before thick brambles stopped his trajectory.

A shout of pain left him as a thorn scraped against his bared waist, another pressing painfully against his neck, and Sora gasped and rolled off of him, tugging his arm to pull him away from the thorns. He grabbed onto the hand Riku had around the keyblade, and with a worried murmur, he cast a cure spell.

As soon as Riku felt the wash of magic, the pain ebbed, and he lifted his gaze to see how Maleficent was fairing with Einlanzer stuck in her jaw.

She still hadn't gotten it out, but her attention had returned to them, one of her massive feet descending upon them.

Sora glanced up with a sharp breath, and he and Riku threw themselves away from each other at the same time, scattering. Her stomp shook the dais again, and Riku felt its reverberation tremble all the way through him. He stumbled, glancing back to spot her claws raking towards him.

He threw himself to the ground into a roll, feeling the talons brush just past his head, close enough to sweep his hair to the side. He leapt back to his feet immediately, striking her passing leg with a fierce cry, an excited thrill coursing through him when she released an enraged howl.

"Sora!" he yelled, twirling towards his best friend. He cast the keyblade forward, letting it fly from his hand. It twisted through the air, arching right towards Sora, who caught it effortlessly and aimed it at Maleficent without thought.

A shout springing from his lips, he shot a blizzard spell next—a massive one—a wall of ice crystals colliding with Maleficent's head as she turned to follow the keyblade's power.

She screeched and recoiled, her wings flapping uselessly in the air because of her colossal size. But for something so big, she managed to reach her long legs up and hook her claws into the orange pipes above the door to the heart of the world, and Riku watched in disbelief as she hefted herself upward, climbing the pipes, many bursting open from her weight and spewing blue energy into the air.

Perched above them, she reared her head back, flames curling out of her ajar mouth, and she shot her neck forward, spitting a torrent of flames down at them again.

Sora cast his aero spells again, the magic holding the green wall of fire back, though Riku could still feel its sweltering heat. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sora waver, a fatigued but exasperated look crossing his face as he aimed the keyblade up at Maleficent again. Stomach twisting, Riku knew what was wrong—

Sora had used too much magic too soon.

Sora's spell still swirling protectively around him, Riku ducked through the fire and sprinted to Sora's side, hearing the groan of the pipes above as Maleficent shifted her weight, ready for another attack.

Right as her head lunged to knock Sora off the dais, Riku reached him and took hold of the keyblade. He pushed Sora to the ground as the fire raged around them, and he swung the keyblade upward, heart missing a beat as her daggerlike fangs descended on him.

**Embrace it.**

Desperation coursing through him, his heart latched onto the voice's words, and a surge of sudden strength broke free, fueling him with confidence he hadn't felt in weeks.

He charged forward, so quick that the flames bent with his momentum, and he struck her neck with brutal force, then _again_ from the opposite direction, his keyblade moving so fast it was a blur. And as Maleficent reeled back, Riku felt his heart simmer with untapped power that he could no longer resist.

He reached inside of himself without hesitation, hooked onto that power, and released it.

There was a hiss of flames, and then he saw it—a sphere of dark energy—like one of Sora's fire spells, only crackling with a concentrated intensity, black wisps with a fiery purple core. It flew out of his keyblade with impossible speed and slammed into Maleficent's face, bursting into a turbulent flash of darkness.

He heard Sora give a startled gasp, and his own eyes widened in amazement at what he had just done—

But he didn't have time to revel in his new found power.

The attack made Maleficent wrench away, but the pipes finally caved beneath the weight of her dragon form. They ripped open, releasing violent explosions of the blue power Riku had seen flowing through them, and as the energy spewed up around her, she teetered at the edge of the collapsed pipe and pitched forward with a murderous roar.

Riku had just enough time to shove Sora to safety again before the dragon hit the dais floor, Einlanzer piercing straight through her skull as her jaw snapped shut. Maleficent reared up with final howl of pain, and then tumbled forward, her shadow dwarfing him.

Angling his keyblade upward, he ducked as the wall of dragon collapsed onto him. He felt the blade sink into her chest as her weight pressed him into the ground, smothering him, his breath leaving him in a panicked rush as his heart trembled with fear. It felt like being crushed beneath the Atlantean crystal all over again—only this time Yami wouldn't be there to teleport him away.

A wash of frigid silk swept over him, the pressure of the dragon's weight gradually easing up around him, and he lifted his head when he could, realizing what was happening. Maleficent's body was disintegrating into darkness.

It poured out of her mouth and chest and swathed him like a blanket of ice, and he felt his breath catch in his throat as what felt like fingers swept through his hair, and there—lips—against the shell of his ear—

**You did well.**

That voice again, curling with satisfaction. His heart trembled again, this time for an entirely different reason.

Then the darkness lifted from around him, and he could breathe again.

When he glanced around, the thorny briers were fading into flakes of shadow. Soon, the only remains of the fight were the torn pipes, partially crumbled dais, and the dark robe Maleficent had once worn as a woman. Einlanzer and Way to Fall were both pierced through it, standing upright in the floor.

"It's over," Riku sighed, unable to hold back a relieved laugh. He shakily picked himself up and turned to face Sora, whose eyes were scanning the disappearing briers around the room.

"Yeah," he agreed after a moment, and with a small smile, he met Riku's gaze. "We did it."

A flutter of wings caught their attention, and Riku plucked his keyblade out of the ground, whirling immediately towards the sound.

Maleficent's raven swooped across the room with a shrill caw, zipped between him and Sora, and disappeared down the hall where the sleeping princesses remained trapped in their shrine-like tombs. Had that bird been hiding throughout the entire battle? Wherever it was headed now, it gave Riku a bad feeling...

The sound of footsteps on the stairs reminded him that they weren't exactly alone anymore. Beast was still collapsed on the floor in the hallway, unconscious, but there was one more person to worry about.

Yami stepped onto the dais with them, his eyes trained to Maleficent's remains—just that sad shadow of her robe, spread across the floor like a dark stain. Sora hadn't retrieved Einlanzer yet, but it didn't look like he wanted to. The once gleaming blade was rapidly darkening into a pitch black, corrupted by the darkness Maleficent had carried in her heart.

Yami approached the stain, the dark keyblade clasped in his hand. Riku couldn't read the expression on his face—it was closed off, as if he were purposely distancing himself from what had just happened.

"No," Yami said with a regretful sigh. "It's not over yet."

And before Riku or Sora could ask why, Yami turned to face Sora, his amber eyes locking with his.

"Id, it's time."

When Riku saw the stark fear on Sora's face, his heart wrenched with sudden terror, the hairs on the back of his neck rising on end. He knew what was coming. He stared—horrified—as Sora's blue eyes bled into heartless yellow, and his cautious demeanor gained a familiar, unwanted self-confidence.

_Id._

Sora's eyes blinked once, and Id glanced slowly around in appreciation, delight filling his face when he spotted Riku. "Hello again," he purred, the voice sounding completely unlike Sora's—too deep, too proud, too _dark_.

Riku grimaced, tightening his grip on his keyblade. His skin crawled with sheer dread, but his heart was strangled with the pain of betrayal. _Yami _had called Id out. Hadn't Yami been the one who had saved him from Id in this exact same room all those weeks ago? What was going _on_?!

Yami's distant expression hadn't changed. "Id," he said, and Riku felt a disbelieving gasp escape him as Yami held the dark keyblade out for Id to _take_. Why would he give Id a weapon?

Riku's insides twisted as despair filled him, and he began to back away, shaking his head, unable to accept that this was happening. Yami—betraying him _again_—Id using Sora's body ­_again_—and here he was, trapped in the bastion _alone _with them.

"Yami," he growled out, trying not to panic. His eyes scanned Yami's face for an explanation as to why this was happening, but Yami didn't even honor him with that.

Yami kept his gaze lowered and his hand out. His fingers were trembling.

Id took the dark keyblade with flourish, Sora's lips spreading into an excited grin as he studied it, yellow eyes wide with an almost childish wonder. "This is it," he breathed. "All the players are here, and now I hold the key... the final keyhole... my path to Kingdom Hearts. It's _mine_. Not theirs."

Id's eyes brightened as he looked to Yami.

"For a while there, you had me worried. Nine years of planning gone to waste just because you couldn't hold onto your darkness? It really pissed me off. But here we are." His gaze shifted to Riku now, mouth curling into a smirk. "And you even brought me a present."

A chill swept up Riku's spine, and he lifted his keyblade, too shaken, too _angry _to snap a remark back.

Id laughed. "Don't worry, beautiful," he crooned at Riku, "when I'm done here, I'll give you _all _of the attention you desire."

"Give Sora back," Riku growled, the panicked emotion inside of him now burning, begging to be released somehow, wanting to _hurt_.

The smirk on Sora's lips darkened, Id's expression now ruthless. "I have something better in mind."

With an effortless twirl of the dark keyblade, Id spun around, arched his arm high—

Riku drew in a sharp breath, his eyes flashing wide.

—as Id plunged the blade deep into Yami's chest.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Riku's world turned upside down, consumed by the impossibility of what was happening.

Light burst out of Yami's wound, and Riku heard himself scream as he rushed forward without thought, watching with dismay as Yami's body seized, amber eyes fluttered closed, and his face filled not with pain, but a quiet serenity.

Id calmly stepped aside as Riku reached Yami, tears watering his eyes though he wasn't sure why—didn't he still hate Yami?—but his heart was crying for him to stop this somehow, that _need _driving him forward.

But before he could wrench the keyblade out of Yami's chest, it suddenly moved on its own—pulling back from Yami with slow grace—and Riku froze, his heart fluttering uncontrollably as he stared, enchanted by the radiance beginning to envelope the keyblade and Yami's body.

A sphere of light, flickering with the intensity of a tiny star, drifted out of Yami's chest and began to float away.

Dark wings unfolded from Id's back as he leapt into the air, throwing his hand out towards the escaping star—was that a _heart?!_—and shadows swirled around the brilliant sphere, enveloping it in what looked like a protective shell of darkness.

The hidden heart now drifted downward like a butterfly finding its perch, landing delicately in Id's outstretched hand.

Riku glanced from Id back to Yami as the light around him only grew more blinding. Shielding his eyes, he forced himself to keep watching, consumed by the horrific splendor of what he was seeing.

_Another _heart escaped out of Yami's chest, this one brighter than the last, but Id didn't make a move to capture this one.

As the heart drifted upward, the dark keyblade—still emanating brighter and brighter and brighter—suddenly fractured and _split_, erupting into six more spheres of light. Six hearts. Six hearts for six princesses.

The princesses' hearts danced upward through the air, spiraling around Yami's second heart, and an overwhelming sense of sadness filled Riku as the hearts lifted high above them, forming the outline of a heart.

Seven streams of magic shot forward, striking the portal to the heart of the world, which shimmered as if coming to life, the chaotic clouds within seeming to calm. The pathway was open.

Riku glanced back at Yami, not knowing what to expect next. But never in a hundred years would he have expected _this_.

The light around Yami began to fade away.

Riku's eyes widened again.

His lips parted but his voice died on his tongue, too shocked to even manage a gasp.

And his heart, realizing what was happening even before he did, trembled with recognition.

When the glow disappeared completely, it wasn't Yami who remained. It wasn't Yami who crumpled to the floor like a lifeless doll. It wasn't _Yami _at all.

It was Kairi.

Tiny, redheaded, skorts-wearing Kairi.

And Riku fell to his knees beside her, overwhelmed.

Above him, the hearts of the princesses glimmered brightly, finished with their task, and split into separate directions, six of them gliding into the hallway to return to their bodies, and one lone heart drifting downward.

It hovered in front of Riku's face and twinkled as if saying hello, and then slowly disappeared into Kairi's chest. Riku released a trembling breath as he watched, still unwilling to admit what he had just seen.

Kairi's eyelids quivered, then slid open, her deep blue eyes coming into focus.

"Riku..."

Her brow wrinkled with sleepy concern.

"You're crying?"

Riku squeezed his eyes shut and grabbed one of her hands, choking out an incredulous laugh. His heart felt like it was tearing itself apart all over again, relieved and terrified and angry and confused and concerned all at once. Kairi was alive—_alive_!

But—

All this time...

She had been inside of _Yami_?

Is that what he had just seen?

The song of metal against stone made him tense. Holding his breath, he lifted his face and turned around, releasing Kairi's hand and lifting his keyblade.

Id folded his black wings behind him, an amused smile on his lips that rivaled even Yami's most annoying. He paused in front of Riku and Kairi, now carrying the dark-tainted Einlanzer in one hand, his other hand still holding the shadow-encased heart he had caught.

Riku's anger rekindled into rage as he rose back to his feet, raising Way to Fall towards Id's neck. _Sora's_ neck.

Id didn't even waver, fully confident that Riku wouldn't dare hurting him in Sora's body. "Beautiful show, was it not?"

A scared gasp escaped Kairi as she sat up, clenching a hand over her heart. In a frightened voice that shook Riku's confidence, she cried out. "Ansem!!"

_Ansem?! _

Leon's memories and comments came rushing back to Riku in a sudden flood of realization, and he focused on Id, beginning to piece things together at last.

Id laughed, lifting the trapped heart in his hand. "What, this?" He examined it as if noticing it for the first time. "What you call Ansem is just a fragment of a man driven by false memories and the darkness that had once consumed him." Amusement glittered in Id's eyes again as he rolled the protected heart along the backs of his fingers. "He's terrified right now, as he should be."

"Let him _go_!!" Kairi cried, her voice breaking a little as she clambered to her feet.

For the first time, Riku noticed the lock of white in her hair, the streak of tanned skin peeking out from beneath her white shirt, the tiny fleck of amber in her left eye. That was when he realized that Kairi hadn't been inside of Yami.

Yami—no, _Ansem_—had been inside of _Kairi_.

Yami had never really existed.

All along...

It had been Ansem's heart tainting Kairi's body?

"It's your fault, you know," Id sighed, closing his hand around Ansem's heart. "If your heart hadn't been purifying _his_, everything would have gone smoothly. But noooo, you had to go and make things more complicated." He narrowed his eyes at Kairi. "Now I have a rogue heartless on the loose _and_ nobodies clamoring for this damn heart."

"What's he talking about?" Riku demanded, his voice quiet and shaken.

Kairi drew close to his side and curled a hand around his arm, her voice low as she replied. "Back home, when you left me in the secret place on the night the heartless invaded... Ansem's heartless tried to take me over. He was working for Id and knew he'd need my heart to open the final keyhole—_this _keyhole—so he wanted to bring me with him. But..."

"But when he entered her like an _idiot_, her pure heart pushed most of his darkness out!!" Id hissed, eyes flashing with anger. He lifted the heart in front of his face to yell at it. "You fool!! What did you think would happen?! Her heart is PURE!"

Riku swallowed against his dry throat, every one of his nerves aware of Id's power, of Kairi's fear. Their words made no sense to him at first, but when he thought back to the things Merlin had told him just a few hours before, and when he thought back to what he had already known from Sephiroth's memories—the holes in the story began to fill in.

Nine years ago, Ansem had fallen to darkness, and Id had taken him in. That had been his heartless—the kind of heartless Merlin had called an emblem heartless, where the darkness was just hiding a trapped heart within. Then Id returned Ansem's heartless to their world, and when he had tried to take over Kairi's body, her pure heart had repelled the heartless's darkness, curing the heart but leaving it still tainted with some of Id's influence.

Though—_where_ had all of that darkness gone when it had been repelled from Ansem's heart?

Kairi's fingers tightened against Riku's arm as she continued, uneasy in the face of Id's temper. "And all this time... instead of his heart tainting mine with the darkness, mine tainted _his_ with the light... and he began to realize what he was doing was wrong. B-But..."

"But—!" Id cut in again, his anger dissolving back into a smug smile. He turned his gaze towards the heart of the world, his dark wings arching with delight. "He came through in the end."

"You're wrong," Kairi said in a tense whisper. "Ansem didn't want this anymore. He waited until Riku and Sora were ready because he knew they'd be able to stop you. He _knew_ someone would _have _to stop you. He only unlocked his heart so he could let me go!!"

As her voice rose with defiance, Riku felt her determination sweep through him as well. He pulled together the tattered remains of his resolve and drew in a deep breath, steadily holding Way to Fall out again.

"Let Sora _go_," he growled.

"And give us that heart," Kairi added in a voice strong with courage.

This time Id's smile wavered. In a smooth, fearless movement, he swung the dark Einlanzer onto his shoulder and held Ansem's trapped heart out to them. "If you want them so badly, come _get _them," he said, eyes thinning dangerously.

As Riku felt Kairi's fingers squeeze his arm in encouragement, all he could think about was how much he didn't want to fight Id, not like this, not when Sora was trapped somewhere inside of his own body.

But...

Then he thought about what Sora would do in this situation, and somewhere inside of him he found comfort in the irony that Sora probably would rather beat the living daylights out of him than let some darkness continue possessing his body.

And with that notion in mind, Riku met Id's dark smile with one of his own, and charged forward to reclaim his best friend.

-o-o-

* * *

SIX YEARS OF HOLDING THAT SECRET... I am _so _damn excited that it's finally out!

**HOWEVER, **_please_ refrain from spoiling Yami's identity in reviews, but PLEASE _do_ review. Nothing is more rewarding than hearing what you thought of the chapter! Especially one this SUPER IMPORTANT! XD I sat on this secret for years, so tell me what you think!

Don't worry, there are still plenty of revelations to come, hehehe.


	43. Ch 26: His Stygian Solace

_Author Notes: _

**MY BIGGEST APOLOGIES** to those of you who went back and reread the story and its horrible, _**horrible**_ beginning chapters with the completely OOC Kairi and Riku and Sora. No, really. I despise the first 14 chapters and, to this day, still plan on rewriting them! (Hence some of your confusion about Riku's happy reaction to Kairi being alive. It was my horrible writing in the beginning of the story.)

Your reactions to Yami's revelation were so much fun, even the angry and disappointed ones. It was definitely worth the six year wait for me, haha. There was plenty of confusion, too, but I'm going to try to make everything as clear as I can as the story draws closer to the big climax...es.

Thanks as always to my closest friends for helping me through my tightest writing spots. I couldn't have done this without you.

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-six: **__His Stygian Solace_

-o-o-

Every villain Riku had faced prior to this moment had presented him with a new challenge.

Jafar and his lust for power, Ursula and her charming wiles, Atlantis and its ancient grudge, Maleficent and her dangerous devotion to the darkness, Yami and his web of secrets—

Every battle had taught him something new: the necessity of teamwork to overcome the impossible; trust was the true key to success; even with a keyblade, he wasn't infallible; the only thing stopping him from reaching his true potential was himself; and even old enemies could be valuable allies when faced with a common threat.

Riku now realized that even though he had survived all of his battles, he had been losing the war all along. These battles weren't his own. He really _was_ just a pawn in a war outside of his control. Friends were enemies and enemies were friends, and Riku was just a boy with a key doing the dirty work for both the light and the dark.

And as he met the eyes of his newest opponent, a familiar face with a stranger's eyes, he knew this would be his greatest challenge yet.

Id.

Sora.

Ansem.

Fighting his archenemy for the freedom of his best friend and the heart of the man who had possibly started this whole mess. Riku was scared to imagine how much more screwed up his situation could get.

Lucky for him, he didn't have time to imagine it.

He flew across the cracked surface of the platform towards Id. A furious vengeance sang inside of him for everything that had happened—to Sora, to himself, even to Kairi—Kairi, who stood her ground behind him, her presence quiet but strong, and her determination feeding his own.

Once Sora was within perfect range, Riku swung his keyblade with all of his might, and saw the burning amber of Id's gaze flicker with amusement.

Way to Fall's dark blade swiped through nothing.

Sora's figure was there and gone in an instant, leaving just a cloud of dissolving darkness behind.

"Riku, look out!"

Everything was a blur, but Kairi's warning cut through his confusion as he whirled around in time to see a wave of darkness launch out of the ground to ensnare him.

Riku was fast, but he wasn't fast enough to avoid it.

His keyblade struck the shadows just as they enveloped him in a waterfall of black and pulled him into their cold depths. His keyblade may as well have been wading through water, the darkness sluggishly parting beneath it before swallowing it completely.

Riku didn't panic until he felt invisible fingers wrap around his weapon and begin to tug on it. He cried out and clamped both of his hands around the hilt, refusing to let go because he knew he wouldn't get a second chance if he lost the keyblade here and now.

And just when he felt a firm tendril snake around his wrist to help pry the key away, a thunderous roar broke through the harvest of shadows, and Riku suddenly found himself free from its hold.

He collapsed onto his knees, confused but alert, keyblade still in hand.

Tattered but no longer fallen, the beast tore through the darkness and scattered the hungry tendrils from around Riku. There was no time for thanks. Riku was back on his feet before the darkness finished dissolving, and the bastion's grim interior was a welcome sight for once.

Laughter rang throughout the room, full of life like Sora's but still not _Sora_.

"Come _on_, Ri-ku_,_ you have to prove to me you really think this brat is worth your suffering!"

The darkness surged upward and billowed out in an explosion of purples and blacks. Ribbons of inky silk rained upon them followed by larger spheres of darkness, and Riku felt his heart leap as he recognized them. They were smaller, but they looked just like the large ball of darkness that had been suspended above the islands before he and Sora had left their world to its fate.

The ribbons fell across the dais and room, writhing sluglike where they landed and stretching themselves across whatever surface they touched. The beast threw his arms around Kairi and pulled her down to shield her, but Riku had to tear his eyes away from them as the darkness littered the air all around him.

He moved without thought, diving for the nearest ribbon and cutting his keyblade through it. The darkness didn't disintegrate, only dispersed just like before, but that was good enough for him. He dragged his blade along the ground and suddenly spun, sweeping his keyblade out in a fierce spiral, trusting in the weapon's strength and guidance.

But in that moment, it wasn't the keyblade's song that came to him—

_The keyblade chose __**you**__, and it chose you for a reason, boy. Trust in its powers, and you will find your own._

It was Merlin's wisdom.

_Even if something unpleasant is to come of what I am going to do, I know that the worlds will be well protected._

Yami's quiet faith.

_No one ever said being a hero was easy work._

And Sora's loyalty.

Riku felt a deep warmth blossom inside of him. A fierce unnamed power surged from his heart to his fingertips and channeled through Way to Fall, rushing out of the keyblade in a torrent of scintillating light and swept across the platform in a spiral of its own, searing away Id's dark rain.

The darkness that had been crawling along Beast's fur and Kairi's feet disintegrated into nothing. The inky pools spreading along the cracks of the dais disappeared, banished by the light.

Id's wings of shadow burst into a cloud of dark feathers before they too faded away, and Id landed at the head of the platform in a low crouch, the mirth gone from his face.

"So that's how you want to play..."

His heart trembling with excitement and power, Riku clutched his keyblade tightly and angled it at Id.

Id took one look at the silent challenge and rose back to his feet with the grace of a whorl of smoke. Already the darkness was creeping along Sora's body again, gathering together into a new set of wings and transforming his clothes into the same dark outfit Riku had last met Id in.

The desperation Riku had felt that night Id had attacked Traverse Town returned to him, only this time he didn't have to worry about a whole town of innocents getting caught in the middle—just Sora and the beast he had wanted to protect, and just Kairi and the stray heart _she_ wanted to protect.

The dark shell around Ansem's heart remained intact, its faint glow hovering in front of Id as if to tease them. Somewhere inside of it, Yami probably still existed, or at least some semblance of him. Riku wasn't sure how much of Yami had been Ansem himself versus how much had been Kairi.

Either way, Riku was with Kairi on this one; they needed his heart, even if it was just so _Id_ wouldn't have it. Riku had too many questions left, and he wasn't going to let Yami rest in peace until he got the answers he wanted.

That notion in mind, Riku rushed to attack before Id's darkness could completely recover. Everything happened in a matter of seconds, from Riku's light attack to now as his keyblade cut through the air towards Id.

The blackened blade of Einlanzer was there to welcome him, the familiar sword gleaming like polished obsidian as it grinded against Way to Fall's skeletal form. He was aware of Kairi calling to him to be careful, but as he lifted his gaze to Id's between their crossed blades, Riku knew there would be no vigilance here, not with his enemy's eyes behind his best friend's face.

He and Id separated with a scrape of weapon on weapon as Riku planted a foot against Sora's stomach and launched himself into a back flip—and just in time to avoid the second flood of shadows that surged out of the floor below him.

He felt its cold emptiness sweep past him as he landed back on his feet, but he didn't hesitate, not giving it a chance to reform for another attack. He sank his keyblade into the flowing shadows, this time with confidence.

They recoiled, gliding back like scarves of cobweb and black lace, then began to blanket the surface of the platform to cut off his escape. All along the roiling black at his feet, yellow eyes emerged, one pair at a time, followed by antennae and talons and long, lissome limbs.

Riku didn't stop to watch the heartless rise out of the abyss.

Even as the room grew dim, dimmer, and near midnight black—Id's trickery, he knew—he used the faint light of his keyblade and the surreal glow of the heartless' eyes to know where to strike. He fought through the thickening shadows, stifling the instinctual terror he felt as the heartless crowded him.

Instead of giving into it, he let the voices in his heart guide him. All of his experiences had led him to this battle and there was no way he was going to lose to a shadow.

A pack of neoshadows surrounded him with effortless ease, and as he danced and ducked past their fierce kicks, he saw new species of heartless amongst the throng, some shaped like dark teardrops with batwings, others like black beach balls with shark teeth, even more in the form of what Riku had always imagined demons to look like: humanoid with curved horns and wings, carrying large serrated swords.

None of them carried the familiar red and black heartless emblem, so he knew exactly what he was dealing with. Natural heartless. Merlin had been right about Id's powers—not that any of that helped him now.

He held nothing back, keeping his movements quick and ferocious and landing a blow on every heartless that dared pass into his circle of safety—made by the faint dome of light that surrounded him from the keyblade.

It wasn't easy.

The air was heavy with darkness. The venomous cold of it crept deep inside of him to taint his heart.

But then, through the flash of his keyblade striking a heartless down, he would catch a glimpse of Sora's face through the shadows, and he would fight even harder.

Beyond the heartless horde he could hear Beast's courageous roar and Kairi's determined yells for the heartless to back off. As Riku struck down two neoshadows, the darkness parted long enough for him to see Beast hunkered in front of Kairi as he swiped at any heartless that came close—to protect her or to hold her back, Riku wasn't sure.

"Let me go! I can fight, too!"

The latter, then.

Riku actually felt himself smile at the knowledge he had such unexpected help. Kairi had never been much of a fighter, preferring instead to collect seashells or content herself by watching the boys play. He used to pick on her about that. Now _she_ was the one looking for a fight. How much had she changed because of Ansem? Or was this the Kairi who had been hidden beneath that innocent smile all along?

In order to drive back the heartless, Beast landed an earth-shattering blow against the platform, sending them tumbling and scattering. But the stone ruptured, and out of the widening cracks, shadows spilled into the air.

The shadows converged above them, absorbing dozens of heartless to help itself grow into a dark colossus. The darkness was too thick to see what it had turned into, but Riku could feel the power radiating off of it long before it even attacked.

The darkness around him shifted, and Riku tensed to defend himself against its wrath—

But it didn't come.

Riku heard Beast's distinct roar, followed by the cracks of dozens of quick blows against muscle, bone, and fur, and finally the heavy thump of a large body hitting the ground somewhere beyond the dais and the darkness. Riku didn't have to be able to see to know that the beast was out of the fight.

"NO! BEAST!"

Kairi's shrill cry pierce through the darkness, and Riku felt his own heart shudder at the concern that quaked her voice. He had just met the beast, but a fallen ally was a fallen ally, and he couldn't hold back the swell of rage and fear that overwhelmed him, too.

"Kairi, run away!" he screamed, knowing he wouldn't be able to hold the heartless back _and_ protect her as Beast had done.

As if responding to his voice, the darkness twisted towards him next.

He raised Way to Fall to protect himself, but the force of the blow that came would have been enough to shatter any weapon—if he hadn't been using a keyblade. The blade's protective magic crackled with desperation as if to overcome the intensity of the power trying to consume it, and Riku felt his arms straining just to hold it aloft.

The floor was the first thing to give way. He staggered as the platform began to crumble beneath him, succumbing to the darkness's corruption, and the heartless were eager to take advantage of his instability. A rotund, pliant mass slammed into him from behind and ricocheted off, knocking him headfirst into the eager shadows.

They swallowed him and the keyblade whole, smothering his senses as they had done before, all except for that _voice_—not Id's voice, but the same he'd been hearing for days—

**Haha... Are you really so weak?**

—flowing like silk through his veins and tickling his heart with silent promises.

But before Riku could focus long on what those promises would entail, he felt her presence, her _warmth_, as her pale arms broke through the dark and wrapped around him.

"You can't have him, too!"

Light.

He squeezed his eyes shut as the radiance burned through the black engulfing them, and he felt the shadows peel away as her power purified the piece of crumbled dais where they stood.

"We can do this together, Riku."

He lifted his gaze and squinted, but without the darkness surrounding them, her light wasn't noticeable. He met her eyes, once again noticing the fleck of amber in her left one and the streak of white in her auburn hair. He didn't have to ask where she'd discovered her powers or how she'd learned to use them. Having Yami—no, Ansem—controlling her body for months would have given her plenty of schooling in that discipline.

"Thanks," he said, managing to get back to his feet.

The flutter of wings interrupted their moment of relief, and Riku whirled around, keyblade at the ready, as Id landed delicately on a craggy piece of the dais. Everything about his movements was completely unlike Sora now—too graceful, too precise. Sora was all about clumsy limbs and boyish charm; he was the loveable canine. Id was just a feline playing with its food.

Id twisted Sora's lips into a dark little smile. "You would already be on your knees if I had a host better suited to wielding the darkness."

Kairi's fingers clutched the edge of Riku's hoodie and gave a subtle tug, trying to tell him something. Riku followed the direction of her gaze and understood what she wanted.

The shadowy sphere that encased Ansem's heart was hovering just beside Id's head, only a leap of faith away. This was their chance—and maybe their only one.

Riku narrowed his eyes up at Id. "Why don't you fight me yourself instead of using all of your little pets?" he demanded.

"As if you have the guts to hurt my host," Id retorted with a widening smile.

Lifting his keyblade into a defensive position, Riku clenched his jaw. "Try me."

Id's eyes almost seemed to brighten with delight, liking the challenge, or maybe the way Riku had worded it. "My pleasure," he purred.

He took the bait. Riku was expecting the attack that came next, but it was the force that caught him off guard. One moment, Id was standing in front of him, and the next, there was a burst of darkness and Id was flying through it wielding Einlanzer's tainted form. The weapon now looked like it was made out of pure shadow, and as it crashed against Riku's waiting keyblade, it felt like it held the force of a flood behind it, forcing Riku onto his knees from the impact.

Wisps of darkness curled off the blade as it grated against Riku's, trying to press him into submission, but Riku grinded his teeth and met Id's eyes with a fierce determination. That was all the distraction they'd needed.

Riku might have missed it if he hadn't been waiting for it, but it was there—a quiet shuffle of feet—and Kairi suddenly sprang forward, using Riku's bent back as a springboard to launch herself into the air. Her hands close around the shadow-encased heart hovering beside Id just as Id realized what she was doing.

"_YOU_—!"

Those heartless yellow eyes narrowed to dangerous slits, and before Riku could stop him, Id threw a hand out. A violent wave of darkness crashed into Kairi and threw her to the ground.

She hit the crumbled dais on her side and continued to roll, screaming, as her momentum carried her close to the edge. She was stopped by the team of neoshadows that dogpiled her, but through the growing shadows, Riku saw her curl up and hold Ansem's heart close to her breast to protect it.

Riku pushed all of his weight forward to shove Id back, making room to regain his footing before Id could attack again—and Id did, with a vengeance, his attention returning to Riku with the growl of a petulant child. Einlanzer struck at him again and again, quick but clumsy now in his anger, and Riku was able to meet the blade with Way to Fall each time.

Riku would have found satisfaction in Id's frustration if not for how worried he was about Kairi, whose powers hadn't reacted to the darkness swirling around her. "Use your light!" he shouted, grimacing as Einlanzer's dark blade nicked his shoulder. He wasn't sure how long he'd be able to keep this up.

He ducked as Id swung for his face, catching the sword with Way to Fall's keyway, and he twisted his weapon to yank Id's from his hands.

"I-I can't!" Kairi cried. "Ansem's heart will escape!"

Einlanzer's hilt spiraled in the air, and Riku caught it with ease, so cold it almost burned, the taint of its darkness sending goosebumps running along his arms.

Id's expression clouded with fury as Riku turned his own blade on him, now wielding both Einlanzer and his keyblade.

Clearly not liking the turn of events, Id teleported away in a cloud of darkness, amber eyes burning with rage. Riku didn't wait for him to reappear. He stabbed Einlanzer into the cracked dais and, armed with only his keyblade, he dove into the darkness to rescue Kairi.

Tendrils of shadow and heartless limbs snaked along his body as he reached for her, finally grasping one of her arms, but he felt himself getting pulled in, too, and realized this might have been what Id had wanted all along. His heart thumped at the panicked thought, but he held onto Kairi's trembling arm as he struggled against the powerful drag of the darkness, trying to wrench himself free so he could help her.

And through the ice beginning to creep into his senses as the darkness began to envelope him, he heard her.

"_No_—Riku—just _run_, I'll be okay!"

But there, closer, a breath on his ear, a deep whisper, that _voice _again...

**Remember, all you have to do is open your heart.**

A shiver coursed through Riku, igniting his nerves, and something inside of him melted under the temptation, spurred on by his desperation. Guarded but interested, his heart reached out, testing to see what lay beyond it, maybe see what this voice wanted from him—

**That's it. Just like before. Embrace it.**

And he felt it there, just outside the fringes of his own power—a wellspring of strength, of confidence—the same that had helped him defeat Maleficent. He tapped into it and felt the surge of power infuse with his own, filling him with an overwhelming sense of invulnerability, and he more than accepted it. He loved it.

Suddenly, Id's darkness was nothing to fear; now it was just in the way.

Something coiled inside of him and sprung free, a blast of warm indigo magic that swirled around him and Kairi in a majestic spiral, and drove back Id's heartless and shadows. Though it harmed the heartless enough for them to creep away to recuperate, it didn't banish the darkness itself, which began to gather for another attack.

Tugging Kairi to her feet, Riku turned to face Id, who was now perched atop his transforming mass of darkness. Those bright eyes focused on Riku with an intense interest that trembled Riku's heart.

"Fascinating. That _wasn't_ the keyblade's power..."

At Id's words, Kairi's icy fingers curled against Riku's arm. Something about the way she touched him was wary, but Riku didn't have time to wonder on it.

A chorus of righteous cries broke through the tense silence, each a girl and each with a heart as bright and pure as a star.

Riku felt more than heard Kairi's surprised gasp as six beautiful ladies came clambering up the crumbled platform stairs, many dressed in lavish gowns of blues and yellows and pinks, and not one of them wielding a real weapon.

By all expectations, Id should have burst into laughter.

Instead, as the six princesses of heart rushed at him, his eyes widened with shock.

For just the briefest of moments, Riku sympathized with his astonishment because he couldn't believe his eyes either, but then he saw what effect the girls had on the shadows around them. They didn't _need_ any weapons. In the face of their gathered pure hearts, the darkness didn't stand a chance.

The heartless shrank away like scared animals until they sank completely back into their black homes and disappeared. The shadows disintegrated, thousands upon thousands of tendrils unraveling and fading, Id's infinite loom of powers coming undone.

And Id himself, overcoming his surprise too late, fell through his vanishing darkness without a pair of dark wings to catch him.

It happened so fast, Riku's feet reacted before he could even think about what he was seeing. He flew across the debris towards Id's falling form, his best friend's name ringing through the air.

"Sora!!"

His thoughts weren't about the rubble beneath his feet or his momentum or how much this was going to hurt—

He threw himself forward into a roll, the jagged debris tearing into his skin and clothes, and but he made it a split second before Sora did. Sora's body slammed into his, and for a moment all Riku felt was the overwhelming sting of his nerves crying in agony. Sora, however, didn't make a sound. He lay where he'd landed on Riku, cold and lifeless.

As soon as Riku could think straight, he rolled over with a grimace, fragments of stone still piercing into his skin, but he was more concerned about Sora. Pulling the younger boy into his arms, he took his wrist.

There beneath Sora's chilled skin was a healthy pulse, slightly quickened, and already beginning to warm him. Sora's eyes were closed, but Riku had a good feeling that when they opened, they would be Sora's sky blue, not Id's heartless yellow.

Id was gone, at least for now. He must have abandoned Sora's body before the impact. Either that, or the pure hearts had temporarily banished him.

As the last of the darkness faded around them, the princesses knelt beside Riku and Sora, their delicate fingers brushing them off. Riku tried not to wince as shards of stone were carefully tugged out of his arm, but the feel of their warm hands resting on him was a relief. He couldn't hold back a grateful sigh as a cure spell washed through him.

"Thanks..."

Even surrounded by friendly faces, his heart refused to calm down yet.

Was it over?

He held Sora to his chest. Glancing past the colorful skirts of the princesses, he spotted Einlanzer.

The sword was still rammed into the stone where he'd left it, but now it was snapped clean in half. He wasn't sure how it had happened, but figured maybe the blade hadn't been able to handle that much darkness... and the thought saddened him. A lot of work, munny, and heart had gone into getting that present for Sora.

Beyond Einlanzer's resting place, he spotted Kairi.

She sat on her knees, her gaze focused on the small black globe that lay cupped in her hands. Tiny veins of light had begun to seep through the protective shadows around Ansem's heart.

No, it wasn't over yet.

Riku couldn't help wondering where Ansem's heart would go if Kairi's powers kept purifying that shell around it. Did it even have a body to return to? And if it did—would Riku even recognize that "Ansem" as "Yami"? Or had the entity named "Yami" only existed because Kairi had been half of him, too?

"Are you okay?"

Drawn out of his thoughts, Riku glanced at the tanned face that was now hovering in front of his. The princess was gorgeous, even Riku could admit that, with thick black hair tied behind her and a turquoise circlet centered above her forehead. She was very shapely, at least compared to some of the other princesses; she was also the only one not wearing a dress, sporting a pair of loose pants and a small top that reminded him of Atlantis, sort of, especially the color.

Aware that he was staring without meaning to, he politely lowered his gaze and focused on Sora. He could feel all of their eyes on him now, speculating, worrying, judging.

Was he okay? He didn't know. He needed answers and he needed time to think about them.

"For now," he said. "I need to seal the keyhole before anything else..."

But before he could get to his feet, a yellow skirt stopped in front of him. He felt his heart miss a beat as memories of months ago came to him, and his eyes rose to meet Snow White's.

"Riku, was it?" she asked with a sweet smile. "The Keyblade Master."

Riku's fingers curled against his keyblade's grip as he held Sora closer to himself. The conversation he had shared with Snow White that day still haunted him. He had promised to save her, her forest, and all of her animal friends, but he had failed them. He knew now it was because Yami himself had kidnapped her before Riku had returned to help her, but the guilt still gnawed at his heart.

"Yeah, Riku," he replied in a murmur. "I guess I ended up being your executioner in a way, after all. Sorry..."

She pressed a hand over her mouth as if holding back a giggle. "I don't blame you for what happened," she said, clasping her hands together now. "Seems like I had the opportunity to save _you_ instead. I like to think of it as destiny about to come full circle." She slowly turned towards the heart-shaped portal where the door of the world awaited. "It's waiting for you to finish it."

Riku nodded. Carefully setting Sora down, he stood. His fingers tightened around Way to Fall as he watched several of the princesses move forward to study Sora.

One of them, with golden hair and red, red lips, offered Riku a reassuring smile. "I don't sense the darkness inside of him anymore."

And the blonde next to her, wearing a shimmering blue gown, brushed Sora's bangs out of his face. "I think if we work together, we can make something that can protect him..."

The youngest princess, another blonde with a doll-like dress, clapped her hands together. "What a wonderful idea!"

A hoarse growl resounded behind them, and Riku turned, surprised when he saw one of the princesses—the lone brunette of the group—helping Beast onto the cracked platform. Though he looked worse for wear, he now seemed to be mostly healed except for some stubborn injuries.

The princess accidentally touched one of the cuts on his arm, earning another deep growl from the beast, but after a loud "Oh, stop being a baby!" from her, Beast's ears drooped, and he let her coddle him. When she saw the other princesses gathering close to Riku, she led Beast up to them, her yellow glove resting inside of his large paw with pride.

"He's going to be just fine," she said with confidence. Then, to a small figure huddled on the ground: "Thank you for looking out for him..."

Amongst the colorful hues of their dresses, Riku spotted Kairi's modest white shirt and lavender skorts. She met Belle's smile shyly, unlike the Kairi that Riku used to know. "It wasn't really me. It was him..." Her eyes lowered to Ansem's heart, and she clutched it even closer.

Then she looked to Riku and held his gaze. He gave her a questioning look, but she only offered that shy smile. The white streak in her hair was caught at the corner of her lips. The sight of it stirred something inside of Riku, the realization that if Ansem and Kairi had really been Yami all this time, Kairi knew exactly what Riku had gone through.

"Your turn to shine," she said.

The words were meant to encourage him. Somehow, they just reminded him of everything he had done wrong—from leaving her at Destiny Islands, to excluding Sora as a hero, to giving himself over to Yami, to sacrificing his memories and endangering not only himself, but all of the worlds he was supposed to be protecting...

And as he lifted his keyblade towards the swirling portal, ready to tap into its powers to seal the world, Kairi's encouragement wrapped like a vise around his heart, and he felt the opposite of what he should have.

Instead of the familiar warm hum of his powers flowing through the keyblade, a hush settled over the blade. No powers, no whispered songs of ancient stories and heroes, no warnings. Just a void.

Then, wisp by wisp of colorful magic and shadow, the intricate blade slowly began to unravel, slipping through his fingers into ghostlike fragments, until there was nothing left but the hollow despair inside of him. When he tried to call it back to him, all he felt was an emptiness there in his heart where its power should have been.

He didn't bother hiding the distress on his face as he stared at his empty palm. Nothing had changed, had it? His heart was still too weak, even after getting his memories back, even after making up with Sora, even after defeating Maleficent and Id. Having it this far must have been a fluke...

Now here he was, barehanded in front of the people he had been chosen to protect.

Riku curled a fist over his heart as he tried not to fall to pieces.

At his feet, Sora lay curled on his side, healed now and looking blissfully peaceful, not a single fear haunting his sleep. Maybe the keyblade really had changed its mind. If that was the case, Riku had no doubt who the keyblade had chosen.

"Riku..."

There was pity in Kairi's voice, and Riku knew he'd see it in her eyes if he glanced at her. He squeezed his eyes shut. He could hear the other princesses exchanging concerned whispers, beginning to come to their own conclusions about what was happening.

His words died in his throat as he fished for excuses as to why the keyblade had disappeared, but he couldn't lie, _wouldn't_ lie to them. But the truth seemed so much harder...

When he felt a slender, satin-soft hand rest on his arm, he tensed and looked up. The brunette with Beast gently squeezed his arm with reassurance as she smiled. "We saw how hard you fought. You must be exhausted... Why don't you rest until you feel better?"

Beast glanced at her before focusing on Riku as well. "Belle's right. There's no danger now. Not yet."

"Right!" said the dark-haired princess, the one who had earlier asked him if he'd been okay. She planted a hand on her hip as if making up her mind and everyone else's along with it. "We'll keep watch here while we try to figure out what we need to do."

Truth be told, resting was the last thing Riku wanted to do, but as he looked from one princess to the next, each with her own encouraging smile, he decided not to argue. Without the keyblade or a gummi ship, he didn't really have a choice but to wait.

Resigning to his fate, Riku gave a solemn nod and knelt beside Sora. He would wake up soon. Riku wouldn't leave his side until then.

Before he could lift Sora, Riku heard the soft sound of feet against the rubble behind him. Two skinny arms wrapped around him, and Riku felt Kairi's necklace touch his neck as she buried her face in his hair. Her body was warm now, and so was her breath.

"I'm sorry..."

Riku closed his eyes and felt the vise around his heart tighten even more.

Her apology wasn't for her—what did she have to be sorry about? No, he knew it was for him. _Sorry for everything you went through_, it said. It was the kind of apology people tried to offer as comfort, but it always had the same translation: _I'm glad I'm not in your shoes._

He tried not to be upset. Kairi wouldn't have offered him this kind of comfort back home. She would have known he could have handled anything that came his way. But this Riku? He didn't have that confidence, and Kairi could see right through his facades. She knew he needed every bit of help he could get.

...had he really become that pathetic?

His jaw tightened as he focused on Sora.

He looked too peaceful like this. Riku was used to seeing his best friend sprawled out over a bed with his mouth hanging open, maybe a line of drool trailing down his chin. And this outfit—it didn't suit him.

Riku plucked the familiar crown pendant off the black collar, and as if that had broken Id's spell over Sora, the blacks and silvers and greens of his outfit dissolved into escaping shadow, leaving Sora back in the cute orange hoodie he had been wearing earlier. Riku stroked a hand through Sora's messy hair, feeling his heart lighten just a little.

When Kairi began to pull back, Riku turned to her and noticed she still had Ansem's heart resting in her lap. She wouldn't be letting it out of her sights, just like he'd be protecting Sora. "Here," he said, offering her the crown charm. "I don't really know how stuff like this works, but... if the darkness could corrupt Sora's sword, maybe your light can do the same."

Kairi took the charm, her eyes brightening with understanding. "You mean give Sora's necklace our light—so Id can't take over while he's wearing it."

Riku nodded. "It might work."

"It's worth a try," Beast agreed, and all of the princesses began to nod.

Kairi picked herself up and handed the charm to Belle, who gave a crooked smile at the design and called it cute.

"Sora's always wearing it," Kairi explained with a small smile of her own, fond. "So don't lose it."

While the girls spoke with each other, Riku gathered Sora's arms over his shoulders and hefted Sora onto his back, leaning forward to carry him piggyback. He didn't really want to return to any of the bastion's empty, gloomy bedrooms, but it was better than staying here with all the rubble.

"I'm gonna go find a bed for him," was Riku's goodbye to them. He turned and began to carefully step over the crumbled dais, heading for the stairs at a slow, diligent pace. Sora wasn't heavy, not by far; but holding him like this, Riku could feel Sora's strong heartbeat against his back. That, more than anything, was a comfort.

He left the heart of the world and the princesses, but his shame lingered as he walked in silence through the bastion halls. Not a single heartless appeared, though Riku knew he would have been in trouble if any had decided to show up.

It actually took him a few minutes to notice the quiet footfalls behind him, and when he paused to look, he understood why no heartless had been bothering him.

Kairi had decided to follow.

When he noticed her, she froze, looking caught for just a second, but when he didn't tell her to go back, she must have deemed it safe. She picked up her pace and fell into step beside him, her head bowed as she studied the shelled heart in her hands.

"How are you feeling?" Riku asked. The words felt foreign to him, maybe forced, too. But he was genuinely curious.

She flinched a little, but she smiled. Riku couldn't see her eyes, but he imagined that the smile didn't quite reach them. "I'm fine," she said.

"You seem kind of jumpy," he noted. "You sure?"

At first she began to nod, but she hesitated, and her voice took on an uneasy edge. "It just... feels really weird. Being in control of my body again, I mean." She glanced at him, the fleck of amber in her eye standing out amongst the blue. "I never realized how weak I was before all this. Yami—he was strong. Ansem was."

He must have been pretty strong if Kairi hadn't had any control over her own body. Riku fell into thought, recalling all of the times he had dreamt about Kairi or thought he had seen her or heard her in some of the worlds he had visited. All this time—it had been because of Yami? Had those glimpses of Kairi been Ansem's slip-ups?

"You're strong," Riku said after a while. When she gave him a surprised look, he mustered a half smile to her credit. "In your own way. You don't need a sword or to be in the middle of the fight in order to be the strong one. You were always there for Sora, back home, and me, too... rooting us on."

Until that last day. He hadn't forgotten the reason he had wanted to leave Kairi on the islands. She had tried to leave _him_ first.

_"Sora, let's take the raft and go—just the two of us!"_

But the more Riku looked back on how he had reacted, he realized he didn't feel any of that bitterness now. Maybe what he and Sora had been missing all along hadn't been their friendship—maybe it had been Kairi's. Her advice, her moderation, her reassurance. Sora and Riku had had their spats before, but Kairi had usually been the one to step between them.

In all honesty, even though he had been mad at her at the time, he was just glad to see her again. Knowing someone else had survived the fall of Destiny Islands lifted some of the guilt that had been weighing his heart—especially because it had been _Kairi_. He had always kind of held it against her that her existence on the islands had meant he couldn't have his own best friend solely to himself, but Kairi had been his friend, too.

And now, as her surprised look faded into an embarrassed but happy little smile, touched by Riku's compliment, Riku admitted that he had missed her.

He thought it strange that it had taken such a painful adventure in order to understand how much of an impact she'd really had on their lives. He also saw irony in the fact that she had been right there all along, watching everything that had been happening to them, and couldn't do anything to help. That must have been rough.

"I'm sorry," he said, and it was the kind of apology that really was asking for forgiveness—not one to comfort her, not a _Sorry for what you went through, _or a _I wouldn't have wanted to be in your shoes_. "I'm sorry for leaving you behind."

Her happy smile lingered, but her eyes filled with a sadness that he recognized. There was guilt there, and understanding. Most of all, there was forgiveness. "If you hadn't, I wouldn't have met Ansem." Her voice was small, as if scared to admit it. That wasn't like the Kairi he used to know. "Or learned about where I came from."

Now _that _caught his attention.

One of the main reasons he had been so restless back home, yearning to see what lay beyond the sea's horizon, was the mystery of Kairi's appearance on the islands. Kairi: a girl who had washed up on shore the morning after the night of the meteor shower... no memories of her past... and with a faraway look in her eyes as if she had seen worlds Riku hadn't even dreamed up yet.

He didn't realize he was staring wide-eyed at her until her sad smile pulled with amusement. "Let me show you something," she said. When she moved past him to take the lead, he let her.

She led him down the corridor towards the bedrooms he and Sora had been given during their stay here, but to his curiosity, she stopped in front of one of the doors that had been locked during his previous visit. When she tried the handle, it pushed open with ease, and Riku moved forward to see what she wanted to show him.

The bedroom he found himself in was decorated as though it had once belonged to a little girl, complete with a sheer canopy over a small bed decorated in lavender and white sheets with the kind of intricate trim that reminded Riku of, well, a princess. There were even some scattered drawings hanging on the walls and closet door, things like flowers and people.

One stick figure in particular caught his attention, with short red hair and bright blue eyes standing in field of flowers. Riku had no doubt who it was supposed to represent.

"This was your room," Riku stated with wonder.

He glanced at Kairi as she pulled back the sheer curtain around the bed, and he moved forward to let her help him set Sora down. She lifted the sheets as he rolled Sora carefully onto his back, and together they tucked him in. When Sora was settled, Riku took a closer look around the room.

"So you lived here before you came to the islands..."

"I don't remember much at all," she admitted, her gaze distant as she adjusted the sheets at Sora's neck with one hand. Ansem's heart was cradled by her free arm. "I didn't remember _anything _until I came here, and then... it started coming back, just a little, bit by bit."

Riku inspected the dusty items on the vanity—a hand mirror, a brush and comb, hair clips, a slender picture book. He flipped through the book, not recognizing the children's story, something about a baby lion who was accidentally given to and raised by sheep.

"What do you remember?" he asked, skimming the story. His fingers traced the pages that hadn't seemed to age at all in the last decade since it must have been abandoned. The lion in the story grew up sheepish but later discovered his inner lion just in time to protect his sheep family from being eaten by a wolf.

Kairi saw what he was reading and came over to look at it with him. "I had a nanny who would tell me stories. I called her my grandma, but she wasn't really..." She trailed off as she picked up her brush from the vanity. "She used to do my hair, too. I wonder what happened to her..."

"Maybe she made it out before Maleficent took over the bastion," Riku suggested. It was possible she had wound up in Traverse Town with the rest of the gang, but Kairi would have known if she had been there because Yami had met a lot of the town's civilians.

"Maybe," she said, though she sounded miles away. She set the brush down and began to walk the perimeter of the bedroom, pausing only to study the drawings on the wall. Riku watched as she reached out to touch the small Kairi figure in the field of flowers. "I remember wanting to see the garden..."

"This place had a garden?"

"It _was _a garden," she said. "At least, that's what he used to call it..." And before Riku could ask who she was talking about, her fingers trailed to another drawing nearby, this one of a group. There was a tall blonde figure holding little Kairi's hand. "This man. He was one of the ones who came to see me a lot." She glanced at Riku, pursing her lips in thought. "I remember not being able to go outside often, only when no one else was around. They wouldn't let me go into other parts of the castle, either... I snuck out sometimes, but I would get scolded." Then her eyes drifted back to the drawing. "He called me his little princess, but I didn't feel like one. I felt trapped..."

And when her hand fell away from the picture, Riku noticed the other stick figures. He assumed they were men, too, but amongst the peach-colored figures, two with blonde hair, one with silvery-blue, one stood out the most—with light, light gray hair and skin darker than the rest. Only, he had brown eyes, not amber.

"This looks like Yami," he noted.

"It could have been Ansem," she agreed, "but I don't remember anyone's name."

Frowning, Riku drew closer to study the Yami-like stick figure. "So then—Ansem didn't talk to you about stuff?" He was thinking about what few facts he knew about the man, things he had learned by diving into Sephiroth and Leon's memories, but... After his own experience with memories and how they could so easily be altered, he wasn't sure what he believed about Ansem anymore.

When she didn't respond to him right away, he glanced at her. She had that faraway look on her face again. "Ansem couldn't remember anything, either," she said at last. "He was trying to gather his old reports to see if they would jog his memory, but Maleficent had most of them."

Now that Riku thought about it, Id had mentioned something about that, that the heart was just a fragment of Ansem. "What did Id mean when he said Ansem's memories were false?"

Kairi shook her head. "I don't know... I don't even think Ansem would know. Even when he got most of the reports, he couldn't remember anything before the time he spent working for Id. Just a few pieces here and there, like faces, emotions, Squall..."

Riku raised a brow. Something about the way she had said Leon's real name made it seem very personal... But she had been with Ansem for months—who knew what she knew about Ansem's past relationship with Squall. He decided not to question it, especially when she sighed and sat at the edge of the bed, looking lost.

"I just... want to know what happened," she said. "Why I was kept hidden. How I got to the islands..."

And as Riku watched her stare down at the trapped heart cupped safely in her hands, he wondered if they would ever get the answers to the questions that plagued them both.

-o-o-

Riku lost track of the time that passed while he and Kairi waited at the bedside for Sora to wake. The whole time, Kairi held onto Ansem's heart as if it were her own. They didn't speak much, both of them too lost in their own thoughts to continue voicing their questions. Riku wasn't even sure where to start anymore.

It wasn't until Riku had decided to start reading the skinny children's books scattered throughout the room that Sora finally woke up. Riku was in the middle of reading about Ferdinand the Bull's love for flowers when he heard Sora mumble something incoherent.

Seconds later, Sora's blue eyes slipped open, clouded with confusion and grogginess, but free from Id's control. He focused on Riku and gave a sleepy smile of embarrassment.

"Hey. Um... What did I miss?"

Riku couldn't resist returning the smile, relieved and amused. "A lot, you goof." He set the children's book aside and messed up Sora's already messy hair.

Sora released a drowsy laugh. "Man, déjà vu. Except I was the one waiting for you to wake up. Remember?"

Riku remembered. Sora was referring to the first time Riku had woken up in the bastion, but Riku had been asleep for days thanks to Yami. "Yeah," he said, but his smile faded with concern. "You okay?"

"Mm-hm." Sora stretched, his voice strained as he spoke through it. "I feel fine, just groggy. And Id's not happy." He blinked up at Riku, whose expression had darkened. "What happened when he took over?"

"A lot," Riku said again. Then, serious now, he asked if Sora could summon the keyblade.

At first Sora looked confused, but when he tried, only Sora was surprised when the keyblade's magic swirled into existence and left the blade resting in Sora's hand. It was still in the keyblade's default form, but Riku assumed that was because he was the one who owned Way to Fall, and Sora had taken off Oathkeeper's charm.

"I don't get it," Sora said, his brows knitted.

Riku raked a hand through his hair. "I think it's pretty obvious," he sighed. "It won't let me summon it when you're around. It's up to you to seal the worlds now."

Glancing from Riku to the keyblade and then back to Riku, Sora's face filled with guilt. "I'm sorry..."

Riku got to his feet, mustering a small smile to Sora's credit. "Hey, it's not your fault. It's my heart that's messed up." And before Sora could argue, Riku turned towards Kairi, who had been sitting silently at the chair in front of the vanity.

Sora followed the direction of his gaze, questioning—

Then he shot up straight in bed, gasping. "KAIRI!"

Her face lit with a smile, and as Sora clambered out of bed, she rose to her feet and met him halfway. The hug they shared was a little awkward, probably because Sora was shy about hugging girls and Kairi was still holding Ansem's heart, but the sight made something inside of Riku relax.

"You're okay!" Sora laughed, trying to recover from his happiness and embarrassment.

The faintest of blushes touched Kairi's cheeks, and she lowered her eyes, back to being shy. "Yeah."

Sora whirled towards Riku, all of his grogginess gone now, and his spirits back where they were supposed to be—buoyant, free, Sora-like. "Where's Yami?" he asked, grinning now. "I want to punch him and then say thanks! You know, for looking out for Kairi."

Kairi and Riku exchanged glances, sharing the silent understanding that this was going to be a long, difficult story to explain. They both knew the way Sora's brain worked, and while Sora wasn't stupid, he could be thick sometimes.

With a grim sigh, Riku told Sora to sit down.

Sora's grin fell, replaced with fear. "What happened? Is he okay? He didn't..."

"Yes and no," Riku said, filling in Sora's unasked question. Had Yami died? That was up to interpretation. So, waiting until Sora settled back onto the bed, Riku began to explain what he had witnessed after Id had taken over Sora's body.

The more he spoke, the more confused Sora looked until he finally buried his hands in his hair and groaned at Riku. "Whaaat? This is way too confusing...!"

"Basically," Kairi softly cut in, "there are three parts to a person—a body, a heart, and a soul. A lot of heartless actually have hearts—they're what happens to a person's heart when the darkness takes over. Nine years ago, Ansem's heart was consumed by darkness, and he became a heartless."

"And Ansem's heartless came to Destiny Islands," Riku explained.

"He recognized me as one of the princesses he would need to open up Hollow Bastion's protected keyhole," Kairi continued, "so he needed to take me along. He decided to try to possess me, but..." She hesitated and shook her head, closing her eyes as if not wanting to remember. "Something happened. My heart was too pure for his. It drove a lot of the darkness out of Ansem's heart, leaving his heart and a normal amount of darkness inside of me.

"He was still able to take over my body, even transform into himself, but... not completely. It was like we were one person, but I didn't have any control. I fought him a lot at first, but eventually we started to understand each other. I felt sorry for him, and he wanted to help me. And when we started to be friends, that's when his darkness started to fade... That's also when his appearance started to look more and more like his old self."

She paused to look at Sora, who still looked confused but seemed to be following along with her story just fine.

"So then... Yami... was you all along?" Sora asked.

"No," Kairi said, smiling faintly. "He was mostly Ansem. I was just the... 'shell,' he called it. Everything about Yami was Ansem, even though it started out as my body. Yami's body, his decisions, his powers—those were all Ansem's. I was just the light deep down inside of him."

"Gradually purifying him," Riku added. "That's why Yami had a change of heart—literally."

Kairi nodded. "Exactly. In the beginning, back when he was still following Id's plans, he knew what he was doing was hurting a lot of worlds and a lot of people, but he didn't care. But after he started to spend time with the two of you, I think my heart really reacted, and... it began to purify him. When he lost a lot of his darkness, he began to realize what he was doing was wrong. That's why he did what he did. That's why he waited so long to reveal who he was—he couldn't give me to Maleficent or open the keyhole until he was sure you two were strong enough to beat her—and Id."

When Kairi finished speaking, Sora stared down at the bed sheets, curling his fingers into them as his expression grew gloomy. "So we have you back finally, but Yami is gone."

"Not completely," Riku said, nodding to the dark sphere in Kairi's hands. He reached for it to show Sora, but Kairi quickly drew it closer to herself, her eyes wide as if Riku had just tried to kill the heart instead of just take it. Riku held his hand in surrender, not wanting to upset her. "Sorry, I just wanted Sora to see him..."

"Him?" Sora wondered.

Almost self-consciously, Kairi held out Ansem's heart for them to see. "This is what's left of Ansem. Id trapped his heart in darkness so it couldn't escape..."

And that shell of darkness now had wider cracks around it, the light of the heart shining through. Riku was worried about that. "I think you're purifying it... Maybe we should put it in something so you can't accidentally set it free."

After hesitating, her eyes caught his, serious blue with a fleck of amber. She nodded.

As the three of them got up and began to explore Kairi's old room to find something suitable to put the heart in, Sora started to tell Kairi about how the closet in this room had led him to a whole other world—but Kairi pointed out that he had already told the story to Yami, hence her as well.

Sora rubbed the back of his head, laughing. "Oh. That's gonna take some getting used to."

And so Kairi told Sora what she had told Riku—that this room had been hers when she was a little girl. Riku listened to her fill Sora in, all the while searching the closet (which did not lead to another world, not for him) for a container. Eventually the conversation led back to Ansem's missing memories, as it had with Riku, only this time Riku recalled something else Id had mentioned.

"What had Id meant by 'other forces' clamoring for Ansem's heart?" he asked.

Kairi and Sora both looked up from where they were digging through a chest of old toys. So far they'd only found a pink bucket and a white basket, which Kairi hadn't liked, not to carry around someone's heart in.

"Ansem never told me," she said, sounding worried. "But Id's right. There _are_. I don't know who they are, but he was careful not to run into them. He must not have felt very safe even when he was using me as a shell..." Lowering her face, she studied the heart she now had resting in her lap. "He just wanted to be whole. He wanted to fix all of the things he had done wrong... but he knew he wouldn't get the chance. So he set it up so the two of you could do it."

Riku didn't quite see it that way. To him, it sounded like Ansem had given up.

"So then... if there are people out there who want his heart," Sora said slowly, drawing a conclusion out of what Kairi had just said. "Id's not the only bad guy still out there."

Kairi curled her hands over the heart. "No... He's not."

"What does he even want?" Sora sighed. It was a frustrated sigh, followed by a briefly irritated look. "He won't tell me. Usually he'd tease me with _something_, but now he's not telling me anything at all."

"Probably because he's embarrassed he got scared off by a bunch of princesses," Riku said with a crooked smile.

Sora grinned at that. "Man, he's definitely not happy about that."

Even Kairi gave a small giggle, right before she seemed to remember something. "Oh—actually, right before he released my heart and Ansem's, Id did mention something weird." Tucking her lock of white hair behind her ear, she raised her eyes in contemplation. "His path to Kingdom Hearts? I don't know what that is, though. Ansem never mentioned it—he didn't talk about Id much at all—but whatever it is, it's probably what Id's after."

"I just want to know who he really is," Riku said, and it was his turn to sigh. "And why he's so interested in us."

Sora shrugged, going back to looking for a container. "Beats me. What I want to know is how to get rid of him!"

That was when Riku remembered he had given Sora's necklace to the princesses for that exact purpose. He reminded Kairi, who liked the idea and said they should go see the other princesses.

After a few more minutes of searching Kairi's old room, they uncovered a box of decorative purses—some well-loved and worn away, some pristine as if Kairi had never played with them. Kairi chose one of the smaller ones with a lengthy strap, the image of a pretty bird embroidered on the front. Ansem's heart fit snugly into it, and she slung the strap over a shoulder, looking satisfied with it.

Together they accompanied Sora on his quest to visit the princesses, not a trace of the heartless on their way. It was Sora who noticed the voices coming from the direction of the foyer, and sure enough, as they entered the main hall, they spotted Beast standing with Belle, and the other princesses scattered throughout in several groups.

"Wow, she really _is _pretty," Sora whispered to Riku before he ran off to meet with them, waving and congratulating Beast on finally finding his Belle.

Riku lingered behind with Kairi. A smile touched his lips as he watched Sora laugh and tease Beast, but his heart felt distant at the same time. He felt like he didn't belong here anymore.

Once Sora found a way to prevent Id from possessing him, Sora's heart would probably only get stronger, practically guaranteeing that the keyblade would react to him instead of Riku.

And Riku's heart...

Well, Riku didn't know what his role was anymore. All he knew was that he wanted to protect his friends, no matter what that would take.

Riku wasn't all that surprised when a few princesses sent him concerned looks, most likely wondering why he was remaining impersonal. What surprised him was that Kairi was doing the same thing he was. Maybe she felt like she didn't belong with them, either.

When she turned to wander off towards the library, he followed her to make sure she wouldn't run into anything that wanted either her or the heart she was carrying.

"You sure you're alright?" he asked once they were out of earshot. They entered the library together and passed through the towering bookshelves. Riku hadn't been here in weeks, but nothing had changed. It still had that comforting musk of old books and leather.

Kairi didn't look at him, but her expression told him that despite what she had said earlier, she wasn't okay. "I don't know," she said, resting a hand over the lump in her purse.

As they emerged from the sea of shelves and into the open library, she came to a stop in front of the tall windows and took a seat on the elegant stairs. Riku hesitated about joining her, his memories of this room beginning to unsettle him. This was where Yami had given him Oblivion; it was also where Riku had begun to see him in a different light... in an attractive kind of way... And there, back amongst the shelves, was where he and Sora had their first awkward time together, "become one" as Yami would have put it.

Riku studied her closely for a long moment. She looked so tiny sitting there on the stairs, skinny and pale, her eyes downcast as she pulled her purse protectively into her lap.

"I should be happy," she said, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had spread between them. Her voice was small and uncertain, sounding like how his own heart felt. "But I feel empty now." Her fingers curled into the purse. "I think... because we were together so long... my heart, my body got used to him being there..."

He made his way over and took a seat beside her, pushing down his uneasiness. He kind of understood where she was coming from. When he and Sora had been separated, he had felt lost, angry, empty... "You're in control of your own body now," he said. "You can't trade that for anything. And maybe one day we'll find a way to get Ansem back his body, too, so he can have that same freedom."

Kairi's head rose, and her eyes met his. This close, Riku could see how bright the amber fleck in her eye really was. "Think so?" she said, forming a faint smile. "I hope so... He did some bad things, but I think he deserves a chance to put them right again."

Riku agreed with that. He still wanted to punch Yami—like Sora had said—for the things he had done, but he should at least have had the chance to redeem himself. There were a lot of things Riku still wanted to ask him, things he didn't think Kairi would know. But then, there were a lot of things that Kairi would know now that no one else would except Ansem, even things about Riku... And with Ansem in the state he was in, Kairi was the only one who knew some of the things Riku had gone through.

"Kairi?"

Her smile turned expectant. "Hm?"

"When he was in control, how much did you see?" Riku asked. "Everything?"

She looked confused for a second, but when she saw how serious he seemed, her smile faded with understanding. "You mean... What he did to you."

He nodded, turning his gaze downward. He didn't lift it again even when she rested a hand on his leg.

"When I fought him sometimes, he would put me to sleep," she said. "I don't know how he did it, but... when I would wake up again, most of the time he wouldn't tell me what he had done while I was asleep. But that time—" She slipped her hand away, resting it over her purse again, as if cradling a child's head. "That time he told me what he did to you, and what had happened to Sora because of it. I was really mad... He had just woken up, too, and noticed you were gone. I told him to go after you, and... well, he did." Her brows drew together in thought. "I think that was when he really started to change—not physically, but in his heart. I could feel his guilt. He was good at hiding it in front of everyone, but he couldn't hide it from me."

So Ansem had a conscience after all. For some reason, that eased a little of Riku's anger towards him.

"Riku, Kairi?"

The two of them looked up as Sora's concerned voice filtered through the library.

"In here," Riku called, and he got to his feet before offering Kairi his hand. She took it and slipped the purse back onto her shoulder, just as Sora peeked his head around a bookshelf.

"There you are!" Grinning already, Sora held out his crown pendant. "They did it!" he said. "Somehow they used their powers on it." He pulled the necklace over his head and beamed at them. "They told me that as long as I wear it, Id won't be able to take over. He's still there connected to my heart—that it'll take a stronger kind of light to get rid of him—but I already feel better! As soon as I picked my necklace up, I didn't feel Id."

Kairi smiled, looking relieved. "That's great!"

"Yeah," Riku agreed, glad that his idea had worked after all; and looking at the crown pendant gave him another idea. "Oh, let me give you this." He reached into the leg pocket he had tucked Oblivion's charm into, and he pulled it out by its dark chain, offering the black crown to Sora. "I don't need it anymore."

Kairi's gaze grew solemn as she stared at the polished shape sway slowly on the chain. When Sora saw what Riku was trying to give him, his grin fell with confusion.

"But Riku... I already have Oathkeeper," he said, digging a hand into his hoodie to pull out the paopu charm.

Neither of them were expecting the soft gasp that Kairi gave at seeing the keychain. "Oh!"

And both of them turned to her, simultaneously asking, "What?"

She reached for the pendant without hesitation, and Sora handed it to her, even more confused now.

"It's my lucky charm," she said, a fondness in her expression as she cupped it in her hands. There was a soft flash of light, then the telltale disintegration of darkness, just a little, from around the charm. When the magic cleared, Kairi was holding not a paopu trinket, but a flower-like star made out of seashells woven together with purple cord. "I was making this out of Thalassa shells. It was going to give us good luck as we set sail on the raft... A safe voyage, you know...?"

Her fingers closed over it, and her eyes began to water.

"I didn't get to finish it."

Sora touched her arm. "Kairi..."

She continued onward, wiping an eye with her wrist so that Sora would let her go. "When Riku was looking for your birthday gift, I offered it to Yami to give to him, so that you could have it, Sora. He used the darkness to make it look like what Riku would want to give you."

So that would be why it had been shaped like a paopu...

Riku thought back to that day—here in the library—when Yami had stormed in, strangely emotional, and had given the pendant to him for Sora. Had that emotion been a little piece of Kairi shining through?

Sora took her hand and gently pressed it against her chest, a smile breaking through the tension between them. "Then I want you to have it back—so you can finish it, okay?"

Kairi mustered a smile back at him, her sorrow mollified by Sora's consideration. "Okay... And I promise I'll give it back to you when it's done."

Though he didn't say anything, Riku wasn't sure how he felt about Oathkeeper's fate. He and Sora had exchanged it twice, both times with a promise, but their most recent promise—to remain best friends no matter what—was still so fresh in his heart that it hurt to see the charm already passed on to someone else. But at the same time, he understood that Kairi and Sora needed this link between them, just like he had needed one for Sora.

He was going to suggest that Sora should seal the world's keyhole now that everything was settled, but as he opened his mouth to do so, a loud cry rang through the air, followed by triumphant laughter as a blur of red launched off a bookshelf.

"FOUND YA, HAHA!"

Riku actually stumbled as something small and scaly slammed into his head and clung to his hair. "Ack—Mushu?!"

"I'm back, y'all!!" Mushu cried, scampering over Riku's head to peek down into his face, giving him a toothy grin. "Miss me?"

Riku responded by plucking him off by his tail, holding him out by it as if he were a rat. "If I had, I don't anymore," he said with a vicious smirk, narrowing his eyes.

Sora burst into laughter and grabbed Mushu to rescue him from certain death. "You little sneak—where did you come from?"

"Just got here!" Mushu said proudly, unfazed by Riku's temper. He climbed Sora's arm and settled on his shoulder. "Squeon sent me to fetch you guys—those babes out there told me where to find ya."

That perked Riku's interest. "Leon and the others are here already?"

Mushu was ignoring him by now, his attention focused on Kairi instead. "And who's _this_ pretty little lady?"

"Kairi," Sora said with high spirits, "one of my best friends!"

But Riku couldn't resist teasing a little. "You knew her as Yami."

"Aww, really, guys?" Mushu said with a coo. "That's so—" And then Riku's statement clicked. "Wait. Say _what_? Yami?"

Kairi hid a giggle behind her hand as Sora sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, clearly not wanting to be the one to have to explain things to Mushu. "It's a long story..."

"Let's go meet with the others so we won't have to tell this story a hundred times," Riku suggested.

And so they returned to the main hall together, and everyone was excited to see that Riku and Sora were okay. Well, excited in their own ways—Yuffie tackled Sora, followed by Donald and Goofy, and Leon and Cloud had their subtle but relieved reactions, and Cid had some colorful language as always. It was Aerith who gave Riku a knowing look as if she could tell, just by seeing him, that he wasn't completely okay. Riku made it a point not to catch her gaze too often as he and Sora (with Kairi's shy input) tried to explain, once again, the events that had happened since they had left Traverse Town.

When questions about Ansem cropped up, from Cid and Leon specifically, Kairi tried to answer as best as she could, but there was only so much she knew, and only so much that Leon and Cid thought they remembered.

In the end, it was decided that they should split up and search the bastion to see if they could find more information. Sora expressed his doubts about that—since he'd spent the last few weeks trying to do exactly that—but Kairi said she thought she remembered where Yami had left all of the reports he had been working on. When she mentioned "Ansem's old study" had some reports, too, Sora's eyes lit up in remembrance.

"Oh yeah! That's the place with the big portrait of him, too."

Cid frowned and said, gruffly, that he wanted to see it.

From there they made three groups:

Riku was more interested in reading the reports than anything, so he and Kairi adopted Leon and Cloud as bodyguards—not that Riku had wanted to admit he had no weapon to fight with, but everyone knew Sora had the keyblade now.

Sora knew where the study with the portrait was, so he offered to take Cid there. Donald and Goofy volunteered to back him up since they had been ordered by the King to follow the key anyway. Aerith, to Riku's relief, wanted to go through the reports in Ansem's study as well.

Even though Mushu and Yuffie wanted to go with them, Leon told them to start going through the books in the library. With Mushu and Yuffie's unique dexterities, they would be able to access some of the shelves none of the others would be able to. And with the help of the princesses, no doubt they'd uncover the library's best kept secrets, if it had any. Yuffie whined, but when Beast offered to help, too, she quieted down.

Leaving the rest of them in the foyer, Riku and Sora's groups turned towards the labyrinthine halls. Bidding each other the best of luck, Riku and Sora went their separate ways, ready to uncover the truths the bastion and Ansem had hidden so well from them.

-o-o-

Sora was beyond confused about Cid's reaction to seeing Ansem's portrait for the first time.

"What do you _mean _that's not Ansem?" he asked for what felt like the tenth time.

He looked to Donald and Goofy for support, but they seemed just as lost as he was, both of them shrugging. They had never met "Ansem" either, only Yami.

"That ain't Ansem," Cid repeated once again, jerking his thumb at the portrait as he rifled through the mess on the desk. "Trust me, kid, I met Ansem, and that ain't him. Sure looks like the kid you called Yami, yeah, but neither of 'em are Ansem."

"Then how come Yami looks like this guy—and why would Kairi lie and say he was Ansem?" Sora demanded, already getting defensive about Kairi's story.

" 'cuz everyone thinks he _is_," Cid said. "But some of 'em were still wetting their beds or had their heads stuck in the clouds when they were kids, so none of 'em have a damn clue what they're talkin' about."

"Cid." A soft frown on her face, Aerith looked up from the stack of papers she had begun to read. "We were fifteen. _I _was. Squall and Cloud and Sephiroth... we were all old enough to remember. If that man isn't Ansem, who is he?"

"Not a clue," Cid admitted. "But the Ansem I remember was a tall—" He gestured higher than his own height. "—and fair."

"Yuh mean he was a nice feller?" Goofy asked, turning away from the portrait.

Cid shook his head. "Nah—" But he stopped himself and scratched his stubble in thought. "Well, yeah, actually. He gave a lot of munny to the orphanage to keep it running. But his skin—and hair—yeah, he was fair." He grunted to himself as if agreeing with his own statements. "And he had a beard. That guy up there? Nothin' like the Ansem I knew."

Aerith paused, her lips drawn into a pensive line. "I... remember a man like that. He used to bring us ice cream."

"That's right," Cid said, "and heliked ice cream."

A victorious squawk startled all of them as Donald suddenly scrambled to his feet from where he had been sifting through the pile of overturned books. "This must be him, and look!" He held up a double picture frame that opened like a book, but the glass on the inside was shattered.

Everyone moved close to see what Donald had discovered, and Cid gave a triumphant laugh when he saw the figures in one of the photographs.

"Told ya I wasn't makin' it up!"

Sure enough, there was a tall blonde man with a beard; he was older but not too old, and he looked respectable. Standing next to him was the spitting image of Yami. Other people were lined up in the photograph, but Sora didn't know who they were.

"Gwarsh, if that really is who Yami used to be, he must be pretty old by now," Goofy commented.

"But if what Riku and Kairi said was right, he's been a heartless for _years_," Sora said.

"Nine years," Aerith said. She held the reports to her chest, still staring at the photos in the broken frame. "I think we should ask Squall. He was the first one who said Yami looked like Ansem..."

Thoroughly confused now, Sora crossed his arms. He wasn't sure what to believe anymore. Leon had said that Ansem looked like he was related to Yami, so how could Cid and Aerith have memories of some other Ansem?

Weirder yet, why would Yami have been calling himself Ansem—to Kairi of all people—if it wasn't true? Were there two Ansems?

-o-o-

"I know this room..."

Leon's murmur was almost wistful. Though the words and their feeling resonated with Riku's own memories of this place, it wasn't because he was wistful. He knew this room, too.

This was where everything had begun to fall apart.

Everything was as he remembered it: the open balcony and the drifting curtains, the polished piano, the beautiful stained glass windows, the large bed with the exquisitely soft sheets he had found himself in...

Yami's room.

"Ansem's room," Leon said, breathing out. "Nine years, and it looks the same..."

His eyes strayed towards the piano, and for just a moment, Riku remembered what Leon remembered—a teenage boy sitting at the bench, playing a sweet melody. A fumble at the keys. A warm hand resting over his own, pressing his finger into the right key. A rich voice caressing his ear, oh-so-familiar._ This one, Squall_, Ansem had teased.

Riku shivered. It wasn't even his own memory and it had sent goosebumps up his arms. He rubbed them away, trying not to focus on anything at all, not the windows, not the balcony, not the bed, especially not the bed.

_I know an empty plea when I hear one._

Holding his arms to himself, Riku fought back the ghost of Yami that persisted on haunting his memory. He focused on Cloud, who was inspecting the extravagant room with interest. Cloud didn't seem to recognize the place, or if he did, he obviously didn't share the wistful or bitter feelings toward it like Leon or Riku did.

"Ansem had said the same thing," Kairi said with a sad smile. "He left the reports up here..." She began to ascend the spiral staircase that led to the second story where the small library was.

Riku followed her, grateful for the distraction. "What's in them?"

She reached the top landing and headed for the large desk where several stacks of papers were neatly arranged. "He would keep me asleep for hours at a time as he worked on them," she said, "but I know some of them are about the experiments that unleashed the heartless. The others, I don't really know..."

"So then it's true," Leon said in a grave tone. He was right behind Riku, with Cloud at the rear, and when he stepped onto the landing, he moved to stand beside Kairi at the desk. "Ansem's responsible for the heartless outbreak?"

"That's one of the things Ansem wanted to make right," Kairi explained. "So it looks like it's true." She handed him one of the stacks. "These are them, I think..."

"They're marked up," Leon noted as he started to study them.

She nodded and picked up another of the stacks. "I think he was trying to revise them." Turning to Riku, she handed him the second stack. "These are the revised copies he was working on. And these..." A third stack was handed to Cloud. "Are about the Gemini Project."

Cloud stiffened, his blue eyes hardening as he took the stack and began to scan the formal handwriting.

"And the last stack?" Riku wondered, noticing she was taking a seat at the desk to read it.

"I think there's a reason he didn't want me to see these," she said quietly, her gaze focused on the sheets in front of her. "Weird. These have Ansem's name on them, but it's not his handwriting."

Riku set his stack next to Kairi's to compare, curious about what she meant. But she was right, and the differences were obvious. Both handwriting styles were elegant, but the writing on Kairi's stack was formally cursive, written almost with perfect precision and flowing like ribbons across the page. The writing on Riku's stack was less loopy and more arcane, reminding him of the points on a keyblade—graceful yet dangerous.

"That _is _weird," Riku said.

"I saw Yami's writing. All of the other reports are in the same handwriting as his—Ansem's. These, though..." She trailed off, beginning to read, and Riku decided to do the same.

He settled against the edge of the desk and began flipping through the reports in his hands. They were numbered, but a few of them were missing. He checked with Leon's stack and discovered that Yami hadn't had a chance to revise all of them yet, and together they looked at some of the revisions Yami had made, mostly about what the heartless were and how they were accidentally created after experimentation with hearts. A later report mentioned a king from another world and gummi blocks and a meteor shower.

Most of it went over Riku's head, and as he was going to ask Leon what he thought about the reports, Cloud made a frustrated sound and crumpled the thin stack of reports he had been reading.

"This is all nonsense," he sighed, throwing the ball of paper onto the desk, then raked a hand through his hair. "He has most of it crossed out. It's all just a lot of theories about Gemini and there's not _one _fact—except at the end where he says that everything is a _lie_."

Kairi glanced up from reading, her expression troubled. "H-He wrote that after discovering Riku and Sora weren't Gemini." She hesitated, her voice trembling. "He said Id had been lying to him."

"What's wrong?" Riku asked, realizing that she wasn't upset about Cloud's reaction but about whatever she was reading. "What's it say?"

"I..."

Riku pulled the reports away from her before she could protest, and when he began to read aloud, she bowed her head and curled her hands in her lap.

The reports with the strange handwriting detailed the death of a girl named Rinoa Heartilly, and Riku recognized the name. So did Leon and Cloud, Leon especially. She had been his best friend when they were little, and she had died some time when he was nine. At least, he had been told she had died.

She had been very sick, so her parents, respectable aristocrats, had taken her to the best known doctors in the city—Ansem and his apprentices.

"I thought Ansem was your ruler?" Riku interjected.

"He was," Cloud said. "And a scientist."

Leon now looked as troubled as Kairi did, and no doubt why. This was hitting close to home and dredging up old painful memories. "I didn't know he had apprentices."

"Keep reading," Kairi said in a small voice.

Riku continued, reading each report aloud, about how Ansem and these other scientists—Even? Braig? Ienzo? Xehanort?—helped extract Rinoa's pure heart, with her permission, right before her body gave out.

They kept the heart for two years, experimenting on it, before they finally managed to construct a new body for it. Riku felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end as he read on about Ansem's musings about his "little princess" and how he was going to have his old nanny look after her.

Even before Riku got to the part about the little girl's name, he knew why these reports had upset Kairi. _She _was the little girl who had been created to house Rinoa's heart. That was why Ansem had never let her leave the bastion. And those people in the drawings young Kairi had drawn—they must have been the scientists who had experimented on her.

"So Kairi has Rinoa's heart," Riku said, reaching the end of the reports.

"It makes sense," she whispered, her brows furrowed as if she were about to cry, but the dam never broke.

"It does," Leon agreed. He looked angry now, and Riku understood why. Not only had Leon been close to Ansem, but all that time, Ansem had been keeping these earth-shattering secrets—and about Leon's "dead" best friend, of all things. "But now we know why there were rumors about Ansem having an illegitimate child. Kairi must have been spotted a few times..." Leon flipped to one of the last reports in the stack he was holding. "And the special girl he mentions here, the one he sent off into the ocean between worlds..."

"Was me," she said, resting her hands over the purse she had pulled into her lap again. "I read that report. I'd had a feeling before, but now I know. I wound up on Destiny Islands because of my heart." She lifted her eyes to Riku and smiled as if trying to accept everything. "It resonated with yours and Sora's. I was meant to meet you two."

It was a lot to take in. Riku didn't know how she was holding herself together still; he would have felt completely lost if he had been in her shoes. But maybe that was the difference between their hearts. Hers was pure, after all, and his wasn't strong enough to carry the keyblade anymore.

He returned the smile, unsure of how else to react.

"What I don't understand is what happened to Ansem," Leon said as he read through the final report again. "He... cast aside his body? Why would he do that..."

"Ansem told me he didn't really know why he had done that," Kairi said. "He couldn't remember. There was a lot he couldn't remember from before his time with Id..."

"Of course," Cloud said, curling a hand against his chin. It sounded like he had come to a realization. "He was a heartless."

Riku glanced at the purse in Kairi's lap. "We knew that, though. His heart was consumed by darkness, and when he took over Kairi's body, her heart shoved out the darkness that had made him a heartless."

"Exactly. Do you know what happens to the body when a heartless is made?" Cloud asked.

Hesitating, Riku thought about the reports he had just read about Rinoa. Her body had disappeared before she had truly died, after her heart had been extracted. "It disappears...?"

"Right, and it takes most of the memories with it," Cloud explained. Then, when Leon gave Cloud a curious look, he added, "I only know this because Id wanted me—and Sephiroth—to learn certain things about the creatures or people we would fight while working for him. Rogue heartless, especially, but sometimes he would send us after Nobodies."

"Nobodies?" Riku asked, wondering why that sounded so familiar.

"Id said there were nobodies and a rogue heartless after Ansem's heart," Kairi pointed out. "That's what he told us when he put Ansem's heart in this shell." She nodded to the purse in her lap where the heart rested safely inside, still wrapped in Id's darkness.

"Nobodies are the bodies that the heartless leave behind," Cloud continued. "They retain the memories of the time they were human, most of the time. And the heartless get what's left—the emotion. Desires, especially, enhanced by darkness. But most heartless are mindless and only listen to what their master says."

"And Id's their master," Riku said, lost in thought. "So then a 'rogue' heartless is—what?—a heartless who _does _have a mind of its own?"

Cloud nodded, folding his arms over his chest. "That's what Ansem was. He was a rogue heartless who worked with Id, and Id probably fed Ansem's heart with lies. If Ansem's heartless had had any memories at all in the beginning, no doubt they were replaced with whatever Id wanted him to believe. Id had nine years to manipulate Ansem's heart to his advantage. Even when he became Yami, he still had those fake memories. And with Ansem's nobody carrying all of his real memories, wherever he is—if he even exists still—there's no telling what the truth really is."

So that would explain why Id had made that comment about Ansem being driven by false memories.

"But..." Kairi rose to her feet and pulled the purse over her shoulder. "If his body really is out there somewhere, we can put him back together, right?"

"Theoretically, yes," Cloud agreed. "That's if you'd want to."

"We do." Leon began to gather all of the reports, his voice curt as he uncrumpled the stack Cloud had tried to read. "The Ansem I knew wasn't evil. Kairi said most of his darkness is gone, and I believe it."

"Right," Kairi said. "He wasn't evil. He was confused. Just as confused as the rest of us..."

Though Riku had witnessed Yami's strange kindness more than once, his memories of the things Yami had done to him were still fresh in his heart. Even driven by false memories and dark desires, Yami had had a choice between right and wrong. Yami had chosen to hurt Riku and Sora. Even if Yami had tried to make up for it later, the damage was still pretty deep... Riku had yet to forgive himself, too, let alone Yami. Ansem. Whoever.

**And why should you forgive him?**

Riku tensed as the familiar voice touched his ear. No one else seemed to have noticed—Leon was saying something about going to find Cid to fill him in on the details, now that they had the reports.

Heart racing a little, Riku tried to stay calm, wondering as always if he was imagining things.

**Wasn't Yami the one who first exploited that weakness in your heart?**

No, he couldn't be imagining that, even if his heart was agreeing with it all.

"Yeah," he said aloud, glancing from Leon to Kairi. "Let's see if Cid found anything." Honestly, he just wanted to get out of this room.

When he turned to see if Cloud agreed, he was surprised to see Cloud already staring at him with an intensity that Riku hadn't been at the end of before. Scrutinizing. _Knowing_.

Had Cloud heard the voice after all? Somehow, Riku didn't think so...

On the walk towards Ansem's study, where Sora was supposed to have taken Cid and the others, Leon lingered close to Kairi. Riku listened as the two of them discussed what they had learned today about Rinoa, Ansem, and Kairi's past.

All the while Riku tried to avoid meeting Cloud's eyes, feeling his gaze watching him as if waiting for Riku to make another wrong move. Riku wanted to ask what Cloud's problem was, but he was afraid of what the answer might be.

"Rinoa was... loud," Leon was saying. "Always getting me into trouble. I think we were only friends at first because she wouldn't leave me alone. But... after a while, after I got used to her, I found myself looking for her." He gave Kairi a wry smile. "That was when I realized she had brainwashed me into liking her."

Kairi giggled at that, and though Riku was amazed Leon of all people had worked that sound out of her, he was glad to hear it. She seemed to be lightening up at last, despite the things she had learned about herself.

"Her dad didn't like me. He was one of those rich elitists and didn't like that she was playing at the orphanage with us," Leon said. "But Rinoa was brave. She didn't care what her dad thought or said. She always came to find me, usually about the time Seifer was being mean to me..." His smile faded, tinged with sadness. "She would put Seifer in his place for me."

"She sounds like quite a character," Kairi admitted. "I'm not nearly that brave."

Leon's attention turned to her as they walked side by side, with Riku trailing behind them, and Cloud farther behind.

"I think you are," he said, offering her half a smile now. "And I'm glad a piece of her is still around." And he reached out to ruffle her hair.

She let him, even though she stiffened, probably not expecting it or used to being touched yet, but her smile widened. "You know, Ansem's heart always felt different whenever we were around you, as Yami. Soft. Sad, almost." She closed her eyes, her hands cupping the sphere through the material of her purse. "I really do think he was trying to find his body so he could become whole again and fix all the bad things he did. I think... he wanted to say he was sorry."

Leon's gaze focused on her hands, his expression growing as intense as Cloud's had been a few minutes ago. But he said nothing.

Kairi continued on, looking hopeful. "So I'll protect him until we find a way to help him." She opened her eyes again and smiled up at him.

By now, Riku's nerves were on edge from all of Cloud's staring. As Kairi and Leon continued their conversation, Riku finally turned to Cloud with a demanding glare.

"_What?_"

Cloud's eyes thinned. "You smell like darkness."

Riku's heart almost missed a beat. "What?" he said again, this time with confusion.

"I've noticed it since we got here," Cloud said, his tone reminding Riku of a wolf narrowing in on its prey. "But I just realized what it was..."

Clenching his fists, Riku mentally scrambled for a decent comeback in his own defense.

It was Leon who pointed out the obvious, butting into their talk without finishing his own. "He had a run-in with Id. Of course he smells like darkness."

"Riku was surrounded by a lot of it," Kairi added. Everyone had stopped walking. "Not just Id's, but Maleficent's, too."

Cloud's gaze only hardened more. He didn't seem to buy their explanations, not completely. The look he had on his face... It was like he knew something Riku didn't know.

"Why does Sora have the keyblade?" Cloud asked, his voice careful now, pointed. He _did _know something.

Riku didn't know what it was, but he didn't want to talk about this in front of Leon and Kairi. Kairi, whose face was filling with pity.

Riku looked away, feeling his heart wrench with shame.

"Cloud," Leon warned. "Leave him alone."

"It's not something we should let him hide," Cloud said, insistent now. "He doesn't even realize what he's doing. Why else won't the keyblade respond to him? I sensed it back at Atlantica, too, when he was sleeping on the ship."

"That was probably Ursula's darkness," Kairi suggested. "Riku's been around all kinds of darkness since he took up the keyblade."

Even though Riku was grateful that Kairi and Leon were coming to his defense, he was beginning to think Cloud was right. Something else was happening to him.

That voice he kept hearing... those touches he sometimes felt... He wasn't imagining them. It had been happening for days. _Was _it darkness? Riku couldn't sense anything...

"I'm... gonna go find Aerith," Riku said, averting his gaze as he walked past them, heading towards the central bastion. It was a lie. He had no intention to see Aerith; he didn't need her pity, either.

He wanted to be alone.

"Riku, you shouldn't—"

Cloud tried to stop him, but Leon intervened again with a hushed statement.

"Aerith is better at this kind of thing."

Even then, as Riku continued on without them, he heard a shuffle of feet beginning to follow and knew who it was.

He glanced over his shoulder at Kairi, who froze when she saw he had spotted her. "I'll be alright," he reassured. "Why don't you go with them and check on Sora for me?"

Her eyes were filled with worry. "Riku..."

But he turned away again and went his separate way.

Not a heartless in sight.

He walked with his hands tucked into his pockets and with an uneasiness coiling inside of him. When he was far enough away from them and was sure he wasn't being followed, he veered off into a side corridor, walking deeper into the bastion where he was sure no one would be.

In this part of the bastion, nothing stirred except for him. All was quiet, the only sounds coming from his slow footsteps and the light clinking of his dangling belts.

Taking a deep breath, he spoke aloud to the air around him.

"You there, Voice?"

His words echoed through the hollow corridor, briefly filling its shadowy contours with life. The bastion's reply was a deep silence, providing no comfort, and Riku continued alone into its inner chambers.

"I don't know what to do..."

He lowered his face and shook his head, sighing. He had become pretty desperate if he'd rather talk to a disembodied voice than seek out one of his own friends. But after what he'd overheard in Traverse Town, no one understood his situation. No one knew what he had gone through. No one except Yami—_Ansem_, really—because even though Kairi had witnessed a lot of it, she said Ansem had kept her asleep for much of it as well.

Aerith and Kairi and Leon may have sympathized or tried to understand, but he couldn't stand the pity in their eyes, he couldn't stand Kairi's silent: _What happened to you, Riku?;_ or Leon's disapproving: _I expected more from you; _or Aerith's patient: _We're here if you need someone to lean on._

He didn't want to lean on anyone. He wanted to be strong himself—strong, reliable, unwavering. Like Sora. But he was tired of comparing himself to his best friend... Why couldn't he just be Riku? Why did it always have to be a competition even when he didn't mean for it to be? He was happy with the keyblade...

**Were you?**

His heart fluttered with hope.

"There you are," he said, partially accusing.

He came to a stop and glanced around. His wandering had led him into the heart of the bastion, the chapel itself. The twisted wire frame of a heartless emblem was mounted on a large altar, and overhead was a beautiful stained glass window, the noon sun streaming through and casting the altar in a cascade of reds and purples.

"I think I was happy," he admitted to the voice. "I liked having a purpose."

**You liked being the center of attention.**

"I liked helping people."

**You liked being better than everyone.**

"I liked... being strong."

**You? You've always been so very weak.**

Riku turned in a slow circle, searching for the source of the voice. It seemed richer than usual, warm and almost teasing, and when it spoke, he no longer felt the breath against his ear. Not here. It felt like it was everywhere, all around him at once, a subtle but soothing presence.

Despite what it was saying, Riku realized he had stopped fearing it and had begun to accept its existence. He no longer felt like the voice was insulting him. No, it was challenging him. It wanted to help him.

"My heart isn't weaker than his," Riku said, lifting his chin. "If it was, I wouldn't have been able to carry the keyblade this far."

**The heart that is strong and true shall win the keyblade. **

Riku drew in another deep breath and closed his eyes, focusing on those words. Inside of him, his heart beat in a firm, steady song, wanting to prove its worth. It wasn't weak. He had his moments of weakness, but he'd find a way to continue fighting.

"How do I become stronger?"

**I can show you your true power.**

The voice had drawn close again, ghostly warm fingers sliding down his arms without really being there. He kept his eyes closed, imagining the man standing behind him, his gloves as they trailed to his waist, the sweep of long hair as it tickled Riku's bicep...

"My true power?" he asked, half breathless. He was almost scared to breathe, worryied that he would scare away his visitor if he so much as exhaled too loudly.

**You've tasted it before.**

Riku felt a shiver tickle down his spine, his skin prickling at the forbidden allure the voice offered.

Riku knew what it was referring to. Those powers he'd used to finish Maleficent off, the powers he'd used to drive back Id's heartless to protect Kairi... Id had said those hadn't been the keyblade's powers. Riku now knew Id had been right; those powers had been his_ own_.

All this time he'd envied Sora for his magic, as Sora must have envied Riku for his keyblade. Now Sora had both.

But that didn't mean Riku was powerless. He'd accessed his hidden powers before; what he needed was a way to do it without the keyblade.

"What do I need to do?" he breathed.

The fingers felt more corporeal now. He could feel each one as they ran through his hair, as they curled against his hip, as he felt himself being tugged backwards, into a very _real_ embrace.

Riku opened his mouth to ask his question again, but he was interrupted.

"What a familiar stench..."

And it wasn't by the voice he had been expecting.

His eyes snapped open. The voice's presence faded, but not completely, lingering around him as if to protect him as he turned to face the new voice—one with a familiarity, almost sounding like Yami, but deeper and without the layer of secret emotions Yami had carried.

Riku settled his gaze, across the chapel near the far door, on a figure who hadn't been standing there a few minutes ago.

The man wore a coat as black as the darkness itself, form-fitting, with a hood so deep that Riku couldn't see past the shadows shrouding his face. He stood tall, standing so statuesque that Riku almost believed he was imagining what he was seeing.

"Who are you?" he asked the cloaked figure, already itching to summon the keyblade. He didn't try, not yet.

His response was a deep chuckle—soft, detached, as if finding humor but not able to muster the amusement to show it. Then, in that unsettlingly familiar voice:

"This should be interesting..."

Riku had hardly any time to prepare. He felt an instinctual panic—

And sure enough, the figure moved to attack him, harnessing a speed that even Sephiroth would envy. Riku had a split second to throw his hand out to protect himself, his heart reaching out with a flare of determination, and the keyblade sprang to life.

As the stranger's weapon—a beam of red light clutched like a sword—came down on Riku, Way to Fall's strong form was there to block it.

The force of the impact stunned him, but Riku kept his footing, trying not to falter now that the keyblade was responding to him again.

"Who are you?!" he demanded again.

Up this close, he could see the bottom half of the stranger's face, and he recognized the smirk that pulled at those lips, even though they lacked Yami's spirit. But if Kairi had Ansem's heart—who was _this_?

"I want to know what he sees in you," came the cool tease.

Riku's brows furrowed with anger. "Who?" he gritted out, fighting to keep his balance.

"I think you know," the stranger replied. "His darkness is all over you."

There was a burst of light, and Riku cried out as he was thrown to the floor, something intense repelling him without warning, and when he glanced up, he saw a grid of blue-white powers shimmer and fade. A barrier?

He leapt back to his feet, keyblade at the defensive. Whoever this man was, he was extremely powerful. Sephiroth-powerful. And Riku had lost to Sephiroth...

**Are you afraid to lose?**

Riku grimaced as the voice's presence grew stronger around him, distracting, though reassuring.

Across their circular arena, the stranger released another impassive chuckle. "Perhaps we have all put too much faith in your abilities, keyblade bearer. I'm disappointed."

As if dismissing Riku, he turned to leave.

Anger and frustration and desperation flared inside of Riku, and he stepped forward without thinking. "Wait! I'm not finished with you yet!" he yelled, and deep inside, his heart cried out for help.

The stranger hesitated. He didn't turn, but he waited.

And when Riku took a breath to steady his racing heart, he felt it—the voice's presence—strengthening around him, responding to his heart's fears. This time, instead of just basking in its comfort, his heart tentatively reached back.

He only faltered when he felt the brush of a cloak against his arm, and a second figure stepped out from behind him, this one cloaked in brown. Riku's breath caught as he watched it—the _voice_—drift forward and pause in front of him, facing the stranger.

"So you decided to show yourself," the voice said. It wasn't purred in Riku's ear or whispered into his hair. It was real. He still felt its power in his heart, but it existed in front of him. It wanted to _protect _him.

The stranger in the black coat slowly turned. "I could say the same to you." A pause, and then, almost bored: "You no longer have the heart. I have no interest in quarreling with you."

"And the boy?" the voice said with a slight lilt of amusement.

"You think he has potential." Another pause, as if reflecting on something, and when he spoke again, Riku knew the stranger was regarding him, not the figure protecting him. "I admit I'm curious..."

Riku stiffened, readying his keyblade.

The voice's hood also turned to look at him, but even this close, all Riku saw of his face was shadows. "You cannot defeat him like you are."

Bristling, Riku narrowed his eyes at the stranger, not wanting to take his attention off him for even a moment, as he spoke to the man whose voice had been haunting him for days. "What do I do?" he asked the voice.

"Open yourself to your power."

Easier said than done, especially in the face of such a formidable new threat.

Riku clenched Way to Fall harder and kept his eyes trained on the coated figure. He let the keyblade's faint, faint song flow through him and mingle with the reassurance he felt from the voice's veritable existence. When the powers connected, channeling through him, there was a tug deep inside of him, as if something was begging to be let free.

At first he shied away from it, uncertain as to what he was getting himself into, but when he did, the hooded voice drifted closer to him, closer, until they were centimeters apart.

Holding his breath, Riku lifted his gaze, unable to resist the flicker of fear he felt when he stared up into the black of the hood and saw nothing but darkness. The keyblade and the outside power—the voice's power?—reacted to his fear, spreading a warm confidence through his soul. Riku released his breath and let his eyes drift closed.

He didn't imagine the fingers that cupped his chin. He could feel the texture of the voice's glove as it stroked his jaw, as his other hand trailed through his hair—

Another tug inside of him, this time harder. Was this what he wanted...?

—the fingers drifted from his hair, caressed his cheek, and slowly pulled away.

Was this what he needed...?

**Yes.**

Fingers loosening around his keyblade, Riku relaxed. He blindly reached towards the voice, grasping a sleeve that didn't feel like a shapeless cloak at all, but a man's arm, strong, real. Warm. Reassuring.

He thought of all of his battles thus far and how many mistakes he had made to get here. There was no way of knowing if he was making another. All he knew was what he felt in that moment.

He needed this.

Releasing the voice's arm, he called out to the mingling powers flowing through and around him in a calming river of strength. It returned his call, sinking deeper into his consciousness and tugging at the cage of whatever lay sleeping within the hidden side of his heart.

He raised his keyblade with steady conviction.

Unafraid, he lifted his eyes and looked past the haze of shadows that now surrounded him.

He welcomed them.

And he opened his heart.

An overwhelming strength flourished within, driving him forward, and with a cry he hardly recognized as his own, he cleared the space between himself and the stranger in an instant. When his keyblade struck, it was with the flood of power that had broken free, sparks of black and purple erupting from the blade.

When he looked back, the cloaked voice was gone, but his presence was closer than ever, working its way deep into Riku's heart.

Shadows sprung from out of nowhere, maybe from within, and slid over his body with an eager acceptance, the tendrils spreading and enveloping and transforming, molding into a form-fitting suit in under a second. It wasn't Id's darkness, whatever it was—it was warm, empowering, intoxicating.

He lifted his eyes through his bangs and smirked at the stranger over their linked weapons. Beneath the shroud of the stranger's hood, those lips pulled into an emotionless smile.

"I see. Let's see how well you do now."

The stranger drove him back and, as Riku dug his feet against the floor and prepared to launch into a relentless onslaught, he vanished.

No—teleported!

Riku whirled around without thought, letting the medley of powers guide him, and he moved without limitations. Something had awakened inside of him. He didn't know what it was, but it felt _good_.

When the stranger appeared in a swirl of darkness behind him, now wielding two red swords of light, Riku's keyblade crashed into them. The stranger didn't relent, but as his weapons flew in for another strike, Riku's blade was there to meet it and return the favor, each movement so fast, so instinctively unthinking, they were almost blurs.

Riku had never felt so much power before and nothing had ever been this effortless for him. As the stranger's intense magic descended upon him, Riku could cross the chapel in the blink of an eye or let his own powers converge before him in a sturdy shield.

He let the rhythm of the battle sing through him, his heart soaring from the incredible rush, and he found himself unleashing devastating attacks he wouldn't have imagined himself capable of—explosions of fiery darkness from his keyblade, shooting out like indigo suns one right after the other—merciless strikes as he crisscrossed the chapel with rapid successive lunges—a raining assault from above, piercing the ground with a series of intense shockwaves again and again and again—

But the stranger was no pushover. Each time Riku unleashed his newfound powers, the coated man twisted away with a fluent grace or teleported somewhere Riku had left himself open.

Riku was strong, but the stranger was precise; Riku was fast, but the stranger was clever. More than once, he found himself rushing headfirst into a trap—black and white thorns that would snake through the air around him and keep him caged as the stranger honed in on him with brutal strikes of his swords or with intense blasts of energy from the ground.

And though the attacks hurt, Riku didn't find himself wavering the way he would when injured. He could hear encouraging whispers—or feel them?—but they weren't from his keyblade. They came from his heart, a constant stream of confidence that fueled him. His pain faded quickly, though he knew his body still had a limit. He just couldn't feel it yet. He kept moving, following the call of his powers, and immediately fell back into the rhythm of the battle.

The stranger wasn't always successful at dodging Riku's never ending chain of attacks, and each time Riku landed a blow against that dark coat, he felt an even stronger surge of power.

The fight turned from desperate to vainglorious as Riku began to sense a pattern in the stranger's counterattacks, and soon Riku was avoiding his traps altogether, launching his own against his foe without mercy, stabbing the ground and sending shockwaves of searing dark energy erupting around the stranger.

And when the man in the coat finally staggered beneath his keyblade, Riku hesitated and watched him. He stood slumped, panting, a hand clutched over his chest. Riku pointed Way to Fall at him, his spirit already brimming with excitement over his victory, and he couldn't help gloating.

"Had enough?"

Maybe the next time he met Sephiroth, he could have a fair rematch.

But that was the last thought he had before the room began to darken all around him.

Hundreds of burning red lights appeared simultaneously and started to intensify, surrounding him in a night sky full of the stranger's swords. Riku's breath caught as he turned in a slow circle, his eyes widening at the incredible power that enclosed him, the swords glowing brighter, brighter, _too _bright—

Then they were unleashed.

They struck Riku in an excruciating inferno even as he screamed and tried to deflect them, fighting past the pain to continue protecting himself, repelling dozens with each swing of his keyblade, but they kept coming—wave after wave after wave—consuming him in light, in agony, and in despair.

It was over as quickly as it had come, and when the lights vanished, Riku collapsed to the ground.

Body numb, Riku just lay there for several moments, face down, unable to feel anything except a terrible fury in his heart.

The sound of footsteps stopped beside his head.

Grimacing, he lifted his gaze through his bangs, glaring up at the stranger, his fury radiating out of him. Wisps of shadow curled off his bodysuit, the power in his heart spiking, demanding he get up, and so he tried. Wracked with violent trembles, Riku planted his hands against the floor and pushed himself to his knees, releasing haggard gasps as something squeezed at his heart, refusing to let him rest, using every last ounce of his strength to get him back to his feet.

He didn't make it.

The stranger's boot pressed between Riku's shoulder blades and shoved him back onto the ground. He growled in outrage, the pressure in his heart flaring outward, and the darkness around him responded, reaching up as if to envelope the stranger.

He didn't seemed concerned at all, however. He gave one of his humorless chuckles and released Riku, who didn't have the strength to try getting up again.

"Your persistence is amusing. I'll let you live this time, but remember this, 'Ansem'—"

_Ansem?!_

The vise around Riku's heart tightened, and he screamed again, clutching a hand to his chest as tears of agony sprang to his eyes. He couldn't stop shaking—what was wrong with his heart? Why was the stranger calling him Ansem?!

"—you needed my help to capture your prey."

What was he talking about?!

_Help me! _Riku cried silently, his heart reaching out to his new powers, seeking out the voice and its comfort.

This time he didn't feel the soothing baritone caress his ear as it always did. Instead, Riku's heart missed a beat, his lips opened on their own, and the voice came from inside.

"Don't think you've won. It is _I _who will rule Kingdom Hearts."

Then Riku's heart shuddered and relaxed, and his body followed suit, his trembling beginning to subside as a calmness eased through his bones and enveloped his soul. He watched, confused and scared, as his own body picked itself up, and his eyes lifted towards the stranger—_Nobody_, his heart whispered—and his lips pulled into a dark, vindictive smile.

A soothing warmth washed over him, lulling him into a peaceful sleep, and though Riku tried to fight it, he felt his mind slip away. He was aware of his body moving without him, launching a final attack at Nobody—who teleported and escaped for now. He was aware of his voice—not his voice but _the _voice—echoing inside of him, replacing his own.

"What fools..."

_Ansem...? _Riku wondered.

"Mm, just his darkness," came the voice's sultry reply. Riku's gloved hand rested over his heart, where his dark suit had a large, familiar emblem. This heart, however, still existed, and hadn't earned the X of the heartless. "And now your body is mine."

Darkness curled into existence around Riku's fingers and delved into his heart, like pinpricks of fire, and sank deep into him, wrapping around Riku's existence.

Everything grew dark, numbing his mind and soul, but it was peaceful.

He slept.

Or, at least he thought he slept. He wasn't sure where he was or how much time had passed, if any time had passed at all.

When he slipped his eyes open, he was alone.

Surrounded by darkness.

_Riku... _

A gentle flicker of light caught his attention, and he glanced down at the soft glow emanating from his bare chest.

"I'm here," he murmured, dazed, and hardly realized he didn't know where _here _was.

When his chilled fingers touched the skin of his chest, the light gathered and formed a tiny sphere. It drifted slowly into the air, and Riku felt a profound hollowness as he watched it, wondering, not understanding what was happening.

Slowly, as if not wanting to scare it away, Riku reached out to the glowing sphere to catch it.

A hush fell over the darkness and Riku's heart.

His fingers closed around the light.

And for the briefest of moments, he felt its warmth.

Then it faded.

The light, the warmth—vanished.

Darkness closed in around him.

_The light..._

The emptiness inside of him grew into an abyss as he realized what was wrong.

_It's gone._

Then he felt the texture of gloves, warm and inviting and familiar, slide along his arms. They curled around his bare hips and pulled him against a solid chest, as a face lowered to nuzzle into his hair.

Warm breath on his ear.

He shivered.

Then Ansem spoke, his words a dark, delighted whisper.

"You never needed it."

-o-o-

* * *

I'm sure there's more confusion, but even if all of your questions aren't answered by the end of the story, I'll be offering a FAQ on my journal and site or somewhere easily accessible. And don't worry—there's still plenty of action/plot to come. I'm estimating 2 more looooong chapters after this one, then an "epilogue" of sorts, but I have plenty of plans after _that_...

Please review or share some of your thoughts about the story. We've come this far! Let's make it to the end together.


	44. Ch 27: Come Full Circle

_Author Notes: _

It's been a long time, but I haven't given up yet. Life may get between me and writing Stygian Solace, but I refuse to stop!

Here's to you, SS, for giving me 7 years of love, laughter, torture, tears, and an incredible writing experience I wouldn't trade for anything. You're far from perfect, but you've taught me more about writing and about myself than I ever expected. Happy anniversary.

This isn't checked for errors yet, so please excuse the typos!

* * *

_**Chapter Twenty-seven: **__Come Full Circle_

-o-o-

It was the sound of Sora's laughter that drew Riku out of that dark abyss.

Distant but distinct, full of life and light—he'd recognize that laugh anywhere.

Riku's heart reached for it out of the shroud that had settled deep inside of him, letting Sora's voice guide him back to consciousness. The temptation to sleep, to fall back to the darkness and let life slip away, shadowed his every thought. But every time he felt himself drift back into the great sea of silence, Sora's voice reminded him of his right to exist.

"...irst thing I'm gonna do..."

"...iku will......you!"

Another voice, familiar, flowing through him like a minty sweetness. As her giggles laced with Sora's laughter, Riku felt his mind rise from the dark solace that had encompassed his reality.

_Sora... Kairi..._

He wasn't imagining their voices.

Focusing through the haze, he recognized where he was. The colorful tomes of the bastion's library surrounded him as he passed through the aisles at a leisure pace. His body carried a poise he didn't recognize as his own—confident, yes, but _too _confident, with a vast power simmering just outside his control.

But not _his_ control, Riku realized. Ansem's.

He could feel Ansem's darkness wrapped around every thought and emotion, laced in the delicate holes of his heart and saturating his entire being. Riku was awake and aware, but Ansem had complete command of his body.

"Maybe, but at least he'd laugh!"

"Heehee, I hope so. He needs that right now."

Sora and Kairi's voices were closer, just on the other side of the bookshelf he was approaching.

Riku realized then where Ansem was going. Riku's body was still swathed in the dark suit he had fought Nobody in, but he was _Riku_ even though Ansem ruled his every action. And Ansem's darkness would want Kairi and Sora for only one thing—

The heart Kairi was protecting.

_If you __**dare **__lay a finger on them...!_

But Riku's threat only earned him a sinister smile that used his lips to form it. Ansem knew as well as he did that he had little choice but to watch, silent, helpless, and completely responsible for letting things come to this.

Ansem's smile didn't fade, not even when he stepped into the open and settled his gaze on Riku's best friends.

Sora and Kairi were sitting together on the stairs, still laughing, and Kairi's purse rested safely in her lap.

She was the first to notice Riku as Ansem approached them at a slow, deliberate pace. Her laughter died as he drew closer. Her eyes met his and widened.

Had she recognized something about Ansem?

"Riku?" she said, her voice small and tentative.

His lips curled into a triumphant smirk.

Sora seemed more relieved than anything when he saw Riku. "There you are!" he said, grinning wide as he got to his feet. "Everyone's been waiting for you. Cid and Leon are goin' over all those reports, and—get this!—there might be two Ansems!" He laughed again and folded his arms behind his head. "Weird, huh?" Then, still grinning, he gave Riku a funny look. "What're you _wearing_?"

Kairi's wide-eyed stare hadn't faltered. "Sora... I don't think..."

As Ansem came to a calm stop in front of Sora and Kairi, Kairi inched back, rising to her feet clutching her purse. She knew something was wrong.

_It's not me!! _Riku cried, trying to get through to them, but Ansem didn't even twitch.

His smirk only grew darker.

Kairi reached out to grab Sora's wrist as she backed onto the next stair. "Sora—"

But as Sora turned to glance at her in confusion, Riku knew Sora had just made the biggest mistake he could have. Even if he hadn't realized it, he'd taken his eyes off his enemy.

Ansem's power flared to life, and before Sora or Kairi could react, the darkness sprang out of the stairs and snared Kairi by her ankles, yanking her down.

"Riku" lunged forward, closing the distance between himself and Sora in the blink of an eye. Riku's arm drew back, and Sora's eyes filled with stark fear when he saw the concentrated shadows licking along Riku's hand like a ball of black flames.

Then that hand descended, striking right into Sora's chest.

There was no blood, only darkness, only the vivid blue of Sora's frightened eyes—as Riku's glove wrapped over his best friend's thundering heart—

Warm. Bright. _Strong._

The heart of a keyblade master.

He heard Kairi scream Sora's name, echoing his own cries as he fought against Ansem's control, despair and panic and denial searing through his own heart, further fueling Ansem's strength.

_**SORA**__!! NO!! Let him go!! _

All Riku could see was the confusion and fear in Sora's eyes as he gaped up at Riku, his strong fingers digging into Riku's arm out of desperation, out of _why Riku why _and a betrayal that tore Riku's world apart—because _he _was doing it. It was _his _hand. It was _his _body. It was _his _triumphant smile.

There, centered on Sora's chest, the crown pendant gleamed proudly with the princess's powers, useless protection against the darkness that Ansem wielded using Riku's body. It flooded Sora's heart and swathed its incredible light in its black depths, dragging it into a one-way abyss. Riku felt Sora's heart struggle—a fierce but brief flare of radiance—but the shadows smothered his resistance.

"R-Riku...?"

Sora's voice was soft, scared, like a whispered _Are you still awake? _during one of their old sleepovers.

The darkness spread from his heart and billowed out of Sora's chest, converging and growing within him, _consuming_. His fingers gradually lost strength, growing slack against Riku's arm.

Then the betrayal on Sora's face began to fade into a sleepy emptiness. His eyes drifted closed, black swallowing blue, and Riku tore at the boundaries of his own heart as he screamed at him.

_SORA!! Fight it! Use the keyblade! You can't—NO—YOU CAN'T GO LIKE THIS!_

Kairi thrashed against the darkness pinning her to the stairs, terrified and crying for Sora like he was, but Ansem responded to their suffering with a chuckle that held no remorse. He pulled Riku's hand back, ripping Sora's necklace off, and he cast the pendant aside.

The darkness enveloped Sora's body, not completely, leaving just enough of him free for Riku to witness the downfall of not just his best friend, but the one person who might have been able to save him, and the one person who had put faith in him above all others.

_No no no__no—__**not**__ Sora—this can't be happening! This can't be happening...!!_

Wearing the most peaceful expression Riku had ever seen on his face, Sora sank into the shadows.

Beneath the darkness, a golden light spread and encompassed his entire form, brighter and brighter—

_SORA!! _

—until suddenly, his body dissolved into hundreds of tiny lights, like a cloud of fireflies scattering free into the night.

They drifted past Ansem in gentle currents of warmth—Sora's warmth—and Riku felt it, struck by a deep desolation, as that trace of Sora almost seemed to say goodbye.

Then, one by one, the lights twinkled out into nothingness.

When the shadows cleared, all that remained of Sora was the broken necklace.

He was gone.

Huddled there on the stairs, Kairi remained trapped by Ansem's darkness. Her eyes were wet with tears, but she was glaring at Ansem with a defiance that rekindled a little of Riku's hope. This wasn't over yet. Riku wasn't the only one who had lost Sora, and Kairi was going to want to fight back. She had been able to fend off Id's darkness—maybe she could help free Riku from Ansem's.

"Who are you?" she demanded. Her tone wavered a little, but there was a strength there that reminded him of Sora's. She knew Riku never would have done this to Sora; she _knew _it wasn't him.

Ansem chuckled again and calmly stepped up to her, holding Riku's chin aloft as he looked down at her. The sultry voice that had haunted Riku was now his own, and it was laced with satisfaction. "Come now, Princess. You of all people should know..." He had nothing to hide, not from her.

Shrinking back, Kairi tugged at the tendrils of shadow that kept her bound to the stairs. "You're _not _Ansem!" she said with a subtle growl, and Riku felt a surge of pride in her.

"What?" Ansem laughed. He curled Riku's fingers in the air, darkness wafting off his skintight suit, and gestured at her. A thick ribbon of darkness wrapped around her purse. "And you think _this _is?"

As it was slipped off her shoulder, she gave sharp gasp and struggled harder. "Don't—" Her gaze clouded with worry as Ansem raised the imprisoned heart in front of her.

"He's nothing but a cowardly shell," Ansem continued, and Riku felt his eyes narrow with delight. "I would thank you for releasing me from my prison, but that would imply I owe you something."

A look of frightened understanding filled Kairi's face. "You're the darkness that got pushed out of Ansem's heart."

That was when Riku realized exactly what was possessing him. He hadn't been sure, but Kairi's words put all the pieces together.

It wasn't Id, and it wasn't even Ansem. It was Ansem's darkness, a blend of Ansem _and _Id. And it wasn't just Ansem's darkness—it was a heartless, one made of pure darkness, a _natural _heartless as Merlin had described it.

Back before Ansem's heartless had tried to possess Kairi, he had been an emblem heartless, one with a heart at its core. When Kairi's pure heart had pushed most of the darkness out of Ansem's heart, the heartless hadn't disappeared. It had become an entity all of its own, a sentient darkness.

Left behind, Ansem's heart had made a home inside of Kairi's body. This meant that the piece of Ansem that Kairi knew wasn't evil—he was just a heart trying to make amends; but the piece of Ansem that Riku knew sure didn't have qualms about relishing his own malevolence.

The surprise on Kairi's face quickly evolved into confidence as she came to the same conclusion.

"He's more Ansem than you'll ever be. You're nothing but a shadow!"

Another low chuckle, and Ansem shook his head. "Wrong again, Princess. You know nothing of the truth. Let me do you a favor and rid you of this burden..."

The darkness lifted the purse higher into the air and, with a scared cry, Kairi began to fight against her binds again.

"NO!! Let his heart go!!"

A blinding flash illuminated the room as Kairi's powers reacted to her panic and burned through the darkness holding her prisoner, but at the same time—Riku felt... _something. _It was like falling asleep without realizing and waking up in confusion—that sense of vertigo and rush of reawakening senses—only this time, when Riku's mind cleared, he felt even less like himself than before.

As the light died, he saw the darkness fading from around Kairi, and the purse containing Ansem's heart dropped to the stairs, halfway between Kairi and Ansem. But she didn't make a move to grab it. Instead, there was a stunned moment of silence as she gaped up at Ansem.

The expression on her face was all Riku needed to fill in the blank. He was no longer himself with Ansem in control; Ansem had shed Riku's appearance and taken on his own.

He wasn't slender and elegant like Yami, but he was tall and regal, even more built than Sephiroth or Leon, with supreme power beneath every muscle. He no longer wore the dark suit his powers had made for Riku, clad instead in a long gray and white overcoat, pulled open in the chest and flaunting a heartless emblem. His silver bangs were slicked back to leave his eyes exposed—and Riku had no doubt they would be the burning yellow of a heartless's.

Ansem's dark smile returned. "Why do you think I chose this boy's body?" He rested a gloved hand over the heart that still rightfully belonged to Riku. "Fully capable of wielding the light, yet so very receptive to the darkness. A unique blend of light and shadow. He makes a perfect shell—and weapon."

Weapon?

Riku's heart tightened with anger.

He realized Ansem was referring to what had just happened to Sora. Even though Sora had been protected by the enchanted necklace, something about Riku himself—his keyblade or powers or his friendship—must have allowed Ansem to bypass that safeguard completely.

All along... Ansem had preyed on his weaknesses, constantly made him doubt himself, manipulated him into thinking he needed more power, which Riku had finally taken out of sheer desperation... And it all hadn't just been a lie—it had been a _set-up_ so Ansem could be in the perfect position to stage a coup!

Riku knew he was weak, and he knew it was his fault that he had let things get this bad—but to be reduced to _this_? By the _shadow _who had just killed Sora using _his _body?

_Maybe I'm not the hero I'm supposed to be, _he admitted, defiance rising, _but I am __**not **__your puppet!_

He felt Ansem laugh at him, but that only strengthened Riku's resolve as he pushed for control of his own heart, using Kairi's confidence to give him courage.

She looked Ansem straight in the eyes, and her voice didn't waver this time. "Riku makes mistakes, but his heart is always in the right place. He was chosen as the keyblade master for a reason! You and Id are exactly the same—choosing the wrong people to take over!" Rising to her feet, Kairi clenched her hands into fists and raised her voice. "Riku, if you're in there—fight him! I know you can! Don't let him use you! Think about Sora!!"

"Useless," Ansem said, but Riku wasn't listening anymore.

He thought about the promise he and Sora had made, he thought about the paopu they had shared and the memories of their brief relationship he had almost lost forever, he thought about the home they had all lost and how much he now missed it, and he thought about Sora's strength and honesty when he had said, _I just want my best friend back!_

Riku couldn't let Sora down now. If there was one reason to remain strong, it was to protect the light that Sora had given him.

_You can't use me for this, Ansem!_

He reached through the darkness laced deep throughout his heart and called to Sora's, wherever it was, he called out to Kairi's, to Leon and Cloud and Donald and Goofy's and all of the friends he had made, all of the people who had faith in him, all of the lives he _had _saved.

Silent but real, something reached back, like warm fingers wrapping around his own amidst a dark winter.

_Don't give up!_

Ansem felt the shift in his heart and hesitated, his deep voice struck with irritation. "What? Impossible..."

Part of Riku emerged from the darkness, the shadows clearing just long enough for his heart to shine through, and it _did_.

A soft glow grew between Kairi and Ansem, taking on Riku's form—and though he didn't know how it was happening, all that mattered was that _was _happening, and he refused to go down quietly. He threw his arms out in front of Ansem and screamed at Kairi.

"Take the heart and _run!_ Get help!!"

He already felt Ansem's darkness digging into his light to smother it and draw him back under his control, and Riku grimaced, his influence weakening by the second.

"KAIRI, _GO!!_"

She didn't need to be told again.

As Ansem's darkness wrestled with Riku's light for control of his heart, Kairi leapt forward and snatched her purse from where it lay. Riku saw her worried eyes cast in his direction before she turned and sprinted up the stairs—

And just in time.

Riku felt his heart slip back into the dark abyss of Ansem's power, still a velveteen embrace, though Riku no longer found comfort in it.

As soon as Ansem had control once again, he took pursuit. He commanded the darkness at will, a tempest of shadows flowing around his legs and giving him the speed and agility to span the stairs in an instant.

Catching up to Kairi was an effortless task—she was clumsy with fear, stumbling every time the darkness tried to cut her off—but actually catching her was another story. Out of luck or desperation, she seemed to be getting the hang of her powers, a radiant light cutting through the darkness whenever it tried to ensnare her.

She burst into the upstairs hall and screamed for help, and Riku saw why as Ansem glanced to the floor below: Leon and the others had pulled together several tables in the foyer and were going over the gathered reports.

Kairi's cry caught everyone's attention, but Ansem only smirked down at them and threw his hand out.

Emblem heartless sprang out of dark portals all around them, attacking the princesses first. Riku heard Leon and Cid barking orders as chaos ensued, the cries of the girls being attacked, the thundering roar of the Beast as he leapt in to save them.

But Ansem didn't stay to watch—he was already moving deeper into the bastion after Kairi, who had gained ground during the distraction.

He could sense her terror in every frightened flutter of her heart as she ran through the hollow corridors. Ansem's heart, secure for now inside of the purse, was clutched to her chest, but she and Ansem's heartless and Riku all knew she was going to run herself into a dead end, and there would be nowhere to hide.

Desperate to get ahead, Kairi took a shortcut through the baths and skirted the edge of the pool, almost slipping, but Ansem was faster, gliding straight across the water. His darkness infected the pool, spreading like spilled ink over the surface, and as he reached the other side, a black flood rose up behind him—

_KAIRI, LOOK OUT!!_

Both water and darkness surged forward, whipping past Ansem, and crashed right into Kairi, sending her sprawling across the indigo stone.

She cried out as she landed on her side, and Riku screamed silently for her to get up and keep going, not to give up—she _couldn't _give up!—but Kairi had never been much of a fighter, and months without control of her own body must have left her weakened.

She shakily picked herself back up, fingers digging into the cloth purse, and she lifted her anxious eyes to Ansem as he approached.

Riku could feel Ansem's triumph as he drew closer to her, taking his time now that he sensed her imminent surrender.

_RUN, KAIRI!! _

But Kairi didn't turn to run.

Something changed in her expression as Ansem's shadow loomed over her—a narrowing of her eyes, one last, subtle defiance. Riku saw the fleck of amber amongst the blue of her irises and realized what she was going to do.

Ansem lifted an arm and gathered an intense concentration of shadows around it, ready to strike her heart and consume it with darkness as he'd done with Sora's, but as he closed in on her, Kairi's fingers wrapped around the shadowy sphere inside of her purse and pulled it free.

Ansem's heart pulsed gently beneath her fingers, its radiance shining through the cracks of the dark sphere Id had contained it in.

Riku felt his heart waver as he watched, disbelieving—

_KAIRI, NO!_

But she'd made her choice.

There was a small burst of light as Kairi freed Ansem's heart, its dark shell dissolving instantly in her hands, and as Ansem's hand came down to strike, Kairi pressed the glimmering heart into her own chest.

Darkness engulfed her in a merciless flood of Ansem's power, and this time her powers didn't react.

Instead, darkness met darkness.

In the blink of an eye, as the last of the light of Ansem's heart sank into Kairi's chest, a whirlwind of shadows sprang up around her, driving back the attacking darkness.

And when all of the black cleared, Ansem's hand and powers had been stopped—not by Kairi or her light. There, trembling from the pressure beneath Ansem's attack, was Soul Eater, clutched by tanned hands that should have belonged to Kairi.

Amber eyes met Ansem's from beneath Yami's messy bangs, and they were widened with alarm.

Ansem's lips pulled into a wicked smile, and he savored Yami's expression.

"Welcome back."

The darkness slid around and seized Soul Eater's blade, and with a fierce jerk, wrenched it out of Yami's grasp. Yami was too weak to stop him. Taking advantage of Yami's enervation and confusion, Ansem flicked his hand without thought, and the flood of darkness surged forward, catching Yami in its depths. It swept him across the wet floor and slammed him into the far wall, pinning him there.

Yami let out a hoarse cry, and even through the shadows, Riku recognized that look of pain.

The darkness held him there as Ansem slowly approached, and the formless wisps began to take shape—first a hand, massive and skeletal, curled tightly against Yami's shoulder—then a body, broad-shouldered and powerful, that tapered off into shadow, as if it _were _Ansem's shadow. Its head was topped with wide antennae, reminiscent of a neoshadow, only something about this heartless was much more sinister than anything Riku had ever come across.

"Come, Guardian."

At Ansem's voice, the heartless plucked Yami off the wall, its other hand wrapped around Yami's hip and thigh, holding him firmly even as he began to struggle.

As the guardian turned towards Ansem, Riku saw the rest of it—lips pulled back into a menacing grin, yellow eyes burning with a ferocity that belied the name _heartless_, and gauze crossed over its mouth and crisscrossing its chest, sinking into the creature's obsidian skin where its heart should have been. Its visage was terrifying, but Ansem looked on with a vainglorious pride as the heartless presented a helpless Yami to him.

Yami's back was to Ansem, but Riku could imagine the look that was probably on his face. He wasn't sure if Yami had been at all aware of what had happened while he had been trapped as just a heart, but he doubted it. Kairi had given her body up all over again—for nothing. Yami wasn't going to be able to help them. Not only was Yami obviously weakened from the sudden transformation, he had been caught by surprise. He must not have been expecting to wake up in Kairi's body again, let alone find himself face-to-face with his own heartless.

As Ansem approached his prisoner's back, Yami stiffened, hesitating in his struggles against the guardian's merciless grasp. Ansem could feel Yami's terror, much like he could Kairi's, and as Ansem paused right behind him, Yami visibly shuddered and lowered his head, his silky hair hanging in front of him.

"What use do you have for me...?" Yami asked, and the dread in his voice excited Ansem.

He grabbed hold of Yami's waist and pulled him against his chest, and the guardian relaxed its grip to let Ansem play with his prey. Riku felt Yami's entire body tense against Ansem as Ansem did exactly what he had done with Riku time and time again—embrace him from behind, nuzzle just barely against his neck, and breathe into his ear. Ansem's gloved fingers slid up Yami's thigh to his abs, a slow caress, before coming to rest right over his pounding heart. Hearts. Kairi's heart, and Ansem's.

"What use do I have for you?" Ansem said, his voice a smooth purr, before it turned as cold as the darkness itself. "None. I am simply eliminating the competition. And your foolish pet of a princess and her charming princes brought me right to you."

Yami's hearts raced faster, and so did Riku's, infected by Ansem's excitement. Exhausted but not giving up yet, Riku writhed inside of his own heart to try wrestling for control again, silently yelling for Yami not to surrender, not to let Ansem have those hearts, even yelling for Kairi to fight back and use her powers. But Ansem, undeterred by Riku's attempts, didn't even flinch.

"Sora," Yami breathed out in surprise, as if just realizing what had happened. Kairi must have been filling him in on the details. "_And_ Riku..."

"Mm, ironic, isn't it?" Ansem whispered against his ear in that deep drawl. "You set them up to take down the one entity who coul—"

"THERE!"

Mushu's voice was like music to Riku, the sudden interruption distracting Ansem from Yami as the sound of running feet echoed through the baths. Ansem pulled away from Yami and calmly turned to face those who had come to save Kairi.

Leon and Cloud stood with weapons readied, Donald and Goofy flanking them, and the princesses hovered near the door with Aerith, Yuffie, and Cid, grim-faced but ready for a fight. In front of them, Mushu was perched atop Beast's head, who let out a roar of fury and barreled straight towards Ansem without hesitation.

Ansem must have been holding back before because the power he unleashed against them was like feeling Maleficent orId's darkness all over again, only now Riku was the one wielding it. It channeled through his heart with perfect ease, Ansem wielding it as his own as he summoned a horde of emblem heartless to take care of the would-be heroes.

Ansem's guardian heartless dropped Yami like an unwanted toy and intercepted Beast, clashing in an incredible display of claw and darkness. Nearby, Cloud was swiping through the heartless as if they were nothing, his wing carrying him over their heads as he cut them down, clearing the way—

And Leon leapt through the dissolving bodies of the heartless, suddenly appearing in front of Ansem out of the fray, gray eyes burning with a vengeance.

Ansem smirked.

The gunblade glided through the shadows, a flawlessly aimed attack, one that would strike Ansem right in the chest. Just as it was about to connect, Ansem's guardian lurched out of the ground, abandoning its fight with Beast to protect its master instead, its arm blocking the gunblade's formidable blow with solid strength.

Leon staggered from the recoil, and the guardian lunged to counterattack—

But that was when Donald and Goofy tag-teamed the powerful heartless, Donald's sharp cry ringing above the din as he launched a rain of magic upon the creature, and Goofy spiraled into a dizzying pirouette, crashing his shield repeatedly into Ansem's guardian.

Ansem himself was unfazed until Leon broke through the darkness again, Cloud at his side, and both of their weapons were emanating a brilliant light that hadn't been there moments before. A glance at the princesses explained why—they had banded together and were focusing their powers to help Riku's friends.

Ansem drew back, folding his arms across his chest as he glided backwards to the hall, summoning more heartless to distract his opposition.

"_No!_ Riku!" Yami's shout broke through the ruckus, and Riku spotted him—still looking frail, but determined—with Soul Eater ready as he rushed past Leon and Cloud, heading right for Ansem. "We can't let him escape!"

Riku felt Ansem's hesitation, his deliberating on staying and finishing the job, wiping out the rest of the resistance... but Ansem's eyes lingered on the light wafting off Leon and Cloud's impressive weapons as they and Yami quickly closed in on him, and he decided to withdraw.

"Hmph. I have more important matters to attend to," he said, and it was quiet, almost to himself—or perhaps to Riku—as he turned away from them. The darkness swimming at his feet rose around him into a storm of shadows, and Riku felt their body being drawn into it.

Just before the black closed in around Ansem, he heard Yami's voice echoing behind them, calling Riku's name.

Riku stirred angrily inside of Ansem, vying for control again, but deep inside of the darkness where Ansem was taking him, there was no contest. He had all the power here.

And when the shadows peeled away, Riku immediately recognized their surroundings.

The cracked dais, the broken machinery, the dangerous blue magic spitting into the air, and the grand centerpiece: the portal to the heart of the world, open and waiting. Yami had opened it to finish his duties for Id, but Ansem's heartless would be the first to see what lay beyond the portal, and Riku had no choice but to watch.

"There's nothing to fear," Ansem said to him, a smile curling his lips as he approached the colorful portal. "After all... weren't you the one who said you weren't afraid of the darkness?"

Riku said nothing, his fury stewing within his heart, and he knew Ansem would feel it. He wondered if this was how Kairi had felt when Ansem's heart had taken over _her _body. Maybe... but Riku didn't have her light to protect himself from the intense darkness that Ansem's heartless had poisoned him with.

"Poison... An interesting choice in words considering how much you desired that power a mere hour ago," Ansem chuckled. He paused in front of the heart-shaped portal and stared into its swirling depths. "You place the blame in me, yet you were the one who called to me in the first place. You see, Riku... I wouldn't have had the strength to take you if you had not invited me, or if there had not been such a significant amount of darkness already blooming inside of that precious heart of yours. You submitted because you wanted to."

Whether all of it was true or not, Riku had made up his mind. One way or another, he was going to get his body back, and when he did, he was going to wipe Ansem's heartless from existence.

Ansem's smile spread at Riku's determination. "I welcome the challenge."

He lifted his white glove and sank it into the portal to test it. The magic was chilly, but it didn't repel him. It was official: Yami and Id had succeeded in opening the keyhole after all.

A feral hunger growing inside of him, Ansem gathered his darkness around him and plunged into the portal, heading into the unknown.

-o-o-

Freedom.

A cool, gentle weightlessness that surrounded him on all sides.

No light. Senses blanketed.

Only a pitch black void of comfort and peace, and the hollowed rush of the darkness's pulse.

Was this what it was like to die?

Something about it was familiar somehow...

It was there, lingering at the edges of his consciousness, along with the rest of his thoughts, along with the rest of his existence.

Feelings came and went, drifting aimlessly as if searching for a home to return to.

_SORA!!_

What?

What was that?

He felt... something... warm...

_Sora... I'm so sorry..._

A tug, somewhere deep, inside.

It almost... hurt.

_If you're still out there, I'll find you. I promise!_

But it faded, just like everything else, leaving him at peace once more.

There was no time here, only darkness.

He fell through the welcoming abyss, not knowing where he was going, not knowing where he had come from, not knowing what he was looking for.

Soon, he no longer recognized himself as a he. He hardly recognized himself as an it, or as an existence at all.

And when It finally emerged from the darkness, it felt its senses come alive, a brilliant flow of energies and deep hunger that crawled through its very being. It twitched excitedly, hearing its master's call.

Master wanted it come to him. Master wanted to meet it.

_Don't give up! Reach for the light. I know you can do it!_

It hesitated, ignoring its master's direct commands. Instead, it lingered where it had been born, confused as to the other voices that seemed to be overriding its master's.

Light?

But light was bad.

_Light will save you. Trust in your heart. Listen to it._

Save? Heart?

Heart...

Someone's heart was crying.

It—He—He could feel something... that tug...

Someone was crying for him.

He twitched his antennae and began to move, not knowing where he was going, only knowing that he needed to find this heart. His master was telling him not to, but there was an even deeper need than his need to obey Master—and even though he didn't know what this need was, he knew he'd find his purpose if he found the end of the invisible string that kept tugging at him, tugging at his being.

His hunger faded.

He dove into the darkness, shifting amongst the worlds, hearing his master's disappointed comments.

"Great, not another rogue heartless... I _finally _get you where I want you and you wander off like an idiot. I'm sending a pet to guide you, then."

The words weren't spoken, but they flowed through his very existence, a calming presence. His master should have been the center of his purpose, he knew that instinctively. He could feel all of his brothers all over the worlds and in the darkness, and—except for one or two of them—they all obeyed Master.

There was a dangerous Brother, one who had gone against Master and used the darkness for his own gain. That Brother was causing trouble.

But there was another Brother... one who loved Master even though he didn't always obey him, and this was the Brother who Master sent to him.

Brother met him in the corridors of darkness on his way to find the end of the tug.

He didn't look like him, but something about him was... familiar.

_Rikyu_, Brother called himself.

He liked the sound of that.

He liked Rikyu a lot.

Rikyu liked him, too, and before he knew what he was doing, he was following Rikyu through the darkness. Rikyu didn't lead him exactly towards the tug, but as they left the darkness, he found something else that interested him.

There were many other brothers here, but there were also many bright, bright hearts—hearts who were hurting his brothers. Hearts who were filled with countless delicious emotions. Fear, frustration, despair.

Sadness.

Someone else was crying for him—someone close by. It wasn't the same Someone as before, the one tugging at him, but it was still someone. Someone who could give him what he wanted.

He didn't know how he knew that, but he _knew _it.

This Someone would save him.

Brother Rikyu led him along the edges of the battle, warning him not to get in the middle. These brothers were being sacrificed by the dangerous Brother, a rogue heartless named Ansem, or so Rikyu said. Most of this went over his head, but he trusted Rikyu and didn't enter the fight, not even to try tasting one of those tempting hearts.

Then he saw Someone, the Someone who would save him.

He froze nearby, watching through the swirling energies that made up his heartless world, and he saw what made this Someone so special. When all the other hearts had a shell to carry it, this shell had _two _hearts—both very powerful, dangerous...

But one of them was of the brightest of the brightest, and this was the one that could save him.

He shadowcrept forward, his goal driving him mindlessly towards the dangerous hearts, and into the battle, despite Brother Rikyu's attempt to hold him.

Two-hearts had just destroyed among the last of his brothers, but he didn't know fear. If he was destroyed, too—he couldn't process that possibility. Two-hearts would save him.

"Is that all of them?" one of the hearts asked.

"I think so..."

"Gawrsh, what do we do now?"

"We find out where Ansem went."

"Was that really him?"

"No," Two-hearts said, and those hearts silently cried again. "His heartless has possessed Riku. Riku is beneath that façade..."

"And... Sora...?"

"Sora..." But Two-hearts couldn't finish talking, his-her voice caught in his-her throat.

The silent crying intensified in those two hearts—a deep ache—and he couldn't resist that overwhelming drive. He slipped out of he shadows and emerged amongst the dangerous hearts, and with an excited twitching, faced Two-hearts so he could be saved.

The dangerous hearts reacted to his presence, one of them charging forward to take care of him. But even as he felt the creature's staff bop his head over and over to get him to back off, he stood there facing Two-hearts expectantly.

"Back off, heartless! Just you wait until my magic recharges!"

"Donald, wait—"

Two-hearts spoke. He-she was watching him. He watched Two-hearts back, waiting.

"Careful," another heart warned.

"It's just one heartless," another one pointed out.

Two-hearts hesitated, and then, almost as if sensing something, slowly stepped towards him. "There is... something there..."

"What?"

"How come it's not attacking anyone?"

Two-hearts paused in front of him, studying him for a moment, and he lifted his face to study him-her in return, antennae perking with interest. Something _was _familiar about this Someone. One of those hearts—it _was _crying for him. Calling to him. It wasn't as desperate or loud as the invisible tug that was trying to guide him, and it wasn't as powerful as his master's call, but it was there.

And something about it... made him feel at home.

Two-hearts lowered to their knees in front of him, their face filled with emotions that he recognized. Confusion, recognition, hope.

Then, whispered as if scared to believe it—

"Sora?"

There!

Yes—

Sora.

He knew Sora.

He twitched his antennae in recognition and shifted even more excitedly. The dangerous hearts began asking questions in confusion, but Two-hearts ignored them, his-her eyes focused solely on _him_.

Two-hearts bit their bottom lip and, coming to a decision, held something up for him to see.

He didn't recognize the something at first, but after staring at it for a moment, the tug inside of him grew stronger than ever, and he felt—

—_always be your best friend, no matter what—_

—whole, for just a second.

Nearby, Brother Rikyu slid back into the shadows and left him with Two-hearts.

Two-hearts...

No, there was a name...

_Sora?_

No, Sora was someone else.

Two-hearts cautiously wrapped their arms around him, and more than his desire for those hearts, there was something else—something more powerful—something that completely overrode his senses, blocked out all of the voices of his master and brothers and all of his hunger.

It was... warm.

Familiar.

It calmed him.

Oh.

What—

For the first time, he could hear himself.

He—He had a heart?

He could listen to what his heart was saying!

He could hear—

_Reach for the light, pal! Don't give up yet!_

He didn't know that voice, but it was _there_. It was _real_.

_Sora—is that really you?_

Ah—! That voice! He knew _that_ voice!

_Kairi!_

Yes, that was it! Kairi's voice!

And if that was Kairi's, then the Someone tugging at his heart, that Someone crying for him that he couldn't reach—that had to be...

That had to be Riku.

Was that... the magic of the paopu..? Was it trying to reconnect them?

He relaxed further into Two-heart's arms—no, not Two-heart—this was Yami. And as he relaxed and listened to all of the hearts close to him, the mindless haze inside of him was beginning to fade. These were his friends. Yami was holding Oathkeeper. Riku had promised him they'd always be best friends, no matter what—and... Riku had hurt him.

He wasn't supposed to be a heartless.

All of this he knew. He remembered. He _thought_.

_Yeah, _he thought, mulling over what Kairi's heart had asked him. _Sora—that's... that's __**me**__._

He had a name.

He had a heart.

He was Sora.

_Sora._

Yami's arms tightened around him, his voice almost breathless. "Sora—it_ is _you..."

_Hang on, Sora—I'll help you!_

Kairi's voice, loud and clear.

Then—

Pain? No—

_Light._

His heart reached for the light, and then it was _there_, bursting between them, illuminating the entire room for one moment of pure brilliance, and the darkness enshrouding Sora's entire existence seared away.

Senses flooded him—the color of Yami's hair, the smell of darkness, the sound of surprised cries rising around the room, the ache of his heart as memories and emotions and thoughts came alive all at once.

"Riku..." He breathed deep, letting his heart settle. "Kairi..."

He didn't move for a long moment, letting Yami hold him as his mind cleared out of its daze. Then he lifted his eyes and saw the relieved, happy faces of all of his friends. Donald, Goofy, Leon, Cloud—even Mushu—_everyone_—

...almost everyone...

Sora slowly pulled back, focusing on Yami's face, beginning to grow confused. "Yami...?"

Everyone was smiling and laughing, celebrating the fact Sora was back, but Yami met his gaze, and his smile faded when he recognized the questions in Sora's eyes. He opened his mouth, but Sora beat him to the asking.

"Where's.... Riku?"

Everyone's smiles fell.

They began to exchange glances, but no one made a move to explain what had happened.

All Sora remembered was... the funny outfit Riku had been wearing. And then—darkness. That was all. But from the looks on their faces, he knew something horrible had happened. And yeah—_something _had to have happened if Sora had ended up as a heartless!

Sora focused back on Yami, his heart beginning to race. "Yami—why do you have Kairi again?"

"It was her decision," Yami said, offering him reassurance. "This is her way of protecting me."

Protecting him from what? Sora wasn't reassured at all. He had _just _gotten Riku back, he had _just _gotten Kairi back—and now they were both gone again!

"Someone tell me what's going on," he pleaded, turning to look at the rest of them. "What happened to Riku? Why was I a heartless? How did I get back...?" Oh man, he really didn't feel well.... Felt like someone had stuffed his head with cotton and stabbed his heart with needles. He couldn't concentrate, couldn't remember—had he seen what had happened? What had been all of that darkness?

Oh, but he did remember the voices...

Riku's voice, especially. And Kairi's. And someone else's—someone... he'd never met before. Telling him not to give up.

He flinched as two hands gently squeezed his shoulders, and he turned to look up at Aerith, whose smile was tired but genuine. "Take it easy," she said. "We'll explain when we know the details. We're not even sure..." Her eyes strayed towards Yami. "...but together, we can fill in the missing pieces."

Sora glanced at Yami, who looked about as haggard as he himself felt, but Yami nodded.

"Kairi was there for all of it. I will have her fill me in."

"All right," Leon said. He sheathed his gunblade and raked a hand through his hair. "We should relocate to the foyer."

"Yeah, this place gives me the creeps," Donald grumbled, and Mushu was quick to agree.

Sora realized where they were—the baths, and the place was a mess. Water was scattered everywhere, and it looked like a rampaging bull had been let loose with all of the architecture cracked in bizarre places. And scorch marks... Magic? There had been a battle here.

He was all too happy to let Aerith and the others escort him back to the main hall. He wanted answers.

About halfway there, Sora noticed Yami had fallen behind, and when he looked down the long corridor, he saw the other boy hesitating, staring back the way they had come. Sora came to a stop, knowing a bad sign when he saw one.

"Yami? What's wrong?"

Startled out of his thoughts, Yami faced everyone, his pale brows furrowed. "Kairi is telling me what happened, and... I thought I sensed something. Darkness. A lot of it..." He focused on Sora. "The seven princesses of heart unlocked the keyhole. Ansem has probably reached it by now."

Which meant this world would start falling apart like Agrabah had when Jafar had infected the heart of the world. Sora remembered that all too well.

"We have to stop him," he said, pulling away from the others to join Yami down the hall. He was worn out, but that wasn't going to stop him from doing what needed to be done. He caught Yami's eye and knew, somehow, he was thinking the same thing.

He glanced back at his friends and mustered a smile he hoped didn't look too tired.

"You coming?"

-o-o-

Light.

Color...

Sound. _Trees_, a part of him whispered. The sound was trees. Trees rustling in a warm breeze. _Like palm trees._ But as soon as the thought came to him, it floated away under a tide of...

Emptiness.

He saw, but he didn't recognize what he was seeing. A wrought iron gate, a rundown mansion, a forest.

He didn't belong here.

But... if he didn't belong here, where did he?

Why was he here? Where was 'here'?

Who... was 'he'?

A new sound—grass, leaves crunching—

Black moved in front of him, and he dazedly lifted his head.

"You seek answers."

A man. Something about him was... familiar. Those eyes... even his voice. The way he stared down at him...

A hand lifted into the air, forming out of shimmering light. Four letters, backwards. What did they mean?

"I can give you purpose."

The black glove gestured, and the letters drifted through the air, circling him—faster and faster—until they became a blur of light, and then—

The man's fingers spread out to stop the light, and the letters froze in midair, a large X now hovering in the center. Something stirred inside of him as he stared at the X, but he didn't have to wonder at its significance. He knew somehow that it was _his_.

He parted his lips and numbly read the backwards letters.

"Rox...as..."

The man in black formed the faintest of smiles. "That is right—the new you."

Roxas lowered his face again, not understanding. "The new... me..."

Another sound: a rush of wind, almost, but it wasn't wind. Then there was more crunching of grass and leaves as two more tall figures in black approached. Roxas hardly acknowledged them, his own thoughts coming and going like the waxing and waning of waves. He tried to hold onto the letters of his new name, running them over and over and over in his mind.

One of the new figures spoke, a smooth tone that interrupted the flow of Roxas's struggling concentration.

"Another stray... That makes three today." He was talking to the figure who had given Roxas his new name. "You came from the bastion—what happened there?"

"A change of plans. We'll take them both..."

A pause. Roxas lifted his gaze again at last and stared up into the hood of the inquisitive newcomer. Honey-colored eyes, hair bluer than the sky, face marred by an X like the one in Roxas's name.

He was staring right back at Roxas, but the empty expression on his face gave him nothing. "And what of the one I sent Axel to find?" he asked, shifting his gaze back to the first hooded figure.

"That one as well."

Finally, Roxas looked to the second newcomer, the one who had remained silent this entire time. Though he was taller than Roxas, he was shorter than the others, and his arm was clutched firmly by sky-blue's hand, almost as if... they didn't want him to disappear.

Roxas wasn't sure why he thought that, but to him, it just made sense.

Beneath this one's hood, he saw the same colored eyes and rich tanned skin as the man who had given him his new name. Only instead of pale hair, it was the darkest of blacks. His face, like the others, wore no expression.

But when his eyes met Roxas's—

_"They were dating, I know they were!"_

_The grim interior of a castle suddenly filled with the color of _life_, of laughter, as one boy watched the other let his guard down and truly laugh for the first time since they had met each other. And even though it was such a rare sound, he cherished it, proud that he had earned the right to hear it. _

_This may have been the boy who had tried to ruin his life—but it didn't matter anymore. He was going to help him rebuild his own. _

—amber eyes widened, just slightly, and Roxas breathed deep, feeling something stir inside of him again.

Then the feeling was gone, leaving him wondering what had just interrupted his thoughts.

A hand reached forward, cupping his chin, and Roxas lifted his eyes to the man who had named him, who was now studying him with the same eyes.

"What do you remember?"

The question was calm, knowing.

Even though Roxas felt inclined to answer, when he opened his mouth and really thought about it, he couldn't remember. He couldn't grasp onto that feeling. He could barely grasp onto his own name.

All he really knew was that there was this ache, this emptiness inside, where something important was supposed to be.

"Nothing," he murmured at last, and even then he knew that made him different than the others.

-o-o-

Sora and Yami skitted to a stop in front of the crumbled dais. Beyond it they could see the open portal of the world—no longer swirling with a myriad of colors, but spewing a torrent of darkness out, and it was darkness so thick that it saturated the air, making it almost painful to breathe.

"This looks _bad_," Sora said with a grimace. He tried not to choke on the air as he spoke, but it looked like even Yami was intimidated by the amount of darkness pouring out of the keyhole.

"The keyblade." Yami's voice was a rasp, but he stood his ground beside Sora. "Get it out."

"Think we can get rid of this darkness?" Sora asked. He wasn't so sure that he knew how to use the keyblade like that yet.

Behind them, the others were just now catching up, and Sora recognized the next voice as one of the princess's. "We can," she said, and Sora turned to face them. The six princesses stood in a group guarded by Beast and the team from Traverse Town. Even without Riku there, Sora knew in his gut that he was strong enough to help them alone.

Sora reached out and summoned the keyblade, not surprised when it came to him without hesitation. When the magic cleared, he was confused for a moment at its basic form—before he remembered that he had given Oathkeeper back to Kairi to finish.

Then he remembered what Riku had given him. Suddenly terrified that he might have lost Oblivion's keychain during his time as a heartless, Sora gasped and frantically patted his hoodie pocket. The gentle clink of metal filled him with relief, and he pulled the keychain out to transform the keyblade.

Oblivion's dark form shimmered into existence, and Sora's heart twisted with worry as he studied it.

_Riku—where __**are**__ you?_

"Impressive. So Id was right—the keyblade found a new master after all."

Okay, that was _not _Riku!

Sora whirled back around, freezing in place as he spotted who _could _have been Riku... maybe in another ten years—the eyes, the hair—whoaaaa was that a _wing_?! Sora gaped at the man who was calmly stepping through the darkness as if it were nothing. Everything about the way he carried himself, from his head to his expression to his wing, was completely confident. Dangerous.

Really awesome.

"Sephiroth!"

Cloud sounded more surprised than scared, and Sora felt the dark-filled air shift beside him as Cloud approached and paused at his side. Still, he had sounded worried enough to get a reaction out of Sephiroth.

"Calm down," he said, forming a crooked smile.

Sephiroth... why did that name seem kind of familiar? Sora struggled to remember what little he knew about Cloud, but it had been weeks since his first encounter with the man at the coliseum and everything from back then was hazy. Sora would just have to ask Cloud or Leon about it later...

"I didn't come here to test the boy," Sephiroth continued, pausing at the edge of the crumbled dais above them. Sora's eyes went straight to Sephiroth's glossy black wing, fascinated by it, and Sephiroth's eyes went to Sora's keyblade. "Though I might have challenged him any other time to see if he really _is _worthy of wielding such a legendary weapon. Then again... anyone who irks Id as much as you do is worth investigating, regardless."

That was the second time he'd used Id's name.

Sora's stomach twisted, dread beginning to build inside of him. He realized he was missing his necklace. Without the princesses' protective enchantment, couldn't Id take him over again? Maybe that was why Sephiroth was here...

"Investigating—is that why you're here?" Leon asked. Sora didn't turn to look at him, but he knew from Leon's voice that his face would be filled with a guarded mistrust. He sounded like he knew Sephiroth well, and well enough not to trust him completely.

One look at Yami didn't make Sora feel any more comfortable. The other boy had his eyes thinned with a knowing suspicion.

"Um... am I missing something?" Sora asked cautiously.

"I used to work for Id," Cloud explained, his voice tense as if waiting for something to snap, "and Sephiroth was my partner. I was sent to escort Ansem out of the realm of darkness, where Id lives, to the realm of light, where Ansem was to carry out his mission. Ansem sabotaged the mission, and I lost my memories."

Sora blinked and looked to Yami again, but Yami hadn't taken his eyes off Sephiroth.

"Even then, my heartless was planning on betraying Id," Yami elaborated, and his tone clearly said he didn't appreciate being accused of something his heartless had done. Cloud let it slide, either because he didn't want to argue ethics with Yami, or he deemed Sephiroth's presence more important.

Sephiroth, however, finished the story. "Yes, and even though Cloud regained his memories, he decided not to join me back in the darkness." His wing shuffled as if miffed, even though Sephiroth's expression remained impassive.

"You didn't answer the question," Leon said, almost... defensive. "Why are you here?"

Sephiroth's catlike eyes focused on Leon, and that subtle smile tugged at his lips again. "Because of Ansem's meddling, there is enough darkness concentrated here for Id's powers to work as well as they do in his own realm. He let me come to investigate, yes. However..."

He trailed off, his eyes sliding past Sora to regard Yami.

"Id did have a mission for me."

Yami stiffened, and Sora noticed his fingers flexing as if ready to call out his own weapon.

"What mission?" Leon demanded.

Sephiroth rested a hand on the hilt of the long sword he had sheathed at his waist, but he didn't make a move to use it. Yet. "Id wants Ansem's heart back," he replied, eyes sharpening as he studied Yami. "I did not ask why."

"No way!" Sora cut in. His worries immediately went from Ansem's heart to Kairi's, realizing that in order to _get _Ansem's heart, Sephiroth might have to hurt Kairi. And Kairi—well, she was super protective of Ansem's heart for a reason, and Sora knew he had to help her. He frowned at Sephiroth, already moving to step in front of Yami in case Sephiroth made any quick snatch-and-run attempts. "You can't have him!"

Beside him, he felt Donald and Goofy, then Leon and Cloud move in to guard Yami—or maybe guard _him_, he wasn't sure. Sephiroth looked pretty powerful, but as long as it was to help a friend, Sora didn't care who he'd have to fight.

"Interesting," Sephiroth mused as he watched them. "Even you, Cloud? After what Ansem did to you?"

"This isn't about Ansem," Cloud said, his voice firm, "and it wasn't Ansem who hurt me. It was you. And if I found enough light in me to let that darkness go and forgive you, there's plenty left to forgive Ansem, too." Cloud lifted his hefty sword, readying for a fight. "Besides, these are my friends. I'll protect them, even if it means fighting you."

A tense silence followed, Sephiroth's eyes narrowing at them as a frown settled across his face. Then, when Sora was about to break the silence himself, Sephiroth closed his eyes and let out a sigh, his frown giving way to—amusement?

"I'm not surprised," he admitted. His wing stiffly folded against his backside, and he lowered his hand from his sword. His eyes focused back on Sora and Yami. "I had no intention to deliver you to Id. I came to see Cloud."

"Seriously?" Sora asked, hardly believing what he was hearing. All of that—and he was just messing with them? "You'd betray Id just like that?"

All around him, he felt his friends beginning to relax—tentatively, as if still not quite trusting Sephiroth.

"Not quite." Sephiroth began to step forward, climbing down the rubble of the dais with unnatural grace, his wing spreading to help him maintain his balance. Sora and the others moved out of the way, not wanting to stand near him. "There is a difference between betraying him and merely... waiting for the next opportunity to carry out my mission. I'm sure this won't be the last time I stumble across what Id wants. This is, however, a rare opportunity to see Cloud."

And as Sephiroth paused in front of Cloud and Cloud's own wing lifted as if in greeting, Sora got the weirdest feeling there was way more going on between those two than anyone was telling him.

"You touch _any _of them, and you'll regret it," Cloud warned.

Sephiroth formed a smirk that send a chill down Sora's spine, but then he reached out, grabbed the front of Cloud's red mantle, and pulled him in for a kiss that almost looked like a "shut up already."

Sora's jaw dropped open, but behind him, some of the princesses giggled, and Yami let out a relieved sigh—probably because Sephiroth wasn't going to snatch him after all. Sora turned to Leon for an explanation about Sephiroth and Cloud's _thing_, but the older man was awkwardly turning away, clearly not wanting to talk about it.

"Ooookay," Sora said, not hiding his confusion. In the end, it didn't matter. If Sephiroth wasn't a danger, there were other things he had to worry about. "I guess it's time to seal the keyhole, then."

"Right," Yami agreed, then his eyes widened as the princesses suddenly gathered around him. For a second, he looked like a trapped animal. "Uh—yes?"

The princess with the long black hair—Jasmine, Sora remembered—gave Yami a smile that was almost... impish. "No need to be shy. We know who's in there."

"Even though we're not all _princesses_, our hearts all have something in common," Belle said, tapping him on the chest. "You may have two hearts, but one of you is one of _us_."

"And if we're going to help Sora clear out this darkness, we need to work together," one of the blondes said, the one in the elegant blue dress. Sora hadn't caught her name, but her glass slippers looked painful to wear.

Yami glanced at Sora, still looking somewhat trapped, and unable to resist teasing, Sora grinned at him.

"Go on. Show 'em your princess powers, Yami."

Yami's amber eyes promptly thinned in warning, but Sora only laughed. It felt good. Maybe Yami was half Ansem, but he was half Kairi, too, and Sora decided then that he'd try to bring more of that part of Yami out from now on.

The youngest blonde, in the cute blue and white dress, wrapped her arms around one of Yami's, standing close to him. "You can stand next to me," she giggled, and even though she only came up to his ribs, Yami didn't put up a fight.

"I don't know what you are expecting from me," he said, lowering his eyes. "I have far more experience in darkness than anything else."

"Kairi's light powers are there, just dormant," Aerith spoke up from nearby, and Sora glanced at her, catching her amused smile. "You should be able to use them if you give her a little control."

Yami hesitated, his lips parted as if to object, but he took a moment to catch Sora's eye again. Something about it was almost scared. When Sora gave him an encouraging nod, however, Yami's objection died before he could utter it, and he caved in.

Together, the seven princesses of heart—not that Sora would call Yami that to his face—turned to stand in front of the cloud of darkness emanating from the heart of the world. The thick darkness crept at their feet, a few solid tendrils trying to snake past them and spread throughout the room, but the darkness always waned again as if something was already holding it back. It was possible that, just by being present, the princesses had already slowed the darkness's growth.

The princesses took each other's hands, and Sora watched the odd team with a hopeful smile. All of them were a little different, strangers connected by their pure hearts, and somehow, just by standing there together, they looked unstoppable.

One by one, a soft light began to emanate from each of them, all except Yami, and as the lights began to intensify, leaving his behind, Sora cupped a hand beside his mouth and shouted to him.

"You can do it, Kairi!"

Almost immediately there was a change. Yami didn't just create a light, but the light itself spread, blossoming for just one moment into a recognizable figure—Kairi—a projection of light that looked almost like a ghost—and then she was gone, her figure becoming part of the spreading wall of light.

Sora shielded his eyes, trying to watch as long as he could even though the radiance was growing painful to look at, but then a large furry hand clamped over his eyes, and Beast's voice rumbled behind him.

"Don't be stupid."

Sora guessed that he wouldn't be very helpful if he went blind, so he listened. And all around him, as the magic thickened, he _felt _it, the little hairs on the back of his neck and arms rising on end as it grew intense enough it almost scared him.

Just when he thought it couldn't get anymore powerful, the light erupted—softly—like a flower blooming, and it rippled outward, passing through the large chamber in a series of gentle waves. Sora felt each wave pass through him, filling him with a comforting warmth, a deep sense of familiarity flowing with it. Kairi's power... Kairi's light had led him out of the darkness. If it weren't for her, he'd still be a heartless. He'd recognize her power anywhere.

When Sora cracked his eyes open, he was amazed to see the cloud of darkness dissolving right in front of them, particles of light corroding the shadows that had managed to linger. More darkness was already trying to pour out of the portal, but Sora didn't plan on waiting long enough for it to make a comeback.

He politely pushed past the princesses and climbed the crumbled dais without hesitation, his eyes set on his target. He hurried up to the portal and stood in front of its heart-shaped depths, feeling the power of the machinery and the chill of the darkness sting his skin.

Clenching his jaw, he swung Oblivion up and concentrated, opening his heart to the keyblade and its powers. He could feel all eyes on him, but it didn't bother him. It gave him even more courage, even more confidence that even if he wasn't Riku, he could do this job. It was okay, if just for a little while, he was the hero.

A stream of light trickled out of the keyblade and solidified before piercing through the darkness of the portal, and in that instant, the darkness disappeared in a burst of light. Sora felt his heart flutter as he watched, breathless, as the keyhole shimmered to life and made a resounding _click. _

Then everything began to fade, the light twinkling before dissipating, and the portal's colorful swirling magic falling still. Even though the portal still existed, Sora had a good feeling that it was useless now with the keyhole locked tight.

Smiling to himself, he lowered the keyblade and dismissed it.

His job here was done.

-o-o-

Surrounded by walls of white, she sat slouched on her knees in her white dress, tirelessly sketching the faces she remembered, somehow, but didn't know how. They had been there inside of her since before she could remember, and they were the only things in this colorless world that she did know for certain. Names, faces, places, memories—she had them all. All except her own.

There was nothing to draw with, no, but in this world of white on white and an unending silence, she had clung to the images inside of her. She felt as though if she _could _sketch them out, she could make them real. She wanted to.

So during her aimless exploring, when she had stumbled across one of the empty castle's few decorations—a crystal flower—she'd shattered it. One of the crystal shards had fit perfectly into her hand, and she had been drawing ever since.

The sound of the crystal digging into the floor and walls was comforting. It gave her world a sense of reality that nothing else here offered except the sound of her own breathing. And to maintain that comfort and fight away the loneliness she could feel without even feeling, she kept drawing. It hadn't taken her long to cover the floor with the ghosts of her mind—people she had never met in person, but people she did want to meet.

The only time she stopped sketching was when the first splash of color entered her world.

Her hand froze in mid-sketch, her eyes widening as she stared up at him.

Black.

Red.

Green.

He approached her with a calm confidence, and the sound of his footsteps were real. He was real, and his face wasn't one from her memories. It was new. Everything about him was new.

"Hey," he said, lifting a hand in greeting. Any uncertainty he might have had about her was long gone by the time he stopped in front of her.

She lifted her face a little more because he was so tall. "Hi..."

He planted a hand on his hip and looked around as if he wasn't really sure where he was, either. "You must be the anomaly I was sent to find," he said after a moment, focusing back on her. "You here alone?"

Anomaly? What was that?

Her fingers tightened around the shard of crystal. "I think so," she replied. She'd only explored a little, but the complete lack of life and sound here had been enough to draw conclusions from.

He curled his black fingers beneath his chin and studied her. "Hmm... Well, you been here long?"

Why was he asking these questions? Not that she minded. She was glad to see someone else here at last.

"I... don't know," she admitted.

He rubbed the back of his head, rustling his wild red hair. "Oookay. Well." For a moment, he seemed like he didn't know what to do, what to say, how to approach her. "Let's try something different," he smiled.

She tensed as he lowered himself in front of her, taking a seat on top of one of her drawings, probably without realizing it. He scanned the scattered etchings all over the floor, his red brows raised with interest.

"Whatcha drawing?"

For the first time, she looked away from him, examining the newest face she had scratched into the floor, one of a boy with crazy spikes for hair and a wide carefree grin. Sora. Then her eyes strayed to the face next to it, one with hair in his face—Riku. Then the man with the sad frown, that was Yami. And all of the others she had drawn...

She had never met them, but she knew them.

"The... things in my heart," she answered.

The stranger lifted his head with surprise. "Your heart?"

Her heart. When he said it like that, it didn't feel right. Was it her heart?

She rested her hand over her chest, unsure of whose memories these were. She didn't know who she was; she had no memory of this place or her own existence before these faces and memories had flooded her.

And they all revolved around one person. They had to be _his _memories.

"No... _his_ heart," she clarified, more certain now.

The stranger sat back and wrapped an arm around his legs, studying her again in that way that seemed like he didn't know what to do with her. "A little girl all alone in a big empty castle, drawin' about things that don't belong to her." His voice was casual and friendly, but there was a hint of teasing there. "Heh. You're a weird one." Then, as he leaned forward— "Got a name?"

She met his vivid green eyes, stuck on his question.

A name.

She didn't even know her own name.

"I think.... maybe I did," she said, even more confused. "I don't know who I am..."

"That's alright." Undeterred, the stranger pointed at himself. "Mine's Axel."

She repeated the name, liking the sound of it. "Axel..."

"Yup, ya got it memorized?" He formed as smirk as he sat back again. "I get a _feeling _you're gonna be seeing a lot of me."

The way he said 'feeling,' it was almost like he was mocking himself. There was something about him that made her feel comfortable, and she liked how colorful he was compared to everything else in her world.

She recalled what he had said when he had first greeted her—an anomaly? He said he had been sent to find her. Maybe he knew more about her than she knew about herself.

"Do you know why I'm here?" she asked, almost hopeful.

He didn't even falter, his words tumbling out of him as if he had always been born to talk. "Don't know, but now that I found you, I have to tell the boss." He started to get back to his feet, one of his hands brushing off his black coat. "Sorry, no-name, but you're gonna have to come with me."

No-name...

She lowered her eyes again and stared down at the face of the man she had drawn the most.

"Beats staying in this drab place, right?" he offered. "And I bet I can find you some stuff to draw with—like some colors—and a sketchpad. Yeah? Sound good?"

It did sound good. She didn't know him, but she liked his hair and his eyes and his name, and she liked that he was friendly even though he didn't know anything about her. He'd called her weird, but that was alright. He probably had memories of his own, but she had memories that belonged to someone else.

She reached out, brushing her fingers over the man's face carved into the crystal floor.

"Axel... Do you want to hear a story?"

"Sure," he said, but she heard his boots shuffle awkwardly as if he didn't really want to listen but would do it anyway just so he could get her to go with him. She didn't mind that, either. She just needed to talk to someone who was real, who wasn't part of these memories. And because he would listen, she'd go with him.

"There's a man with many lives—lives he's created for himself, and lies fed to him by other people," she began, not used to talking so much, but she had to tell someone what was on her mind. "He's been torn into so many pieces, I don't know what parts of him are real or make believe."

Her fingertips paused over the man's eyes, remembering the different colors they've been in her memories.

"In one memory, he's a man with a dark past, one who willingly hurt those around him and cast his future aside to seek the power of the darkness for himself," she said. "But in another memory... it was the darkness itself that called to him, pulled him into its arms, and brought ruin upon his life—and he couldn't stop it because it already had him under its spell."

Axel didn't say anything, his arms calmly folding across his chest as he listened to her.

"Sometimes, in his memories, he was raised in a rich family he hated, forced to learn things he didn't care about, and felt trapped no matter where he went. But other times, in his memories, he doesn't remember his past, and works so hard with so many different people just to try to remember where he came from."

There she trailed off, lifting her eyes back to his.

"So many different versions," she said, shaking her head. "Which do you think is true?"

Axel scratched his head, his brows wrinkling together as he admitted, "Kinda hard to tell. Maybe none of 'em are real."

Maybe he was right.

But then maybe, when someone believes something with all of his heart, even if it's not true, who was to say it wasn't? If the emotion was there, if the faces and words are there—wasn't that real enough?

In the end, even fake memories would be more real than whatever she knew about herself.

Slowly, she rose to her feet and smoothed her dress out, leaving the crystal shard on the floor with the sketches of her personal ghosts. She met Axel's eyes with a gravity that came from her own conviction.

"I think... they're both real."

-o-o-

Hollow Bastion may have been sealed, but its mysteries still haunted those who had stayed to protect it. They gathered in the main hall to run through everything that had happened and to clarify the facts they did know. Everyone was sitting or lounging on the mess of sofas and chairs they had dragged into the hall; in front of them, several tables had been lined up, littered with a slew of papers and trinkets they had recovered from Ansem's various studies and rooms and whatnot.

It was here that Sora finally got his answers.

As he sat there next to Donald and Goofy and listened to Yami describe what Kairi had experienced, he felt his heart sink lower and lower inside of him, disbelieving what he was hearing. But Sephiroth, armed with knowledge that only someone who worked for Id would know, backed up Yami and Kairi's stories.

Kairi may have saved Ansem's heart, but the darkness that had once been in that heart had formed a heartless, and that heartless had possessed Riku. Somehow, Riku had been so insecure, so desperate, that he had let a heartless burrow into his heart, and take over his body.

And when that had happened... Riku had turned Sora into a heartless. Riku had tried to hurt Kairi. Riku had...

Maybe not _Riku_, but Sora couldn't help being furious with Riku anyway. He may not have been the one doing all of these bad things, but _Riku _had allowed it, _Riku _let himself get that desperate. Instead of turning to Sora—or Kairi—or anyone else!—for help, Riku had let himself fall to the darkness, even after what he had seen Id do to Sora, even after all of the other stupid stunts Riku had done!

When Sora found him and beat that heartless out of Riku, Sora was going to beat Riku, too. HARD.

But at the same time...

Sora couldn't help worrying about him. Sure, Riku was the biggest idiots of all idiots, but... Sora should have seen this coming. He should have paid more attention to Riku. He should have _helped _somehow. Even if Aerith told him it wasn't his fault, that he shouldn't blame himself—Sora still felt responsible, just a little.

Riku was his best friend.

He was the one person who was supposed to know Riku the best.

What if... he couldn't ever get Riku back?

He didn't even want to think about that.

"Would Id be able to control Ansem through that kind of darkness?" Leon asked, still all business even when faced with the grim facts.

"Rogue heartless have minds of their own," Sephiroth explained. "Sometimes one will obey Id just out of respect or not knowing what else to do. However, if it has a mind of its own, it will follow its own desires." He paused, focusing on Yami. "Ansem's heartless is after the heart of all hearts, Kingdom Hearts, and wants it for its power."

"Kingdom Hearts," Yami repeated, looking lost in thought. "Id is after it as well, though he never told me what for."

"He failed to tell me as well," Sephiroth said.

"Does it matter what they want it for?" Sora asked with a frown. "If both of these dark forces want it, we have to stop them. Anything they want it for can't be good."

"I'm with the kid on that one," Cid said. He scratched at his stubble before returning to fixing Sora's necklace, which they had retrieved from the library. The chain had been snapped, but Cid had offered to reconnect the links with a set of pliers he'd pulled from the gummi ship outside.

Once Cid had given his opinion, most of the others followed suit, everyone agreeing with Sora's verdict.

"Then we'll stop them," Cloud consented. "It won't be easy finding them, though."

"Finding Ansem will be easy," Sora said. When everyone looked to him for an explanation, he held a hand over his heart and closed his eyes. "I don't remember much at all from when I was a heartless, but I remember a little, and it's starting to make sense. Kairi's light inside of Yami brought me back, pulled me out of the darkness. I was drawn to her heart—I _felt _her heart. But it wasn't just hers. I felt Riku's, too—and this really powerful tug—like it was constantly trying to pull me to him. I might have gone to find him if I hadn't found Kairi first."

He slipped his eyes back open, and most of his friends looked bewildered.

"Back home, we have this legend," he continued. "There's this star-shaped fruit called a paopu fruit, and the legend says that if you share it with someone you care about, your destinies are forever intertwined."

Yami looked directly at him, realizing where he was going with this. "You..." He paused, then, as if listening to someone else, and nodded. "Right... You and Riku shared one of those fruits. So then the legend is true?"

"That's the only thing I can think of," Sora admitted. "There've been times when I'm alone, but then I'll feel... something... some kind of emotion, or thought, one that doesn't seem like mine. I think they're Riku's. It's weird, and really really faint, but I think..." No, he _knew_—but it sounded so silly. "I think if I follow my heart, I can find him."

Yami cracked a small smile. "You probably can. Likewise, I know how to find Ansem's darkness. It's distinct—very different than the darkness that Id gave him to begin with. Together, we should be able to find our target."

Sora's heart jolted a little. Wait—Yami wanted to come with him? But...

"I don't think you should come," Sora said, mentally preparing himself for whatever guilt his friends might inflict on him. Then he quickly explained, ignoring the disbelief on Yami's face. "Really! Ansem is trying to kill you, Yami! Kairi let you have her body so she could protect you, so it's not fair if you run right into danger, right?" And when Yami opened his mouth to protest, Sora cut him off again. "And besides! You're still kinda weak from transforming, right? And even before then, Kairi's heart was making you sick. What if you go out there and can't use any of your powers?"

Just when Sora was running out of reasons why Yami shouldn't risk his neck, Leon came to his rescue.

"Sora's right. Your powers and body are too unpredictable," he said, and his tone left no room for argument. His eyes thinned at Yami as if daring him to challenge him. "And he's also right about Kairi wanting to protect you. Don't risk her life because you want to play bait for _your_ heartless. It's a bad idea."

Ouch. All right, Sora hadn't wanted to put it _that _way, but Leon got the point across really well.

Yami was stunned to silence, and the look on his face made Sora feel sorry for him. He knew Yami wanted to help, but Sora's desire to keep Kairi safe was stronger than any comfort Yami's presence on the battlefield would give him. He'd just be in the way.

"Here ya go, kid," Cid called through the tense silence that had ensued.

He tossed Sora's necklace at him, and Sora broke into a grin as he caught it. "Thanks! It almost looks brand new, too!" he said, excited to have it back. He immediately slipped the chain over his neck, centering the crown over his chest with pride. When he glanced up, the princesses were smiling at him, and he rubbed the back of his head, feeling his cheeks warm a little at all of the attention.

Thankfully, Cid wasn't done talking. "No problem. And speakin' of Ansem," he said, and all eyes turned back towards Yami, who had his face lowered. Even though his white bangs were hanging in his eyes, Sora could see that he looked pretty upset. Regardless, Cid pressed on. "We need someone to clear up this damn mystery about the two different Ansems."

"Right!" Goofy said, and as if reading his mind, Donald was off his chair and digging through the pile of stuff on a table nearby. "We were talkin' earlier about what Cid and Leon remembered, and they saw this picture Donald found—"

Donald let out a triumphant squawk as he found a picture frame with shattered glass. He quickly wove through the chairs and brought the picture to Yami. Sora got up to look, too, interested to see what the big deal was.

As Yami hesitantly took the frame, Leon rose to his feet and stood at Yami's other side, pointing to one of the people in the picture. The man looked like Yami, maybe a few years older, and his bangs were slicked back. Instead of amber eyes, they were brown.

"This is the Ansem I remember," Leon said. Then he pointed to another figure in the photo, this one of an older gentleman. He was wearing an important looking sash over his coat, and something about him was very refined. "This is the Ansem that Cid remembers. Aerith has memories of him, too, but everyone else—Cloud, Sephiroth—they all remember you as Ansem..."

Yami's expression filled with confusion as he studied the photo, an almost haunted look in his eyes. "I... know these people. But..."

"But?" Leon prompted, sounding impatient.

"Give him a minute," Sora said, recognizing how genuine Yami's emotions were. Yami really didn't have a clue what was going on.

"This other Ansem," Yami murmured. "He feels... very familiar. But I remember calling myself Ansem since before the fall of the bastion... even Id called me that..."

Now that Sora thought about it... "You know, I remember finding this portrait of Ansem, it even had a plaque on it. He looked a lot like Yami. Remember?" He looked to Yami for support. "I found it buried beneath all of these papers. You caught me staring at it and told me all creepily that 'they forgot Ansem,' like you were sad about it."

Donald was back to rummaging on the tables, and moments later, he hefted up a large frame and called out. "You mean this one?"

Leon it took it from him to study it, the frown on his face deepening as he read the plaque. "It does say Ansem here. You said it was buried under papers?"

"Yeah, a huge stack of boring research-like stuff. Like someone was trying to hide it," Sora said.

Now other people were getting up to look at all of the evidence, and Cid came over to inspect the mysterious portrait Leon was holding. Yami was still staring down at the cracked photo as if lost in it.

"Take a look at this," Cid said, running his finger along the edges of the plaque. It wasn't noticeable at first, but there, just a line or two, there were definite slivers missing out of the frame, slivers that fed under the plaque. "Looks like something's under it. Hold on a sec..."

Moments later, Cid had grabbed his pliers and was using them to pry off the fine plaque, not caring how much he marred the portrait in the process. It took a lot of effort, but eventually the plaque came free, and Sora leaned in to see what had been beneath it.

There, carved into the wood of the frame in elegant golden cursive, was the weirdest name Sora had ever heard.

"Xee...han...ort?"

Yami's head snapped up, his face pale as if he'd seen a ghost. "Xehanort. I know that name."

Judging by the confusion on everyone else's face, Yami was the only one who recognized that name. Cid scratched at his stubble again, eyeing the portrait in a way he would a broken gummi console. The answer was there, maybe even staring right at them, but they needed to tinker with the mechanics a little more before everything fell into place. Sora felt much the same way. It was like they had all of the answers there in front of them, but they didn't make any sense yet.

"You'd think you'd know more about your own past," Sora sighed. All of this was too much for him to sit and think about. He'd thought the whole Yami thing had been confusing—and now Ansem wasn't Ansem? How much more complicated could one person get?

Yami was beginning to look frustrated, too. "This is not easy. I have the memories my heartless left me with—memories steeped in nine years of darkness."

"He has a point," Cloud admitted. "Id had a long time to corrupt his heart."

"So even if Kairi's heart freed him from that darkness, it doesn't change whatever lies Id might have been telling him over the years," Aerith said thoughtfully, and Yami seemed to relax a little when he realized no one was against him—they were just confused.

"Which also means the heartless possessing Riku knows as little as Yami does," Leon pointed out. "What I don't get is why the rest of us remember calling you Ansem if it wasn't true."

"No one tampered with your memories, to my knowledge. What you remember is probably real," Yami said, his voice... detached. He lowered the cracked photo, and Sora took it from him to take a better look at it.

Sephiroth calmly sifted through some of the papers he had retrieved from the table, speaking up again at last. "I have a theory about that, based on what I know about the heartless."

Sora sat down next to Yami, already interested to know what Sephiroth would have to say, and everyone else tuned in as well.

Looking up from the papers he had been scanning, Sephiroth focused on Yami. "Heartless are driven by three things: their master, their instincts, and their desires. Most heartless listen to Id or their instincts. Rogue heartless like Ansem, however, are driven by their own desires, as I said earlier. So, what do we know about Ansem?"

He threw the stack of papers onto the table and gestured to them.

"He was a scientist, and he was not the only one. The name Xehanort and some other apprentices are mentioned in the series of reports written by the Ansem with the formal handwriting. However, no other names are mentioned in the reports written with Yami's handwriting."

"We noticed that earlier, yeah. So what's your point?" Cid asked.

Sephiroth passed through the chairs and approached Yami and Sora, taking the cracked frame from them as he continued. "My point is that there were _not _two Ansems. Ansem is a rogue heartless driven by his desires. Perhaps he is only calling himself Ansem because he _wanted _to be Ansem—or replace him. And when he became a heartless, that desire became his reality."

Yami's expression darkened at the suggestion. "So you are saying... I was pretending to be Ansem."

"Or at least leading many people to believe you were," Sephiroth said. "I don't remember a Xehanort, but I remember you, as does Cloud—and Squall."

"And I remember the other Ansem, though not by name," Aerith added. "Cid's right. He did exist. We were too young to remember much about politics, but... Ansem was our ruler."

Sephiroth held the photo in front of Yami and Sora. "My theory is that you are Xehanort, one of Ansem's apprentices. Somehow you managed to run experiments without Ansem's knowing, even using his name instead of your own. You experimented with hearts using a variety of techniques, and somewhere along the way you not only discovered the heartless, you experimented with Cloud and myself, and caught Id's attention."

Yami slowly reached out to take the photo again, his amber eyes filled with a myriad of emotions as he stared down at his mystifying past. "And when I became a heartless... I only kept the memories I wanted to be real. My real memories..."

"Would be with your Nobody," Sephiroth finished for him.

"Nobody?" Sora asked, getting the feeling he was going to be even more confused soon.

Yami released a long breath and nodded. Maybe it was Sora's imagination, but he seemed to be calming down now, almost like he was accepting what he was hearing. "Yes. Do you remember the day I found you snooping near the postern?"

The postern? Oh—wait! Yeah! That was the first time Sora had found Ansem's other study.

"Yeah, I heard a bunch of voices talking about weird stuff, and when I went to peek in on them, you came up behind me and stopped me," Sora recalled. "You called them rats and told me to stay away from them, that they were my enemy... that they wanted what Maleficent wanted, but worse." Sora only remembered all of that because he had been so surprised to find other people in the bastion—even if he hadn't seen what they looked like.

"And it is true," Yami said. "_They_ are Nobodies."

Sora blinked at him. "Huh?"

Sephiroth stepped in, looking amused. "Heartless are hearts shrouded in darkness. Nobodies are the bodies that are left behind. Much like rogue heartless, there are certain types of nobodies who maintain a sense of self."

"And while desires are transferred to the heartless through the heart," Yami explained, "the memories go to the nobody."

That's when it clicked.

"So you mean you have a nobody out there with your real memories?" Sora asked, eyes widening. "Wait—isn't that what Kairi wanted? To return you to your body? So then it's possible!"

"Possible," he agreed, his expression growing even more grim. "But unlikely. Wherever my nobody is now, he probably does not want to be found."

Leon sighed and sat back in his chair, rubbing a hand into his forehead. "So he's the one we need to look for if we want the truth."

"There are others who would know," Yami said. "But you are unlikely to get the truth out of Id, and no one knows what has happened to the other Ansem. The real Ansem, so to speak..."

"You're forgetting someone!" Donald cut in.

"His majesty King Mickey would know," Goofy said with a nod. "Says here in one of these reports that Ansem met a king from another world."

"How do you know it was your king?" Sora wondered.

Donald folded his wings. "Who else would it be?"

Well, Sora didn't have an answer for that. He didn't know much about their king. "Alright, so we look for the king while we're at it."

"That takes us back to square one," Leon sighed. "Find the king, seal the keyholes..."

"Not completely back to square one," Sora pointed out, curling a hand over his heart. "I'm just the benchwarmer, remember? I'm not replacing Riku. He'll be back."

"Sora."

Yami's eyes settled on his, and Sora got the distinct feeling that this wasn't just the fake-Ansem talking to him, it was Kairi, too.

"You can't count on anything," he said to Sora. "Until we find out more, you are the keyblade master, regardless of Riku's fate. The keyblade chose you in the end, and it must have chosen you for a good reason. Don't waver like Riku did."

Something tightened around Sora's heart, some sense of finality, a resolve. He knew Yami was right. Even though he didn't want to think about losing Riku, it was a definite possibility. He couldn't count on saving Riku and having Riku pick up where he left off. It was possible that Sora really might be his permanent replacement.

"Then it's probably time Sora decided who his trinity's going to be," Leon said, pulling Sora out of his thoughts.

"My... trinity? What's that?"

"You can't take everyone with you," Leon said, scanning those gathered in the main hall, from Beast and the princesses to those who lived in Traverse Town, before returning his gaze to Sora's. "Before we decided to join Riku, Merlin told us about the trinity."

Cloud nodded and picked up where Leon left off. "It's supposed to be a powerful team composed of three people who trust each other. Without trust, their power fails. With trust, their power grows unstoppable, and they create unbreakable bonds between them."

"We trusted Riku." Leon closed his eyes, his impassive expression gaining a hint of regret. "Don't know what we did wrong, but he didn't return that trust."

Sora shook his head, understanding where this was going. "No—don't say that. Riku's... always been like that. He acts tough, but it takes a lot for him to trust someone. And the person he has the worst time trusting is himself." When Leon's eyes settled back on Sora, Sora smiled to reassure him. "It's not your fault Riku can be pretty dumb." Then, to break the awkward tension: "So what makes a trinity? Just three people?"

Leon accepted the change of subject, but his tone had become reserved. "The head of the trinity is supposed to be light. That would be you, since you have the keyblade."

"The other two in the trinity represent protection and healing, basically," Cloud finished for him, watching Sora expectantly.

But even though Sora had caught onto their ploy, he wasn't ready to pick just anyone for his trinity. He hesitated and glanced at all of his friends, even the princesses, Beast, Mushu, the Traverse Town gang—everyone was watching him. Especially Leon and Cloud. And Yami.

Yami...

Sora couldn't help thinking about Ansem and Kairi—the way Yami had protected him when Sora had least expected it, and how Kairi had always supported him. And when Sora thought about it, Donald and Goofy must have been Riku's trinity, at least part of the time—that was why they had been on Agrabah and Atlantica. Maybe something _had _happened for Riku to lose faith in his friends.

Nevertheless, when Sora looked at all of their faces, he could honestly say he trusted all of them. It hadn't always been that way, especially not with Yami, but a lot had changed in the last twenty-four hours. Sora didn't know any of them that well, not like how Riku had. The one he did know the best was Yami, and, well... Yami hardly knew himself.

Sora didn't know who to choose. But...

He couldn't fight fake-Ansem's heartless alone.

Coming to a decision, Sora settled his gaze on Cloud and Leon, offering them a smile.

"Leon, Cloud..."

Leon straightened and nodded, but Cloud folded his wing behind himself, his expression calm.

"Sorry, guys," Sora said, reaching up to rub the back of his head. "You're really strong and I could use you in a fight, but... you should stay here. This was your home, right? Who knows if I'm ever gonna make it back here. You oughta take this chance while you got it. Rebuild your world, you know?"

Leon started to protest, but Cloud clamped his hand on Leon's shoulder.

"You find Riku for us," Cloud said, and when Leon sent him an incredulous look, Cloud squeezed his shoulder. "This is his fight, Squall. If what Yami said is true, there are nobodies interested in this world. Someone has to stay to protect it."

"Right," Sora agreed. "And to protect Yami."

That pointed look of betrayal returned to Yami's face, but after what Leon had told him earlier, Yami didn't put up a fight. He looked away and folded his arms, plainly not liking being treated like a fragile princess. But with Kairi in there somewhere, Sora wouldn't have it any other way.

He finally looked to Donald and Goofy. In that moment, he remembered Goofy's bravery when he had helped shield Riku and Sora from falling rocks in Agrabah when Jafar had taken over the Cave of Wonders. He remembered the freezing pressure of the water in Atlanica when he had teleported himself back to save Riku—and how Donald had been there to transform him into a merman before he could drown.

Sora still hardly knew the crazy duo, but he was certain about one thing.

He wouldn't be here without them.

"You guys are supposed to follow the key, right?" Sora asked.

"You betcha!" Goofy said with a smile.

Donald patted his chest. "You can count on us!"

"All right," Sora said, breaking into a grin. "Then I think I have my trinity."

And as Goofy let out his "A-hoo-hoo-hoo!" of glee and Donald tackled him around the waist, Sora laughed with them, already feeling confident he had made the right decision.

-o-o-

Riku knew only darkness after Ansem entered the heart of the world.

Using his body, Ansem had passed through into a state of being beyond Riku, and Riku had sunk further into the shadows, unsure of what was happening or where he was or what he could do to find his way again.

He could still feel Ansem, all around him, inside of him, a deep poison he couldn't overcome no matter how hard he tried.

And he did try. He hadn't stopped fighting.

It was too late to ask for help, but more than ever, Riku knew he needed it.

He thought about all of his friends and kept his heart open, hoping that they, if anything, would give him the strength to hold onto who he was. Kairi's faith in him, Sora's trust—he could still feel their hearts when he concentrated hard enough.

And there... was someone else.

_Don't give up!_

That voice...

He'd heard it before.

Not Ansem's—

Not anything like his.

It was warm, reassuring, like a child's—high-pitched—honest.

"Hello?"

Riku called into the darkness, knowing he hadn't imagined it.

After what had happened with Ansem, he wasn't going to ignore the things he thought were figments of his imagination.

_You can hear me? Gosh, I thought I'd never get through!_

"Who are you?" Riku asked.

He searched the darkness in front of him, which seemed to be thinning. He didn't know why, but he could faintly see the ground beneath his feet—a gray road leading into the black abyss.

_A friend! I've been tryin' to talk to you all this time, but the darkness wouldn't let me reach you._

Riku contemplated the stranger's words, trusting them for some reason.

This wasn't like Ansem. The words filtered through his heart much like Ansem's had, but unlike Ansem, when Riku reached out to feel the person at the other end of the Voice, he felt... someone there. Someone real. Not just darkness.

Whoever this voice was, they had a heart.

Somehow, just by talking to him, they had already eased the darkness around him. Ansem had only tried to bury him.

"So why can I hear you now?" he wondered.

_Your heart's calling for help. It's loud and clear now._

Riku rested a hand over his chest.

Beneath his palm, his heart thrummed with a steady strength.

Wherever he was, he still had his heart.

As long as he had that... he'd find a way back to his body. Then back to his friends.

_So don't worry! I'm comin' to help. _

"Thanks," Riku said, forming a small smile.

Even in the deepest darkness, it seemed like there really was a little light, and that light had found him. He wasn't sure how or why or who it was, but he was grateful.

He'd hold onto this light until he reclaimed his own.

_And whatever you do, don't give up!_

Riku stared down the long gray road into the unknown.

Slowly, he lowered his hand from his heart and began to walk, one foot in front of the other, his steps silent in the cold abyss. It didn't matter where he was going. Somewhere at the end of this road he'd find what he was looking for.

Strength, maybe. Ansem. Sora. His light.

He didn't know what.

But he sure as hell wasn't going to give up.

"I won't," he told the voice, and without needing further encouragement, he broke into a run.

-o-o-

* * *

One more chapter and a long epilogue to go, at least for this fic. Let's make it to the end together! Review?


	45. Final Interlude: How to Say Goodbye

_Author Notes: _

I honestly wasn't expecting this to happen! This was going to be the beginning of the final chapter, but as I was writing it, it just... didn't fit together with the rest of the chapter. I didn't like it there. It's taken me this long just to write this because it seriously was bothering me that much. So I finally gave in and decided to cut this out of the chapter and make it its own separate _thing_.

I would have cut this out of the story completely, but as a fan of the game (and RPGs in general), I wanted to include these scenes as homage to the genre—one last respite before the final battle. As a writer, my brain was telling me to delete these scenes entirely from the story. As a fan, my heart was telling me to give them to the audience, that we need _closure _in many of the areas addressed in this last interlude. The fan part of me won. After all, this is a fanfic, isn't it?

There are no spoilers for 358-2 Days or Birth By Sleep (the latter of which I have not played yet, so no spoilers please!).

* * *

_**Final Interlude: **__How to Say Goodbye_

-o-o-

_Sora hated goodbyes. _

_He'd always been terrible at them, but now more than ever, with the balance of the worlds relying on his strength as the new keyblade master, he felt the weight of that word on his heart. _

_Goodbye. _

-o-o-

"Once you defeat Ansem, we will probably return to the worlds we were on before they were destroyed."

Aerith stood beside Sora outside the bastion's second floor library. Drawn out of his thoughts, he looked away from the hubbub in the foyer below.

"Really?"

"The worlds used to be divided by impassible barriers," she said, "but the heartless destroyed those barriers."

She draped her arms over the railing. He watched her observe the others, a quiet smile on her face.

Down below, Yami was giving a disgruntled Donald some last minute tips about his magic, and Cloud was honing Goofy's fighting techniques for the upcoming battles.

Sora had come here for some time alone to straighten his thoughts out, but he hadn't exactly been hiding. He wasn't surprised Aerith had been the one to look for him first.

"Id was using Ansem to spread the heartless," she explained, her eyes trained to Yami's elegant movements as he cast his spells. "Defeat Ansem, and you'll stop the heartless and Id's plan. The world borders ought to return once the hearts of worlds are allowed to heal."

Much like Aerith, Sora watched the commotion below. While backing away from Cloud's precise swings, Goofy crashed into Donald, and both of them crumpled to the ground amongst a swirl of Donald's ice crystals and wind.

Aerith waited for Goofy's laughter to fade before she continued, focusing her smile on Sora. "You'll be able to go home."

That caught his attention more than anything. Darkness and the barriers between worlds—that was all beyond him. But home? He understood that.

He would be going home. To his mom. To his friends. To the islands that he and Riku had wanted to escape in the first place... but he now wanted to return to, more than anything. That was real motivation.

The deal sounded almost too good to be true, and at the same time—it scared him. If everyone returned to their worlds, where would Kairi go? And all of his new friends... Donald, Goofy, Beast, the princesses, Leon, Aerith...

"Wait—" He pulled away from the railing. "Will I still get to see everyone?"

Aerith's smile faded.

A nervous flutter grew inside of him. "Think Cid will let me keep a gummi ship...?" he asked, even though he had already guessed her answer.

"Even if he did, it wouldn't work," she said. "The world boundaries will be impassible again."

"So then..." He looked down, his fists curling into his orange hoodie as his heart grew heavier.

A gentle hand rested on his shoulder. "Right..." Aerith's voice was sympathetic, sad. "We may never see each other again."

He wrenched his eyes closed, imagining all of the faces of the people he had met since the start of his adventure.

"But..."

Sora turned his attention back towards the foyer where Yami had helped Goofy up, and Donald was brushing all of the ice crystals off his clothes.

He thought about Leon and Cloud, the princesses, Cid and the gang, Sephiroth, Mushu, Beast... Facing all odds, somehow all of these people had gathered here for the same purpose. Everyone wanted to help him. His friends were all working together to make sure Sora had the best chance possible to rescue Riku and put an end to the darkness for good.

"Don't worry." Her fingers squeezed his shoulder. "We won't forget you—or Riku. Why don't you talk to the others before you set off?"

Sora turned away with a nod. "Y-Yeah."

As he felt her hand slip away from him, he headed for the stairs, discreetly wiping an eye.

-o-o-

_Sora had already lost his home, his friends, his mom, now Riku... _

_He hadn't had a chance to tell any of them goodbye—not that there would have been any good in those byes. _

_Now he had so many new friends... and it was __**his**__ turn to leave. He didn't want to think about what his future would bring, or if he'd ever see any of the people he cared about again. _

_No, he just felt lucky he had a chance to say his farewells this time. _

_Just in case. _

-o-o-

"Thank you… for helping us."

Ears lowered, voice gruff, gaze averted…

It was obvious Beast wasn't used to expressing gratitude. But judging from how Belle was beaming at him with pride, Sora figured she had put him up to this.

Sora appreciated it, though. He'd grown a big soft spot for Beast. He couldn't put his finger on why, but he had a hunch it was because he had been there with Beast for the last leg of his journey and had seen the suffering he had gone through. Sora had protected him, so he felt partially responsible for him.

"No problem! That's what friends are for, right?" he told Beast with a smile. "Besides, Yami told me that you protected Kairi. You know, when Id took me over…" He rubbed the back of his head, feeling a little shy himself. He still had to apologize to Traverse Town for the things Id had done to the people there. "So thanks."

"Sora."

He jumped a little when Belle rested a hand on his arm.

"Don't listen to what anyone else says," she said. "Trust what's in your heart."

Then, with a knowing smile, she leaned in and kissed his forehead.

Cheeks burning, Sora wondered about her advice.

Trust what was in his heart… Was that what Belle had done with Beast to get past his scary looks?

Then again, Beast had done it, too. Trusting his heart was exactly how Beast had survived his desperate journey through the corridors between worlds to make it here, where he had felt Belle was. And he had found her.

So, trust what was in his heart? Sora thought about how much he had hated Yami for what he'd done but, deep down, knew there had been more to Yami, that he wasn't all that bad.

At the start of this journey, Sora had seen things in black and white, good or bad, light or dark. Now he understood there were too many shades in between. He would know—he hadn't exactly been an ideal hero.

That was why Sora didn't blame Riku. He blamed him for a lot of things, like being stupid and for not trusting his friends as much as he should have, but Sora didn't blame him for turning towards the darkness out of desperation.

Right now, he could care less about Riku's dumb choices.

What mattered was simple.

His best friend was out there somewhere and needed his help. And no matter what it took, Sora would find him.

-o-o-

_"I'll always be your best friend, no matter what." _

_Pale lashes wet with tears, green eyes filled with profound emotions—hope, sincerity, regret. Fear. Love._

_"That's a promise." _

_Shared smiles, shaky but sincere._

_"Same for me. It's a promise." _

_A star-shaped charm clasped in a trembling hand._

_"We'll always be best friends."_

_That was a promise Sora would never forget._

-o-o-

"Aladdin has the hots for you."

Sora wasn't usually the kind of person to play matchmaker, but this was something he couldn't ignore or he'd regret it for the rest of his life. However long that might be. But as a favor to a friend—or from one guy to another—this had to be done.

He couldn't control the grin on his face as he told Jasmine _aaaall_ about the things Aladdin had said about her, about how she was all he could think and talk about, and how Aladdin had fought so hard to try to find her.

All the other princesses burst into giggles as they listened, but Jasmine herself seemed unimpressed. By the time Sora was done with his story, though, she'd formed a small smile as if not realizing she had.

Jasmine was obviously no pushover or the type of girl to be wooed by normal heroics, but Sora felt confident she cared about Aladdin, too.

Satisfied that he'd gotten all of that off his chest, he then intended to say goodbye to each of the remaining princesses, who were still giggling from Sora's rambling matchmaking attempt. He should have known better.

He didn't make it out of there unscathed.

Five different shades of lipstick joined Belle's on his face, and Sora quickly retreated from the room, blushing ear to ear.

He just hoped the princesses didn't rub off on Kairi—or worse, _Yami_.

He was still wiping his face clean with the tail of his hoodie when he saw Cloud resting on the stairs with his massive sword propped next to him. Looked like he had finished his training session with Goofy, who was nowhere in sight. Everyone else in the foyer was going over plans to secure the bastion and restore their world.

"Not gonna join them?" Sora asked as he passed by.

Cloud glanced up at him through his bangs, his red mantle obscuring part of his face. "They can handle it."

Weird. Wondering why he seemed so dismissive when everyone else was taking an active role, Sora paused to talk to the quiet warrior. "Wasn't this your world, too?"

"Yeah." Cloud's blue eyes shifted towards Leon and the others. "But I'm fine where I am. Planning and all that—" He gestured with a hand he had resting on his leg. "That's their territory. I'll help with whatever they give me."

Sora crossed his arms against the low banister and leaned over to get a better view of him. "What're you hiding from?"

"Not hiding," came the quiet reply.

Cloud closed his eyes, and the wing he had folded beneath his mantle relaxed. Sora realized then that he wasn't seeing sadness—Cloud actually seemed… content?

"I'm just… fine," Cloud said. "Fine with what I have. I don't need anything else."

Sora didn't know much about him, but maybe all Cloud had needed was to find home again.

Cloud lifted his eyes back to Sora's. "Actually… There _is _one thing."

Wanting to know more about the cool-looking warrior, Sora smiled. "Yeah?"

Cloud's metallic claw curled against the banister, close to Sora's arm. "You're going after Riku."

Sora nodded, though he didn't see what Riku had to do with Cloud's happiness here—unless he too was feeling guilty about not paying more attention to Riku and his unexpected turn to darkness.

"The darkness makes you forget who you are," Cloud said, a depth to his words that gave Sora goosebumps. "Makes you forget what's important… You do things no sensible person would ever do."

Not sure what else to do, Sora managed another nod, this time shaky. There was no doubt in his mind that Cloud was speaking from experience.

Cloud's jaw tightened. "If you go in there after him—whatever you do, don't lose sight of your light."

_Don't do what I did._

The warning wasn't spoken, but Sora knew it was there. The cold reality of it crept into his heart, especially as he thought about what he might be going up against when he found Riku. Or what he might have to do to save him…

Swallowing hard, Sora took a deep breath to steel himself, and his fingers clutched the crown over his heart.

He wouldn't let Riku become another Xehanort. He wouldn't let Id have his way.

"I won't," he promised.

-o-o-

_It wasn't that Sora never liked Kairi in that way. He loved both of his best friends. If he'd had a choice, he would have shared the paopu with both of them._

_To be honest, Sora wasn't sure what had attracted him to Riku "in that way" more than Kairi. Admiration? Idolization? Curiosity? Because he couldn't imagine a world without him?_

_Whatever the reason, the turning point in his feelings had been simple: the dream with Riku and the tidal wave and being unable to grab his hand._

_Sora refused to be helpless when it came to protecting his friends. He knew Riku was scared to be alone. The truth was, Sora was scared, too._

_That was why he had refused to leave on the raft with just Kairi._

_That was why he had given Riku that paopu._

_And that was why he had grabbed Riku's hand that night in the darkness. _

-o-o-

"Whatchu _mean_, 'Go back to Mulan'?"

Mushu's tiny arms were folded across his chest as he frowned up at Sora.

"I thought we've been through this. _Mulan_ don't need me. _You _do."

Saying goodbye was getting hard to do, especially when people kept insisting on going with Sora. He hated being the bad guy here.

"You can't come, Mushu. No one's sure what's gonna happen to us out there," he said. "But when we beat Ansem, all of the worlds are supposed to go back to normal—which means they'll all be separated. You might not ever get a chance to go home again."

This softened Mushu's frown with concern. "Seriously? Then…"

Sora nodded. "This is goodbye." He crouched and offered Mushu his hand, and the little dragon crawled into it, looking torn. "Hey, cheer up, Mushu. We had fun, didn't we?"

"Yeah, fun," Mushu grumbled. "You were missing half the time, and I wasn't much of a mighty guardian, now was I?"

"You did what you could, and that's what counts," Sora said with a reassuring smile. "Besides, you're Mulan's guardian, at heart. That's who you belong with. You're lucky to have a world and friends who survived the heartless."

To his relief, a wry smile began to pull at Mushu's lips. "Well… I do I miss her crazy stunts. I even miss that noisy cricket and the cow that thinks I'm a some sorta floor mat."

With a laugh, Sora brought Mushu to his shoulder for a lizard-sized hug. "Thanks for everything, pal. And I'll find a way to come visit everyone. I promise."

Mushu's tiny hand patted his arm. "You'd better. And do me a favor, will ya?"

Sora pulled away in question, and Mushu smirked up at him.

"When you find Riku… kick his butt for me."

-o-o-

_At the start of their journey, Sora'd had no idea what they had gotten themselves into. He wouldn't have ever guessed he'd do the things he'd done, see the things he'd seen, meet the people he'd met… or suffer the way he'd suffered._

_But if he could go back to the beginning and somehow warn himself of all the things to come, he didn't think the outcome would change._

_He still would have taken Riku's hand._

_To Sora, all of the friends he had made, all of the good experiences he'd had, and all of the things he had learned about himself were worth every minute of that suffering. _

-o-o-

Sora was almost done saying his goodbyes.

After he'd tolerated Yuffie's bone-crushing hug and playful punching, she had given him a heads-up that Leon had gone outside a few minutes ago. Sora didn't question why Leon was out there.

Maybe he should have.

It didn't take long to find him—he was out on the immobile lift that overlooked the misty abyss and rising falls beyond the bastion. What surprised Sora was that he wasn't alone.

Yami was with him.

Sora froze when he saw their silhouettes, beyond confused. What was _Yami _doing out here? Maybe Donald had gotten irritated training with him. Still, Leon and Yami alone? Out here?

Curiosity getting the better of him, Sora slunk forward, keeping out of sight, and pressed himself against one of the intricate columns of the archway that led to the lift.

The sun was hidden behind the mountains in the distance, casting their peaks in an orange glow. The two men were at the lift's bronze railing, not quite side by side, but both of their backs were towards Sora.

They spoke in low tones, just loud enough for Sora to eavesdrop.

"Your Nobody isn't just going to give himself up."

"I know."

An awkward silence followed.

Leon glanced at Yami, whose expression was resigned as he stared off into the sunset. Sora knew he shouldn't have been spying on them, but something was going on between those two, and he wanted to know what.

The nonchalant mask on Leon's face slipped just a little, and Sora caught a glimpse of frustration there. "Was Sephiroth right? Do all of your real memories belong to your Nobody?"

"Most likely," Yami replied. "His theory is sound."

"So then—what _do _you remember? As Ansem." Leon's jaw tightened when he said the name. A bitterness crept into his tone. "Or whatever your name really was."

Were the others this angry with Yami, or did Leon have a reason for all this? Sora understood that Ansem—er, Xehanort—was responsible for a lot of the bad stuff that had happened, but weren't Id and Xehanort's heartless the real bad guys?

But then, Sora still had some hard feelings about what Yami and Riku had done… That would probably always sting, no matter how much time had passed. Riku's apology had helped, but not everything was okay, especially on Yami's side.

"What do I remember…" Yami trailed off for a long moment, reaching deep into the past, but Leon never looked away. "The experiments, the research… the long nights… The dreams. Id."

That apparently wasn't what Leon had wanted to hear, judging from the angry sigh he released. But before he could say anything, Yami finally turned to meet his gaze.

"I remember you."

Leon faltered, his eyes locked with Yami's, then grew cautious. Testing. "How much of it was a lie?"

Sora crouched low against the column and leaned around the corner to see better, watching as Yami's expression clouded with torn emotions. Before now, Sora had only ever seen that look on Yami's face around _him_.

"What do you want me to say?"

"I want the truth." There was no hesitation in Leon's tone. "An explanation. _Something_."

Yami started to turn away again. "I already told you—"

"Damn it—" Growling, Leon advanced on Yami. "I don't want your excuses. I don't want an empty apology. I want _why_. I was only fifteen! And _Riku_!"

Leon grabbed Yami's shoulder and pushed him against the railing. Yami didn't fight him.

Now in Yami's line of sight, Sora hid back behind the column, heart pounding. When he risked another peek, thankfully those amber eyes were focused solely on Leon's furious face, not Sora's hiding spot.

Yami didn't seem to know what to say. "Squall…"

Leon's fist flew up. Yami grimaced, anticipating the blow, but his hand halted in front of Yami's face. Leon's fury darkened into something even more dangerous.

Pity.

He roughly released Yami and stepped back. "Don't ever call me that again."

Yami's lips drew into a thin line as if he wanted to argue, but when he spoke up, he couldn't even look Leon in the eyes. "That ashamed of your past?" he asked.

"It's not shame." The sunset lit Leon's face as he turned towards the horizon. His hands wrung against the railing. "That stuff about your memories… Something like that happened to me." A pause, and the weight of Leon's past hung on every word. "Everything about you… I buried it."

Concern crossed Yami's face. He opened his mouth to ask something, but he faltered. Sora wondered where all of Yami's old confidence had gone.

Leon shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe what happened was too painful." Shoulders tensing, he wrenched his eyes shut. "My memories changed. I didn't know that could happen, but it did. I didn't remember anything about you until Riku used his keyblade on me."

_What_ had been too painful? Why had Leon forgotten Ansem? He had an inkling, but his brain was still saying, _no way, that's not possible, is it?_

With Leon's eyes closed, Yami's gaze lingered on him.

That look on his face, when he thought no one else was watching… Sora would recognize it anywhere.

Nostalgia. Regret.

…_maybe it __**is **__possible._

"So it's not shame," Leon repeated, not daunted by Yami's silence. "I'm pissed off."

He turned to glare at Yami, who didn't shy away this time.

Something passed between them as they watched each other, Leon's questions echoing in the silence, Yami resisting those expectations, until finally:

"I don't have an answer for you, Squall."

_Squall…_ A challenge so subtle that Sora almost missed it. What was the big deal about Leon's name, anyway?

Whatever was going on between those two, Yami might have seemed meek at first, but Sora realized now that he wasn't bowing under Leon's anger.

Leon's eyes thinned. "When _will—_"

"I don't know," Yami interrupted, calm and unfazed by the growl in Leon's words. "I understand your anger. You have every right to be upset." He took a step closer to him and spread his hands. "The truth is… I _want _to explain why I did the things I did. I _want _to be completely honest about what happened, what I felt, why I felt… But I do not have the answers yet. Even if we find my Nobody, I am not sure what I will learn."

He closed the distance between them and rested a hand on Leon's arm. With inches separating them, Yami's expression finally softened, and Sora couldn't hear what was said next, it was so low.

Whatever he said, Leon didn't like it.

He jerked away from Yami and lifted a hand as if to backhand him—a clear warning for Yami to keep his distance. He didn't respond to whatever Yami had said. Instead, he glowered with all the hatred and blame Sora himself had felt towards Yami until recently.

Yami didn't stop Leon when he shoved past him and stormed off.

Sora's heart leapt into his throat when he realized Leon was heading straight for him, but he didn't turn tail and flee. He bolted to his feet and froze where he was, not sure what he was expecting Leon to do to him, but he was pretty sure he was in trouble.

Leon only spared him a glance before he hurried towards the bastion, but that one look had left Sora with the glimpse of how he really felt, of what he hadn't been able to show Yami himself.

It was from that one look that Sora now understood what had been going on between the two men.

Leon was the same as Sora—he was going through what Sora had gone through: a broken heart, betrayed by the person he'd trusted the most, with only darkness and stupidity to take the blame.

Judging from the remorseful way Yami stared after Leon, Sora couldn't have been far from the truth.

When Leon disappeared inside, Yami finally focused on Sora, not surprised at all to see him. Actually, Sora wouldn't hold it past Yami to have known Sora had been there the whole time.

Yami didn't say anything or even acknowledge Sora's presence other than to watch him for a moment. Then he turned back towards the railing and slouched against it, facing the sunset alone.

He looked like he didn't want to be bothered for a while. Sora would come back to talk to him later…

Sora was reluctantly turning back towards the bastion to follow Leon when he spotted someone else outside—

Sephiroth, shrouded by the shadows beneath a tangle of orange pipes. The long silver hair and one wing were a dead giveaway, but Sora couldn't imagine why Sephiroth was over here.

He seemed like part of the architecture from where he stood motionless in the shade against the wall. Sora hadn't come this way very often, since the iron gate just beyond these pipes led to the bastion's lower levels, and that place creeped him out.

From this spot, Sephiroth would have gotten a great view of Yami and Leon's spat _and _Sora's nosiness. But Sephiroth didn't seem like the type to eavesdrop...

Remembering how Sephiroth had known a lot of stuff about Id that no one else had, Sora decided to approach him, not really thinking about how dangerous Sephiroth might be even though he should have been—especially after the comment Sephiroth had made earlier about "testing" the new keyblade master.

Sora didn't feel intimidated by him until he was actually standing in front of the tall man and realized he only came up to Sephiroth's ribs.

Sora looked up—and up—and met Sephiroth's gaze, an otherworldly color that Sora couldn't name. Green? Blue? A little like Riku's eyes at first, but while Riku's reminded Sora of the sea, Sephiroth's were like the cloudy nebulas of space.

The man looked amused, though Sora couldn't guess why. There was something eerily Yami-ish about him—the old Yami, before Sora had known Kairi was half of that mysterious package. Now it made sense why Sora hadn't been able to hate Yami for long despite all the secretive smiles, hidden motives, and the bad things he had done.

But what was up with Sephiroth?

"I don't offer counseling to troubled teens," the man said as Sora gaped up at him.

Drawn out of his musings, Sora blinked. "Wuh? Oh—" He rubbed the back of his head. "Heh… Do I look like I need the help?"

"You look like you don't know what you need." Sephiroth's glossy wing flexed as he studied Sora. "Or that you can hardly lift a weapon to defend yourself."

Sora's embarrassment turned into a frown. "Hey! I was the second best fighter back at home—and Riku only beat me all the time 'cuz he was faster!"

Sephiroth's lips pulled into a smirk. "A shame. There's no point in challenging you if you're only second best. Riku fell to my blade in seconds."

That stopped Sora in his tracks.

_Riku _lost?

Oh man, Sephiroth had been looking to challenge _him_? He didn't know whether to feel insulted or relieved that Sephiroth didn't think he was good enough to fight. For just a second, Sora bristled, his pride demanding that he show he was just as worthy of the keyblade as Riku was.

But then he thought about _Riku_. He didn't have time to pick fights, not when his best friend was somewhere out there and needed his help.

"Anyway!" Sora smothered his pride and lifted his chin. "I don't need to prove myself to you. The _keyblade _knows I'm strong enough to use it, and that's what counts! Not whether or not you can beat up someone half your size!"

Sora had opened his mouth without thinking, and it wasn't until after he'd already antagonized Sephiroth that he realized it was probably a bad idea.

Sephiroth, however, only chuckled and folded his arms. "What do you want?"

Allowing himself to relax, Sora thought about why he had come over here in the first place. "What's up with Leon and Yami?"

"If you have to ask, it's probably not any of your business."

_Gwah. I hate to admit it, but Dark 'n Wingy has a point… _Sora fought a pout. "I'm only asking because they're both my friends, and when I leave, I dunno if I'll ever see them again…"

"Hmph." Sephiroth glanced at Yami, who was still standing alone on the lift, watching the sunset. "It's a long story, and I don't know all the details."

Though he knew he shouldn't have been expecting much from the dark warrior, Sora still felt his spirits fall. He was curious, but was he curious enough to ask Yami or Leon himself? He wondered if Riku even knew the story.

"Oh, then sorry I bothered you…" Sora wasn't sorry, but he figured he'd rather be friendly than shish-ka-bobbed.

As he turned to leave, though, he ran face first into a wall of feathers. His heart leapt inside of him, and he gave Sephiroth a wide-eyed look, wondering what he had done wrong this time.

But there was that smirk again. Sephiroth withdrew his wing now that he had Sora's attention again.

"However, since you had the gall to ask... I'll humor you."

That was how Sora learned the truth about Leon and Yami, or at least the truth as how Sephiroth saw it.

And when Sephiroth was done relaying what knowledge he did have about the twisted couple, Sora came to appreciate how _un-_complicated his own relationship with Riku was compared to _theirs_. Sure, their problems _were_ complicated, but at least Riku had his memories back now, and neither of them had any crazy secret identities like Ansem—er, Xehanort—had, or had lied about who they really were, and Riku hadn't _chosen _the darkness over him, he'd just been tricked by it.

Still, Leon and Xehanort...

"I don't see it," Sora said after thinking about it for a few seconds. But it wasn't his problem, and he didn't know what they knew. Maybe it was just him, but Leon and Yami just both seemed like loners.

Sephiroth's smile returned, dark and secretive. "It's a good distraction for Squall."

Wondering at that look on his face, Sora grew suspicious. Then again, why _had _Sephiroth been eavesdropping? Obviously he was up to something...

"What's in it for _you_?" Sora couldn't resist asking.

Sephiroth's gaze raked over Sora's scrawny form, making him feel like he was weaker than a flea, before he finally responded. "Cloud," he said, and he let the syllable linger.

Waitaminute—Cloud? So Sephiroth was interested in Leon and Yami because of Cloud? How did that make any sense?

And that smirk of his—gah! Sora knew he was being teased. Sephiroth may as well have been telling him, _I know something you don't, and you'll __**never **__know!_ It was like dealing with Riku at his worst!

"Come on! Tell meeee!"

Sephiroth just shook his head as if he were dealing with a stubborn child, but that amused look remained. "What would you do _if _you knew?"

It was another tease, and Sora was too frustrated to think of a good retort. "Well, I dunno! I just want to know." He thought about repeating himself from earlier, that Leon and Yami were his friends...

But he didn't have to. Maybe Sora's pout was what won him over, but either way, Sephiroth's expression didn't change.

"I want Cloud to return with me."

Again, Sora tried to figure out what Leon and Yami had to do with Cloud. "To Id?"

"To the darkness," Sephiroth clarified. "He doesn't want to return there, though he says he wants to be with me."

Sora remembered the kiss Sephiroth had given Cloud after arriving on Hollow Bastion. All too well. He didn't have to ask if they were an item. "How's this tie into Leon and Yami?"

"Squall is one of the reasons Cloud wants to stay here. He wants me to leave the darkness so he can be content with both of us."

Sora was beginning to get confused, but he went with it. "Well, why don't you just quit?"

"I can't. I have a contract with Id."

Seemed like Id held a lot of people's fates in his hands... Sora wanted more than anything to get rid of the jerk once and for all. This only helped fuel that drive.

"If I beat Id, and he goes away—would all your contracts disappear, too?"

That made Sephiroth hesitate, his smile fading as he seemed to contemplate Sora's line of thought. "Possibly." He shook his head again, though, and dismissed Sora's idea. "But it wouldn't make a difference. Even if I could leave the darkness, I wouldn't."

"Eh? Why not?" Sora wondered.

"I like it."

It was said so matter-of-factly that it made Sora stop and think. His first instinct was to question how someone could like the darkness that much, but then he thought about how Yami had often wielded it to protect Sora and Riku, and how Sora himself had used it to save his own butt.

The darkness itself wasn't evil. It depended on who was using it.

The darkness corrupted things, yeah, but it could be balanced by someone whose heart was strong enough.

He understood that now.

-o-o-

_But if the darkness corrupted, what did the light do?_

_Was it because the light was so blinding that those who lived in the light were too naïve to think the darkness could be good, too?_

_And if the darkness could do good—did that mean the light could be bad?_

-o-o-

Leon hadn't gone far.

Sora found him sitting alone at one of the tables in the foyer, surrounded by fragments of his past and scouring over the handwritten reports.

Everyone else was helping Sora's trinity prep for the upcoming journey and battle, but Leon's mind was stuck in another lifetime.

Sora was sure that the glare Leon was directing at the reports was meant for Yami himself. Clearly the two of them had a war of their own to resolve before anything could come out of their broken relationship.

Sora couldn't blame Leon for being so mad, though. He knew how he felt.

That was why he couldn't leave him here like this.

"Hey."

Leon didn't look up as Sora flopped into the chair next to his. He probably didn't want to deal with anyone, but Sora wasn't gonna go anywhere until he made sure his friend was okay.

He leaned in close so Leon couldn't ignore him, and the older man reluctantly greeted him back.

"…hey…"

Now that he'd gotten his attention, Sora wasn't sure how to breach the subject. He was no relationship expert. Honestly, he kinda sucked when it came to other people's problems, since he himself often blew off stuff that didn't seem worth sulking over. The issue with Riku and Yami—that had been one of a kind. He hadn't known how to handle that.

Well… Maybe that was what Leon needed to hear.

"You know… I don't think I'll ever understand why Riku did what he did," he admitted. "I mean—any of it. The thing with Yami, then selling his memories, and going to the darkness for help…"

He realized Leon probably didn't want to hear him ramble about his problems, but he didn't stop Sora or say anything to discourage him.

Talking about this kind of thing out loud felt weird. He still wasn't sure where all of his anger had gone, but he didn't regret forgiving Riku.

"Maybe he thought it was his only choice. Maybe… he wasn't thinking at all," Sora continued, trying to think about why Riku had made the decisions he had. Making those kinds of decisions—was there really a good excuse? "Maybe he was scared," he reasoned at last. He shook his head. "I don't know. I don't think he knows either."

Sora remembered every detail about Riku's apology and how lost he had seemed by the end of it. All his tears and snot-bubbles and desperate words…

Was Leon waiting for something like that from Yami? That wasn't likely to happen, not with Yami's weird personality. Distant—elusive? Yeah, elusive. Maybe that was why Leon was so pissed off.

"It took a lot for him to finally apologize to me, and it was only after we really fought about it." Sora smiled, then, as the nostalgia hit him. "We've fought before, but that was in the past—that was all kid stuff. Nothing this big. This was new for both of us."

He remembered how often they'd get into harmless fights back home, where most of the time they had only stopped because Sora would get a busted lip or scraped knee and Riku would immediately feel guilty. Of course, Riku would tell him to suck it up and not to be a girl, but still… Sora would always get an apology from him later.

"He doesn't like confrontations. If something's bothering him, he'd rather sulk about it and let people bend to _his_ needs," Sora explained, though Leon still hadn't given him two cents or a sign he was even listening. "It's always been hard for him to apologize to me, but he _will_… Sometimes he just needs nudging."

At this, Leon grunted, though Sora couldn't tell if that was in agreement or not.

Sora wet his lips and nodded anyway, hoping Leon was applying this to his situation with Yami. It wasn't that Sora was hoping the two of them would get together, no—that was too weird to think about. He just didn't want Leon to suffer like he had. Besides, if Yami wanted to redeem himself, it was fair to give him the chance, right?

That's what he'd done with Riku.

Though it hadn't been easy…

Sora's fingers began to fiddle with a leather cord that had been on the table, his mind drifting off into the events of yesterday. …had it really only been yesterday?

"But… watching him break down and cry like that…"

Sora trailed off as his voice began to waver.

He hadn't had much time to himself. It had been a crazy last few days, what with Atlantica and Monsters, Inc., then breaking Beast out of jail, going to Traverse Town for Riku's apology, and the big battle with Maleficent right afterward… And when he had woken up after Id's possession, he'd been bombarded with all of the confusing explanations about Yami, Kairi, Ansem, fake-Ansem… And then Riku's fall to the darkness, and…

And Sora had become a heartless…

It was all finally beginning to sink in.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Leon glance at him. He swallowed a few times to find his voice again before he pressed on, wanting to help Leon if he could.

"I realized a few things, as I was watching Riku… He's really not as strong as he makes himself out to be." Sora met Leon's gaze, who held it, a glimmer of interest there. "He was really scared. He said—he hadn't meant to hurt me, that he didn't know what to do."

Leon's frown deepened, then, but he was still paying attention. Sora wondered if he was thinking about Yami now, that maybe Yami was scared, too.

"I could _see _that he was in as much pain as I was," Sora recalled. Though in Yami's case, he wasn't big on expressing his emotions… Neither was Leon. Someone was gonna have to bend first, there. "Riku had been trying to get back to me, to talk to me, to apologize, to _fix _things, but he hadn't figured out a way to do it."

The more Sora talked, the more he realized he'd been right about Leon being in his shoes. And at the same time, Yami was in Riku's shoes. If that was the case…

"In the end, I had to go to him first." Sora nodded to himself, a little proud as he began to figure things out for himself, too. "He was scared that I wasn't ever going to forgive him… I wanted my best friend back, but he didn't know if I'd even accept that. When he admitted that, I realized… I couldn't stay mad at him."

So that was where all of his anger had gone… Things were making a lot of sense now. Funny how his own heart was a big mystery of its own.

"I cared about him too much. I didn't ever want to be without him again."

Here he stopped again, his heart sinking inside of him as _that _dawned on him, too.

"But… I _am_… He's gone."

He lowered his eyes, continuing to toy with the leather strap that had been on the table, wrapping it nervously around his fingers.

"And even though I'm gonna go out there and find him, I don't have a clue if I can, or if he'll be okay," he said, not caring if he was getting off topic. He had to get this off his chest. Keep going, that's what he had to do—Leon would understand. "I just… have to keep hoping."

When Sora returned his gaze to Leon's, the older man was watching him with an air of sympathy. That was all Sora needed. He offered Leon a smile.

"But you…" He nodded to Leon. "You know, Yami's _here_. You can talk to him."

Leon's expression abruptly darkened at the mention of that name, but Sora wasn't deterred.

"Yami's been fighting all this time to try to fix the bad things he's done," Sora said, remembering the stuff Kairi and Riku had told him. "But maybe when it comes to what's deep in his heart, he's too scared to look. Like me 'n Riku, maybe you got to go to _him _first."

Sora might have had more to say, but Leon was done listening to him. He gave a frustrated sigh and took the leather cord from Sora, using it to wrap the reports together, and then flung them onto the table.

He sat back in his chair and raked a hand through his hair, a tired look on his face.

"Everything is a mess," he muttered. Closing his eyes, he rubbed the bridge of his nose where his scar was, probably to dampen a headache. Sora was surprised he didn't have one, too. Leon spoke up again after a moment, solemn. "I was the one who let Riku wander off alone. That was how the darkness got to him…"

Sora jolted in his seat as Leon slammed his fist onto the table, suddenly looking furious.

"It was _obvious _Riku needed someone to talk to, but I was an _idiot_," Leon growled. "I thought—I'm bad with my own emotions, what right do I have dealing with _his_? So when Riku said he was going to find Aerith, I thought, _GOOD_."

Sora blinked, stunned that Leon was actually venting. He had no idea what to say, so he let Leon continue his tirade.

"Cloud even _said _he'd sensed darkness in Riku. I should have listened. I was part of his trinity—it was my _job _to protect him. He's just a kid…"

His intense gaze focused on Sora again, but the fury began to fade when he saw Sora's expression.

"So are you," he realized, and with another sigh, all of his anger vanished. He pressed a hand to his forehead again and heavily leaned against the table.

"Well…" Sora crossed his arms. "If it was your responsibility, it wasn't just _your _responsibility. It was mine. It was Kairi's. It was everyone's…" Shaking his head, he focused on the portrait of Xehanort that lay on the other side of the table. "Truth is, this wasn't anyone's fault but Xehanort's heartless. Don't beat yourself up." He glanced at Leon, then leaned close to look him in the face again. "Okay?"

Leon's frown deepened at first, but when Sora flashed him a reassuring grin, Leon's expression softened.

He turned his face away. "…fine."

"Good. Don't be like Riku," Sora said. "Not everything's your fault, and you don't have to do it all alone! Count on other people, too."

Leon grunted, agreeing but only begrudgingly. When Sora got to his feet, though, the older man looked up at him expectantly.

Sora's smile returned, though touched with sadness. He still hated goodbyes, even after giving them all afternoon. "Take care of Yami for me, okay?"

Leon's brows furrowed. "Why?"

"I dunno what's gonna happen to him when all of the worlds are separated again," Sora said. "And besides… he might try to follow after me. I want him to stay where it's safe." Then, with a teasing little smile, he added, "I think you're probably the only one he'd listen to."

"So this is goodbye," Leon said, also standing.

"Yeah..." Sora's smile faded. "I don't know if I'll ever see you guys again."

Leon faced him, quiet for a second as he digested Sora's fear. Then, forming a subtle smile, he rested a hand on Sora's head.

"We may never meet again, but we'll never forget each other."

Somehow, that was all Sora needed to hear.

-o-o-

_One of the valuable lessons Sora had learned on this long adventure was to trust his friends, even if he had just met those friends… even if he didn't like those friends._

_How many times had Yami saved his butt?_

_How many times had he just met someone new—Aladdin, Sulley and Mike, Mushu and Mulan, the princesses, Beast, everyone in Traverse Town—only for them to help and protect him as if they'd known him forever?_

_And Riku… How many times had they watched each other's backs?_

_Too many to count._

_Sora wouldn't trade his friends for anything._

_That was why he couldn't really believe goodbye was goodbye. He'd find his way back to them. _

_Somehow…_

-o-o-

Cid was doing some last minute modifications to the spare gummi ship the Traverse Town team had brought with them.

"She's a shrimp, but she'll get ya there," he explained as he gutted the navigation console with violent expertise. He didn't need to ask Sora why he was there, his focus devoted to the ship itself. "I'm makin' sure of that."

Sora hovered close as Cid held up what looked like a piece of multi-colored candy.

"I was savin' this Navi-G for an emergency back home. I brought it with me 'cuz I figured Riku'd be needin' it in the end." Cid hesitated, then, his tone taking on a grim edge. "Guess I was sorta right."

"Thanks," Sora said, not sure what else to offer.

Cid wasn't just tweaking the small ship with spare parts—he was going all out. He'd already taken the Navi-Gs and rare gummi from the other ships to enhance the one he was giving Sora, Donald, and Goofy. Cid was giving them the best of the best he had just so Sora could reach Ansem, wherever he had gone, even though it meant everyone else was stranded here on this hollow world.

_We're going to rebuild, _Leon had told him after Sora's goodbye. _This was our home._

Sora was glad Leon had warmed up to his advice and found his purpose for staying behind. He knew he hadn't been happy about being left out of Sora's trinity.

"No problem," Cid said. The gummi now installed, he replaced the console and wiped it clean. He hefted himself back up with a grunt and popped his back. "There."

Sora had to admire Cid's handiwork. It looked good as new.

Scratching his stubble, Cid gave Sora a sidelong look as if to size him up one last time. "Well... I did my part." He stuck his callused hand out, and Sora didn't think he was imagining the guilt there in his eyes. "You do yours, kid."

He was aware of how he must have looked in Cid's eyes—young, scrawny, totally unheroic. But the important part wasn't having the look of a hero—it was having the heart of one. And Sora wasn't going to run away from his responsibility.

Grin in place, Sora clasped his hand and gave it a firm shake. "Thanks for everything, Cid."

Cid returned his grin with a crooked one of his own.

"Take care, shorty."

Then he tugged Sora close and mussed his hair.

"Gwah!"

-o-o-

_Later, when Donald was winding __**Excalibur**__ through the storm of heartless ships swarming the roads between worlds, there were times when their vessel's shields dropped to dangerous levels. It was those times that Goofy would take to hiding beneath his seat with his hands over his head, and Donald's once determined cries would grow terrified._

_But it was Cid's love for his craft and Sora's trust in his friends that kept him from caving into the fear, too. He knew Cid had built a ship that could withstand the pressure of the journey._

_When the others wanted to shut their eyes, Sora took the controls and let the ship tell him, through all of its veering and rattling and warnings, what he needed to do to guide them all to safety. And he did._

-o-o-

Yami had changed.

At first Sora thought it was his imagination, that maybe, since he now knew who Yami really was, he accidentally kept noticing Kairi's traits in him, but it was more than that.

Her influence was always there, like a ghost living behind those amber eyes.

Seeing her was no accident. Yami _was _Kairi, but he was also Xehanort. He was a _he_ because Xehanort's influence was stronger, yet Kairi's innocence shone through brighter than ever before.

Sora was having a hard time distinguishing what was whose emotion, especially after approaching Yami for the first time after the argument with Leon. The way Yami's smile turned nervous when he faced Sora… Was that Kairi? Xehanort? Or Yami?

Sora had seen vulnerability in Yami before, but this was something new. He wasn't sure how to treat him anymore.

But he had to say goodbye...

Sora paused in front of the foyer's fountain where Yami was sitting alone watching him. "Uh. Hey..."

Awkward was putting this gently, but he had to remind himself that Yami probably felt just as awkward for knowing Sora had been eavesdropping on the argument earlier. Sora wasn't going to bring that up, and hopefully Yami wouldn't either.

That, and Sora worried the older boy might try to trick him into letting him come with them.

Yami rose to his feet to greet Sora. "Seems like the three of you are ready to go." Even said with a smile, Sora could sense Yami's disappointment.

Sora's heart sank. _Geh. I knew it._ He'd always had a mushy spot in his heart for guilt-tripping—something Riku had taken advantage of all his life. But Sora had made up his mind about his trinity, and he didn't want Kairi to get hurt.

"Yeah, just about!" Sora said with a smile right back at him, confident in his decision.

A nod, then silence, and Yami reached beneath his silver coat into a pocket. When he pulled something out, Sora recognized the colorful seashells and the hand-stitched shape they created.

Oathkeeper…

He blinked as Yami held the charm for him to take. "Is it done?" he asked, remembering he had given it back to Kairi. Had Yami finished it instead?

Another nod, and Yami took Sora's hand, pressing the charm into it. "We don't know when I will find my body, so Kairi and I came to an agreement."

As Yami slipped his hand away, Sora traced the shells with his fingers. On one of the points, a small face had been painted—happy, with blue eyes and messy brown hair. Sora realized it was supposed to be him.

"Heh, how cute," he said with a grin.

Before he could thank him, Yami flipped the charm over for him. The backside had a face painted on it, too: green eyes, silver hair, and a smirk.

Sora lifted his gaze to Yami's in question.

"Kairi was originally going to paint herself there instead of Riku," Yami explained, and this time he wasn't wearing a smile. "This was back when she first started making the charm for you."

Confused, Sora stared down at the painted face that wasn't Kairi's. "Why didn't she?"

"Over the weeks, we've watched the two of you suffer needlessly," Yami said, his voice reminding Sora of a cool wind washing white foam onto shore. Delicate, coming from a distant unknown place. "Your friendship is what the worlds need right now. You and Riku are at your strongest when working together."

Yami's fingers pressed against Sora's, closing them over the charm.

Amber eyes focused on him with a grave intensity. "Find him, Sora."

For a moment, he forgot how to breathe. The words themselves weren't anything new, but the poignancy of them—Sora _felt_ Yami's quiet desperation. Both Kairi and Xehanort were speaking to him, as one.

Swallowing hard, Sora tried to collect himself. "Aerith told me that once your heartless is gone, the worlds will go back to normal. Everyone's gonna go back to their own worlds… But what's that mean for Kairi?" he asked. "Isn't this place your original home—_and _Kairi's?"

That was the question that had plagued him since Aerith had mentioned the fate of the worlds once Ansem was defeated. Would Yami stay Yami—or become Xehanort and Kairi again? Would Kairi stay here—or return home? Where _was _her home?

"You're concerned Kairi might not return to your islands," Yami realized. His gaze shied away as he fell into thought. "That is a good question."

That didn't make Sora feel any better. Yami was supposed to know stuff like that! Unlike Sora, though, Yami didn't seem too worried.

"However, no matter what happens, I _will _protect her," he said with a small smile, this one genuine. "As she protects me. She will find her way home one day, as will you."

But Sora noticed something amiss there. Yami didn't seem to mind dishing out advice and reassurances when it concerned other people, but he liked to avoid topics focusing on someone else who was important.

"What about _you_?"

Surprise flickered in his eyes, subtle, but Sora still caught a glimpse of it.

Then Yami folded his arms and grew distant again, staring past the crowd of princesses nearby, towards the open doors. "I will find my own way. I always do…"

The level of discomfort Sora felt from that statement was worse than the chill he felt late at night, all alone, when his mind wandered to the inevitable unknown—what was waiting for him at that final hour?

Up until that point, he hadn't realized how important Yami had become to him.

True, Sora wanted to go home with both of his best friends and remember how to live and be _Sora _again. That was what he imagined his happy ending to be.

But if Yami never found his own body, would he keep using Kairi's? Or would he eventually give up and return to the darkness?

It wasn't right…

Where was _his_ happily ever after?

-o-o-

_At first glance, Sora had considered the Xehanort in Yami a weakness—corruptive, controlling, manipulative, cold-hearted, empty. _

_But now he knew that was how Yami had protected himself all this time. Surrounded by people from his past and burdened by the weight of what he had done and what he had become, with no one but Kairi—his prisoner—to talk to about the truth… If Yami had tried to approach anyone else, no one would have believed him. No one would have accepted him. They would have hung him out to dry. _

_To keep fighting, to keep all of those secrets bottled up while working against all odds to put things right and make up for his past—_

_No, Xehanort wasn't a weakness. _

_The strength to keep going when you want nothing more than to give up and disappear… sometimes that was all the difference between victory and despair. Xehanort had chosen the road between both._

_He lived with his despair, but he hadn't given up fighting._

_And that, in Sora's opinion, was the strength of a hero. _

-o-o-

"Ahyuck—come on, Sora!"

"Hurry it up, slow poke!"

Sora laughed as Donald and Goofy practically dragged him towards the doors away from the crowd that had gathered in the foyer for their final farewell. Everything had been packed in the gummi ship, Sora had said all of his goodbyes—

All that was left was actually leaving.

Grinning wide, Sora waved at all of his friends—

Leon, standing away from the others as if he didn't want to get involved, but with a subtle, amused glint to his eyes. Yuffie and Mushu, waving maniacally back at him and wishing him luck. Cid, grinning and looking proud like the cool uncle he'd never had. The princesses, some giggling and some waving back, some hopeful and some worried. Beast, solemn but offering him an encouraging nod when he met Sora's eyes. Cloud, who watched him as if he were watching someone more important than a fifteen-year-old who could wield a giant key. Sephiroth, towering over everyone except Beast, wearing that dark, dark smirk that suggested he knew more than Sora ever would. Aerith, her hands clasped in front of her as she sent him off with a confident smile...

And Yami... The look in his eyes could only be described as resolute. Sora had a strong feeling that, at least for Yami, this wasn't a farewell.

Goofy swung his arm around Sora's shoulders as they passed through the bastion's doors and into the cool evening air. Behind him, he could still hear everyone's best wishes and godspeeds. He could still feel their smiles and the hope they carried in their hearts.

Deep inside, he could feel the keyblade trilling with the song of the faith his friends held in him.

He could do this.

He _would _do this.

He swung his arms around Donald and Goofy in return, not caring if they looked like the biggest trio of dorks of all time.

"All right, guys! Let's kick some heartless butt and save Riku!"

"Yeah!"

"Ya-ha-hooo!"

Laughing together, they passed through the shadows of the bastion, feeling untouchable. So untouchable, Sora felt lucky enough to ask—

"Hey—can I drive?"

The wing that slapped him upside the head was followed by Donald's angry squawk.

"No!"

-o-o-

_No matter what, he wanted to go home. _

_He wanted to go home with his friends, not just Riku, but Kairi, too—he wanted to laugh and play fight and forget all of the dangers of the worlds as he drowned himself in the innocence of his friends and their wasted childhood. _

_He wanted to run into his house, see his mom smiling at him and cooking up a feast fit for a king, and wanted to throw his arms around her and say he was sorry for ever thinking about running away._

_He wanted to walk out on that pier and face the horizon and, for once in his life, not wonder what was waiting out there for him._

_Saying goodbye was one of the most difficult things he had done on this journey—yeah, even more difficult than fighting giant monsters and trying to hold his head high while life crumbled around him._

_But you know what?_

_Sometimes, __**goodbye**__ wasn't nearly as hard to say as __**thank you**__._

-o-o-

* * *

Hope to see you at the final chapter (and epilogue)!


	46. Final Ch: Hope Within Darkness part one

_Author Notes: _

This story is far from perfect, but it has been my baby for eight years. Writing it has not only taught me more about writing than countless hours of school and reading ever did, but it also introduced me to some of the best friends I've ever had.

This is for all of you who have made it this far. Thank you for everything. And thank you, (you know who you are), for being my light when I needed it the most. I can't imagine making it this far without you.

There are **no** spoilers for 358-2 Days or Birth By Sleep… but plenty of vague references.

Also, this chapter is over a HUNDRED pages long—the longest in the entire fic—so I had to split it into two! Part two will be posted once it's edited, so keep check back later this weekend.

* * *

_**Final Chapter, Chapter Twenty-eight: **__Hope Within Darkness_ – part one

-o-o-

"Sora, look out!"

Sand kicked up around Sora as he rolled beneath the behemoth's legs and back to his feet on the heartless's other side.

Donald's warning couldn't have had better timing. Sora could feel his hair stand on end as the heartless's intense lightning spell scorched the air where he had been just moments before.

The lumbering behemoth pivoted to find him, each of its massive steps sending powerful tremors through the plateau. Crouching low to steady himself, Sora sought out the heartless's one weak spot: a single horn jutting from its head, still crackling with energy from its latest attack.

Sora sucked in a lung-searing breath to help him focus, and he grimaced at the sensation, tasting not just the burnt remnants of the behemoth's magic, but the stench of darkness itself. He flicked Oathkeeper out, its delicate form weighing on his aching arm.

Somewhere beyond the wall of muscle and fur, he could hear his friends watching out for each other—Donald's unruffled cure spell, the heavy clang of the behemoth's headbutt striking Goofy's unrelenting shield. Throughout their never-ending struggle here at the end of all worlds, their faith and support in him had never wavered. He couldn't waver, either.

Sora sprung from his crouch and flung his keyblade through the air, not waiting around to watch Oathkeeper's spiraling attack. It struck the behemoth's horn with a resounding crack, and the stunned heartless collapsed onto its front legs with a howl that trembled Sora's very senses.

Trusting in the keyblade, Sora raced towards the heartless's front side and snatched Oathkeeper out of midair as it arched back towards him. Already prepared for another strike, Sora took a split second to see where his friends where—they were right there with him, converging on the fallen colossus to finish the battle.

Grabbing a fistful of its fur in mid-sprint, Sora swung himself onto the beast's back and went straight for its horn, striking it with every ounce of strength he had left.

Releasing a wail of defeat, the behemoth finally succumbed and collapsed onto the plateau with a thunderous quake that splintered the crystal walls and rained shards of gummi around them.

Sora fell through the dissipating shadows of the heartless's body and landed hard on his knees, bracing himself with his free hand. He lifted his gaze to the dark sky as the behemoth's once captive heart floated free. Drifting upward like a child's lost balloon, it escaped into the black depths of the dead world.

Another battle won; another heartless down.

But there was no time for celebration. Defeating one behemoth was nothing when the darkness had countless others to replace it.

Sora struggled back to his feet and brushed off his knees, never letting go of Oathkeeper.

When he looked up, an elixir was sitting in Goofy's large hand.

"Here you go, pal."

Sora mustered a tired smile and took the potion, grateful that he wasn't alone out here. Someone was always watching his back.

"Thanks."

He downed its sweet contents in one gulp and felt the energy flood him from the inside out, the rush leaving his belly pleasantly warm. He was afraid to ask how many of these they had left. Even though they'd been using them sparingly, he knew they had to have been running low after how long they'd been stranded here...

Ten days.

At least, that's what _Excalibur's_ portable clock read. Had it really been ten days since they'd crash landed on this world in their gummi ship? It felt like much longer...

Sora glanced back in the direction of their campsite just beyond the crystalline cliff face they had fought under. Somewhere beyond the crags and jungle of gummi and the vast ruins of dead worlds, their gummi ship lay abandoned. Though many of the ship's functions had still worked after their rough landing, the flight system had been unusable, and they'd lost complete communication with everyone at the bastion.

Now all the trinity had left were a few small backpacks of supplies, the clothes on their backs, and the faith they had in each other.

This place could hardly be called a world of its own—more like a dangerous melting pot of broken lands that had been ravaged and consumed by the darkness. An invisible river of magic had led them over the sea of space into this deep valley where gummi blocks lay strewn like candy meteorites along the walls of jagged crystal. Colorful webbing grew along the purple chasm walls, and pearlescent white sand covered everything like a fine blanket of snow.

As beautiful of an oddity as it was, this world was poison. Darkness saturated everything, with hardly a glimmer of light to give them comfort or direction. Ten days ago, they could camp out beneath the vast bed of stars and watch a glowing river of light spiral down from the sky into the center of the world, like the world itself was a blackhole absorbing the light of lands that had been destroyed. Now they were too deep in the darkness to even see the sky, and they were lucky to stumble across any light at all.

Portals of concentrated shadows led to lands that hadn't fallen to darkness yet, but when the trinity visited them through the portals, they were only met with more enemies. No matter where the portals took them—Aladdin's world, Ariel's world, Mulan's world—they never ran into any of the lives they knew they had saved. It was all darkness.

Every day that went by, every hour they spent fighting to protect their hearts, Sora could feel the darkness growing stronger as they grew weaker. The fights were getting harder and more frequent, and Sora wasn't sure how much longer they could hold out. The three of them were exhausted, and there was no way to tell where they were going or how much farther they needed to travel or what was waiting for them around each corner.

And after each close call, Sora couldn't help stopping to think…

If he, Donald, and Goofy were having this much trouble—what hope did _Riku_ have without his keyblade?

"Gawrsh, don't look so glum, Sora... We'll find Riku."

Goofy's hand clapped over his shoulder, and Sora glanced up at his friend with a tired smile. Was he that transparent?

"Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to space out like that." He dismissed Oathkeeper and rubbed the back of his head, a little guilty for letting his spirits fall. "Let's keep going."

Donald didn't hide the worried look he exchanged with Goofy, who nodded in understanding.

"It's okay to be scared," Donald said. "We're worried, too."

"Yup, and if you need to talk about it, we're right here with you!" Goofy draped his arm over Sora's shoulders and took on his usual cheerfulness. "How about we stop for a bite to eat?"

"And a nice, big nap!" Donald added with an enthusiastic nod.

Sora knew they were trying their hardest to stay positive like he was, and as much as he wanted to keep going until they found his best friend, Donald and Goofy were right. He couldn't keeping fighting like this forever, and he didn't want to wear them out anymore than they already were.

"All right," he said, managing a grin for them. "Let's take a break."

-o-o-

The road never changed, just an endless stretch of cold and colorless sand.

Riku could have been running for days or weeks, but he couldn't tell the difference. There in the darkness, time had lost all meaning. He just kept racing down the path without worry of how deep it would take him into the abyss.

Every footstep echoed with certainty, helping him remain focused on what he had to do.

"Keep going, Riku," he breathed to himself. "If you stop, you'll lose everything."

At times, it was difficult remembering where he was or how he had ended up there, but the rhythm of his breaths and the drumming of his heart and the beat of his shoes against the gray sand reminded him that he had a purpose. Though the darkness tried to shroud his existence, all he had to do was remember one simple thing.

_Who _he was.

Riku still had his heart, and he would never give that up.

Somewhere, there had to be a light at the end of this darkness. He knew his friends were waiting for him, and that they believed in him.

That glimmer of hope was all he needed to help him carry on.

-o-o-

"Man, that hit the spot."

Stomach satisfied, Sora sprawled out on his belly in front of the magical fire Donald had conjured to cook their noodle cups.

Goofy reclined against him and folded his arms behind his head, ahyucking. "It sure did!"

Looking as pleased as the rest of them, Donald released a content sigh and flopped next to Sora, using his back as a pillow.

Their new camp was tucked beneath an angled cliff where colorful webbing draped down its sides and stretched across a small plateau, giving them a makeshift tent and some sense of safeguard against the harsh environment. Their fire was small and easily contained with their magic, allowing them to keep it close, which Sora was grateful for. Not only did it provide warmth and protection, it was a spark of light in this otherwise lightless world.

And he was sure, just beyond their camp, the heartless were probably waiting for them to drop their guard. He wasn't worried about that, though. One of them was always a lookout.

The three of them relaxed in the following silence, Sora staring dazedly into the dancing flames of their campfire. He was reminded of the fire spell he had used to cook the clams he and Riku had eaten back on Ariel's world. That felt like eons ago, even if it had only been just over two weeks. He missed all of the colorful places he had visited... Under the sea, Aladdin's world, Sulley and Mike's world, Traverse Town, Mulan's world, and even Hollow Bastion...

This world was nothing but a graveyard.

"I thought I'd be used to it by now," he murmured, "but this place still creeps me out."

"It sure is spooky," Goofy agreed. "Sometimes it sorta feels like we're being followed."

Donald harrumphed, though not with as much gusto as usual. "That's probably because this whole world is out to get us."

Thinking about that, Sora turned his gaze past the fire and into the strange land surrounding them. "I wonder... what's happening to the worlds out there... while we're stuck here in this place. What if the worlds are all dying?"

He liked that he could talk to Donald and Goofy about almost anything and that they wouldn't judge him for worrying so much. They encouraged him to open up and share what was in his heart, and somehow they always managed to make him smile in the end.

"Gawrsh, don't worry, pal."

"Yeah—the worlds will be okay when we beat Xehanort's heartless," Donald said, and it was as if he had no doubt in his mind that they _would _make it there.

Sora, however, had some reserve about getting too hopeful. If this place was a graveyard of worlds the darkness had consumed, wouldn't it disappear if all of the worlds were restored? "But if we do beat him and all the worlds are restored and become disconnected, what's gonna happen to this place? And to us?"

For a moment, no one had the answer, and that didn't surprise Sora. They had a lot of unanswered questions with no one else to turn to but each other.

Fortunately, he was stuck with two of the most optimistic friends he could ask for.

"Even if this place goes poof, our hearts ain't goin' nowhere," Goofy said at last, sounding certain about what he was saying. "I'm sure we'll find our pals again." Then, with a resolute nod, he added, "Yup, I just know that we will."

If there was one thing he had learned on this entire journey, it's that hearts were unpredictable and had an immeasurable strength.

Maybe Goofy was right. Maybe, if this world disappeared, their hearts would stick together, and they'd find their other friends again.

Smiling to himself, Sora decided to believe that. "Yeah, you're right."

He reached into his orange hoodie and pulled out the lucky charm that Kairi and Yami had finished for him. The painted faces on it hadn't faded despite how often he had held the charm.

He and his friends had been through so much pain because of Xehanort and Id. All of those worlds, too... And because of what?

Sora closed his fingers over the charm, trying not to feel angry.

He wasn't doing this for payback. He was doing this to protect his friends and to get Riku back. He had to find him, no matter what...

"You okay?" Donald asked, leaning close to take a look at Oathkeeper.

Sora nodded. "Yeah, it's just... It's been so long since Xehanort took Riku away."

"It's alright to be worried about your best friend, Sora," Goofy said. "But I'm sure he's all right."

"Right!" Donald agreed. "Riku's really strong."

"Why, he's a lot stronger than he gives himself credit for." Goofy sat up, and Sora glanced up as Goofy's hand rested over the one he had curled around Oathkeeper. "You made a promise, and as long as you hold onto that promise, you'll see Riku again. I'm sure of it. You can still feel his heart, can't you?"

Sora blinked as he contemplated Goofy's strangely wise words.

As Goofy's hand slipped away from Oathkeeper, Sora closed his eyes and concentrated, reaching deep into his heart. He wasn't alone. All of his friends were out there counting on him—Leon and the gang needed the heartless gone so they could rebuild. Kairi wanted to go home. Aladdin was waiting for Jasmine to return. Beast and Belle had faith in him. Mushu, too, who missed Mulan. Yami... whose fate was up in the air.

And Riku... His best friend for life, no matter what.

_Isn't that right, Riku?_

Sora knew he wasn't imagining that unfading warmth deep in his heart.

Riku was out there somewhere.

Hopeful, Sora pressed the charm to his heart. "Yeah... I can still feel him."

"I wouldn't worry," Donald said. He gestured towards the shadows surrounding their campsite, sounding sleepy and unconcerned. "I bet the king's looking out for him, too."

"Think so?" Sora asked, glancing at his friend. He had been told that the king went to investigate the disappearing worlds, but this was the first time it had been suggested that the king might be watching Riku's back.

"Know so!" Donald said, and Goofy nodded.

Liking the thought of someone else out there trying to help Riku, Sora smiled. "You're probably right."

"I'm always right. Now go to sleep."

Laughing quietly, Sora rested his head on his arms and watched Donald kick up a leg to relax.

Like every break before this one, the tired duck pulled off his hat, reached into it, and took out a small photo. He smoothed its wrinkled edges and breathed a wistful sigh as he admired the feminine duck smiling up from its worn surface.

The first time Sora had seen Donald do this, he'd asked about the pretty duck. She wore a formal dress and a secretive smile, so he'd assumed she was some kind of noble lady. As it turned out, she was Donald's girlfriend—unofficially. He'd never used that word, but from the way Donald talked about her and regretted missing their big date, it was obvious how he felt about her.

That was when Sora had realized that he wasn't the only one out of the trinity with someone special waiting for him to return.

Even Goofy had someone—Max, his son, who he was extremely proud of. At first Sora had protested when Goofy would tell him that he reminded him of "Maxie," but now whenever Goofy fondly told Sora embarrassing stories about Max, he didn't mind being compared to him. If Goofy cared about Sora half as much as he cared about Max, Sora knew he was in good hands.

Sora relaxed in the sand and closed his eyes, finding comfort in his friends and their hope. If this world did disappear when they defeated Xehanort, Sora would make sure Donald and Goofy's hearts survived.

Then, they would all go home.

-o-o-

Sometimes Riku would close his eyes and listen to the whisper of sand against his boots as he ran. Just for a while, he could imagine that he was home again, racing on the beach with his friends.

But when he opened his eyes, he would see the yellow eyeshine of the monsters in the shadows, and he would remember where he was.

The road had finally changed. It no longer led into an empty abyss but winded through an alien world of darkness that thrived with heartless. Large rock formations arched out of the nothingness like skeletal claws, etched with lightning blue grooves that pulsated amongst the deep black.

Heartless now towered at the edges of the road like skyscrapers of darkness, silently watching him as he passed. Their stillness unsettled him, as if they'd never seen something with so much light survive this deep in the darkness. Without his keyblade, he didn't dare stop to face them. He didn't want to be there if their curiosity grew into something more dangerous.

Riku didn't stop at all until he spotted a fork in the road emerge from the shadows ahead of him.

At first he thought it was his imagination—until he saw them. Amongst the gloom, a dozen paths winded outward from his own, and those paths split into even more, twisting and fanning out like the pale branches of a wintered tree.

Finally, a sign that he was actually _getting _somewhere.

He skidded to a stop in the sand and stooped over to catch his breath. The air burned his throat with each icy inhale, chilled with the darkness itself, but Riku had been here so long that he couldn't even remember what it felt like to be warm.

When his heart had calmed a little, he rubbed at his cold arms and straightened himself to face the branching paths.

Someone was waiting for him.

A tall figure cloaked in black stood at the crossroads, face shrouded by the deep hood he wore.

Riku recognized the cloak immediately.

The Yami-like man who had attacked him in the bastion's chapel had worn a cloak like this. Every detail about that stranger was burned into his memory—because he was the one who had provoked Riku's heart into submitting to Ansem's darkness.

Now here was another cloaked man…

Despite the shadows, Riku could see that the person was unmistakably male, and though slender, he still carried the build of a fighter. He wasn't the stranger from the bastion, but his appearance put Riku on alert.

Yet… this was the first person he'd seen, after all of his wandering through the darkness. He didn't trust this encounter, but deep down, Riku was also relieved that he wasn't completely alone here.

The question was whether or not he'd regret this.

"Hey—"

Shadows may have shrouded the man's face, but Riku knew he'd caught his attention. He started towards the cloaked figure, a thousand questions at the tip of his tongue, but the stranger wasn't interested in sticking around.

He raised a hand to salute Riku, then turned and raced down one of the middle roads.

"Hey!"

He hadn't come this far just to get brushed off!

Wasting no time, Riku sprinted after him.

Maybe it was desperation that drove him forward. Maybe it was the hope that his friends had given him. Whatever it was, Riku knew that if he took any of the other roads, he could end up wandering this darkness forever. But if he followed this figure… at least he knew he was headed _somewhere_. Whether or not that somewhere was good or bad—he'd deal with it when he got there.

"Wait up!"

The figure didn't wait. He picked up his pace and faded into the shadows ahead.

Aware that this could be a trap, Riku growled and kept going anyway.

If the darkness wanted him that badly, it would have ended him already. There had to be a reason he was _here_ and not a heartless. The more he thought about it, the more he was certain that this cloaked figure wasn't part of the darkness. That meant something else _was_ at the end of this particular road.

He just had to make it that far.

Just as he was gaining on the stranger, he suddenly felt it—a distinct reverberation in the ground, a frightening chill stinging his already frigid skin, and a swell of wordless whispers coaxing his heart.

Darkness—_strong _darkness.

Someone didn't want him going this way.

The stranger's sprint slowed to a stop, and he turned towards Riku in surprise, also sensing the darkness.

"Already? Bummer… The boss ain't gonna like this."

He drawled apathy with every syllable, though his twang reminded Riku of wave-chasers back home. Somehow, Riku doubted he'd find surfer blond hair or sun-kissed skin beneath the man's cloak.

"Man up, Mr. Keyblade Master!"

Riku tensed as the man flung his hands out and summoned a pair of the most bizarre guns he had ever seen.

"Oh, that's right," the stranger said with empty humor. "You ain't exactly a keyblade _master_, are ya?" He swung a gun up to point behind Riku. "Get down!"

Riku didn't turn to look, but he didn't have to.

A flood of shadows surged around him from out of nowhere, swallowing the otherworldly landscape and the road ahead of him. He ducked just as a beam of red energy cut through the darkness and dispersed it before it could swallow him.

The cloaked figure twirled his pistol with a gloved hand and chuckled. "Pretty good, huh?" Then he straightened as a heavy shadow fell over them. "Stay sharp, kid!"

This time, Riku turned to face the heartless that had surfaced behind him.

It stood over four men high, built like a knight of ancient times: broad-shouldered and covered head to toe in ebony form-fitting armor, complete with blood red gauntlets and sabatons. Its helmet was reminiscent of the neoshadow heartless with its long, angular antennae and the jagged markings running down its visor in an angry crimson. On its breastplate was what looked like a warped emblem, colored in shades of the darkness and twisted into itself.

In its grasp, the heartless carried a cresset, a long pole with a cagelike lantern, but instead of fire, a concentrated sphere of darkness smoldered within it.

Riku didn't have to be told what the monster was here for. All this time, he'd been wandering in the darkness without direction—and now that he had direction, someone wanted to get in his way.

"Now _this _is interesting!" the cloaked man laughed as he faced the heartless. "Haven't seen one of you in _ages_!"

Not finding this entertaining in the least, Riku began to back away, instinctively flexing his fingers at his side.

And when the heartless lunged towards them, an inferno of darkness sprang up around it, and Riku reacted without thinking.

Flicking an arm out, he called to his keyblade, more than ready to fight if he had to.

He realized his mistake too late, remembering that the keyblade belonged to Sora now, and yet—

It still came to him.

A distinct warmth flared within his heart, welcoming and familiar like a friend he hadn't seen in months.

Light burst to life in his hand, answering his summon… but it _burned_.

A fierce _white_ lanced through Riku's eyes, and he recoiled from the blinding power with a cry. Immediately dismissing the weapon, he shielded his eyes as the light billowed outward, a shockwave of radiant energy that washed through him like a summer shower and left his body bathed in its warmth.

Had he been in the darkness so long that the light actually hurt him now?

The heartless shrank back, caught off guard by the raw brilliance of the keyblade, but Riku couldn't see what was happening, only sense it.

Heart thundering inside of him, Riku swallowed back his fear and lowered his arm. He blinked into the darkness, seeing only the afterimage of the keyblade's power at first, until—

There! Movement!

Bolts of red energy sizzled past him, striking the heartless before it could unleash another attack. A strong hand clamped around his arm and yanked him farther down the path.

"Whaddya waiting for? Get movin', kid!"

Caught between trusting the stranger or staying with the heartless, Riku settled with the former.

He took off running and didn't look back.

Ahead of him, a portal of darkness gracefully unfurled on the path, open and waiting. Behind him, the cloaked figure had stopped to hold off the heartless, and the clamor of their battle was enough to tell Riku two things.

The heartless wasn't slowing down or giving up, and the cloaked man wasn't protecting him out of the kindness of his heart.

"Gotcha now!" Another barrage of gunblasts lit the darkness as the stranger unloaded another attack, staggering the heartless momentarily. "Go back to your master and tell him—_finders, keepers!_"

Riku didn't have time to wonder what the man could want with him. He was closing in on the portal, his freedom, and escaping the darkness was the only thing on his mind.

But it seemed like the heartless had anticipated unwelcome guests. As soon as it had recovered from the stranger's preemptive strikes, the fight was over in an instant.

Riku heard a violent _SLAM_, and the cloaked figure let out an abrupt "_Uwaaahh!_" of defeat. He flew past Riku in a dark blur and crashed into the ground, skimmed across the white sand, and disappeared into the portal of darkness in front of Riku.

With its creator suddenly down for the count, the portal folded in on itself just as Riku reached it.

"NO!"

He dove into its dissipating darkness, but it was too late.

The shadows thinned and disappeared, leaving him stranded and alone in the dark abyss once again.

Well, not completely alone…

The ground quaked as the heartless landed behind him, and Riku whirled around to face it, hesitating about trying the keyblade again.

His hesitation was all it needed.

Darkness erupted from the sand beneath his feet, a wall of pure black that surrounded him on all sides, arching like a tidal wave ready to collapse.

In that instant, he knew he was trapped. There was no fighting this. Whatever lay at the end of this unexpected road—at least it wouldn't be this hollow place.

He clenched his empty fists and pushed down his fear.

"Go ahead!"

This time when the darkness crashed around him, he closed his eyes and braced himself for the impact. He'd come this far already… What was a little more darkness going to do to him, really?

As long as he still had some light inside of him, he knew he'd pull through, and he did. His light, and the light of his friends.

Only—the darkness didn't try to consume him. The sweep of its cold embrace never came.

Cracking his eyes open, Riku realized the shadows had split into thick ribbons and solidified into a cage around him, like the cresset the heartless carried.

The massive heartless lifted a gauntlet, summoning a sphere of burning darkness within the lantern at the end of its pole.

There was a slight tug on Riku's heart, gentle, as if not wanting to hurt him… and in the blink of an eye, the darkness collapsed around him, drawing him into it—and when the shadows cleared, he found himself inside of the cresset's basket.

As it was lifted into the air, Riku stumbled and clutched the cold bars, looking out to see what was happening.

_What's going on? Why didn't it try to finish me? _

Satisfied with its capture, the heartless calmly turned back towards the crossroads to take Riku deeper into the darkness.

With dread weighing his heart, Riku sank to the floor of the cage to get some rest, and he tried not to think about who exactly had _won_ "finders, keepers," or what their prize would be.

-o-o-

"I have a very bad feeling about this…"

"Thanks for the update," Donald grumbled. With a swat of his staff, he incinerated a shadowy tendril that had almost taken his hat.

Goofy's Very Bad Feeling was more than shared by all of them—it was an inevitable noose around their necks that tightened with every step they made as they trudged deeper into the labyrinth of ruins their journey had taken them. It was the heartless world's latest obstacle, and their most difficult challenge yet.

Snapped trees and crumbled buildings bled into solid darkness, and gummi boulders and shambles of fragmented worlds lay half buried in the pearlescent sand, creating a dangerous and confusing maze of wreckage and devastation.

Sora only knew they were going the right way because he could feel the shadows thickening around them. He was convinced that if they kept heading into the deepest darkness, they'd find their way to Ansem, and the end.

But the deeper they went, the more unforgiving the darkness was. They could barely catch their breath in the poisonous air, leaving them with a fraction of the strength they had started with. Even the smallest skirmishes had turned into a struggle for survival, but they didn't have a choice but to keep going forward, not if they wanted to get out of here alive.

"Ya know… I think I've seen that fountain before," Goofy commented, weary but wary. He had paused to study the rubble that remained of a once elegant fountain, now swamped with darkness. Several pairs of yellow eyes lurked within, waiting for them to wander too close.

"Don't fall behind," Sora warned. He knew he was beginning to sound impatient, but he was exhausted, and this wasn't the first time one of them had gotten distracted and slowed them down. The longer they spent here, the weaker they got, and the last thing he wanted was to become part of this graveyard.

Goofy shuffled to catch up, almost tripping over a pole from a collapsed circus tent that had been mostly dragged into the shadows. Even Goofy, ever the optimist, had let his good spirits fade hours ago. Now his whole body drooped with uncertainty. "Gawrsh… You sure we're even headin' the right way?"

Sora didn't glance at him, keeping focused on the uneven ground ahead. "Yeah."

They came across a majestic cathedral that looked like a tornado had ripped through it and left it to collapse on itself. They had to climb the rubble in order to get to the other side, but he knew they were on the right trail.

He could feel it, deep in his heart—there was light ahead of them, beyond the ultimate darkness. He wanted, _needed _to find that light. He was beginning to think he'd lost sight of his own, it had been so long since he had felt it…

Hefting himself onto a large church bell, Sora began to scale the rest of the cathedral ruins, careful not to disturb any loose debris. Below him, he could hear his friends begin to follow him, with Goofy hoisting Donald onto the bell to help him up.

Sora edged along the frame of an arched window that still had a patchwork of stained glass in it, most of it shattered beyond recognition. Past the window were a few crumbled columns and a large, headless gargoyle, and this was where Sora paused to take a breath and see where he had ended up.

Vines of darkness snaked along the wreckage in the valley below, winding in veinlike rivers out of a dense black mist that lay ahead. From what he could see from up here, just beyond the shadowy mist was what Sora had been hoping for.

Light.

Just a glimmer, but it was there, and it was enough to rekindle a tiny hope.

"Look!" Sora said, pointing Oathkeeper in the light's direction.

Finally catching up, a haggard Donald collapsed at the base of the overturned gargoyle and wheezed, trying to catch his breath. After making sure his friend was okay, Goofy curled a hand against his chin as he stared worriedly into the distance.

"Gee, Sora… You sure that's light?"

Fighting a frustrated pout, Sora began to climb down without waiting for them. "What _else_ could it be?"

He carefully slid down the remains of the cathedral's faded blue roof and landed in a pile of withered black leaves. The leaves had come from an ancient willow tree, corrupted by the darkness and half buried under the collapsed cathedral.

As Sora passed under its decayed branches and entered the misty darkness ahead, he thought he caught a glimpse of a face beneath the tree, like a grandmother stricken by grief. His heart leapt, but when he turned to look again, he realized it was just deep grooves in the trunk of the old willow tree. Weird… It had looked so much like a face.

Stepping a little closer, he reached out to drag his fingers over the blackened bark, wondering what world it had come from. Maybe it was his imagination, but being around it made him feel a little… lighter.

The sound of his friends sliding down the cathedral roof drew him back to the present, and he glanced ahead into the black mist. Like many times before, Sora felt that dread. A Very Bad Feeling, Goofy kept saying. It was a heaviness like no other, worse than a whale resting on his chest, and he knew what it was.

Responsibility.

If he made the wrong choice here, it could mean the end…

They were out of potions and out of energy, but the road kept going. No one was coming to find them. If they stopped here, that was it. Ansem would win, and Sora and his friends and all the worlds would become part of this wasteland.

Reaching up, he clasped a hand over his crown necklace and thought about everyone who had helped him make it this far.

He couldn't let them down…

"Come on, guys." He turned to glance at Donald and Goofy as they landed in the pile of leaves behind him. Mustering a tired smile for them, he rested Oathkeeper against his shoulder. "How about we get through this mist and then take a break?"

Goofy exchanged looks with Donald, and Sora wasn't sure if it was his smile or the mention of a break, but his friends nodded with more energy than he'd seen from them in a while. They smiled back.

"Forward march!" Donald said, aiming his staff into the air, and Sora laughed.

Glancing one last time at the old willow tree, Sora silently thanked it for whatever bit of light he imagined it had given him. It was a good reminder that he wasn't alone, and their mission was much bigger than any one of them.

Donald took the lead this time, casting a small sphere of fire in front of his staff to light the way. Lifting his shield in front of him, Goofy gestured for Sora to follow their friend.

"After you!"

Sora flashed him a grin and headed into the mist behind Donald.

The flickering of the fire spell made the darkness easier to navigate at first, but that quickly changed as the mist grew denser. Damp and reeking of the darkness, it felt like they were breathing swamp. Visibility rapidly faded to nothing even with the faint glow of the fire spell right in front of him.

He held onto Donald's shoulder and felt Goofy hold onto his, but not even the keyblade's familiar strength brought him comfort as they trekked deeper without knowing what lay beyond the mist.

It would have been a perfect ambush from the heartless, had they decided to attack. But they didn't.

Something else did.

It came without warning—no sound, no disturbance in the mist—

Sora suddenly felt Goofy's hand yank away from his shoulder and heard his friend hit the ground.

Then, loud and clear—

"Heee_eelp!_"

Goofy's distinct cry.

Sora never saw what got him. He only heard the scrape of Goofy's clothes against the ground as he was dragged into the darkness.

In that moment, Sora felt the harrowing reality of how vulnerable their trinity really was. Fear flooded his crumbling defenses, and it was the terror of losing Goofy that made them lose all sense of precaution.

With a cry so angry that the darkness itself seemed to cower, Donald barreled into the mist after Goofy without hesitation.

"Hang on, Goofy!"

Though he tried to keep up, Sora's fingers slipped from Donald's shoulder, and the light of the fire spell disappeared from sight completely.

Sora stumbled, his breath rattling inside of him as he sprinted as fast as he could, praying he was going the right way, but there was no way to tell. He could no longer hear his friends or see anything in the pitch black.

He yelped as the ground abruptly gave out beneath him—a cliff!—and his world turned upside down as he tumbled over the edge of a plateau, landing in what felt like sand.

Disoriented, he struggled back to his feet, his heart in his throat. He held Oathkeeper high, trying to use its light to see.

As if in answer, the darkness pulsed around him and thickened, tightening like a vise around the ruins surrounding him, snapping trees and grinding stone against stone, swallowing more of the dead worlds in its inky depths.

Heartless rose from the black, darkness camouflaging darkness except for the yellow of their eyes. Sora backed against the cliffside, but the heartless waited to attack, like predators biding their time.

"WAK!"

Donald's sudden cry was far in the distance—_too _far—and Sora whirled around in surprise when he heard it. How had Donald gotten so far ahead?

"Donald! Goofy?"

His voice didn't even echo, their names sounding muffled as the shadows closed in on him. His grip tightened around Oathkeeper, its halo of light his only companion as he faced the darkness he had once fearlessly controlled.

And for the first time since setting foot on this world, he felt completely alone.

Without his friends—he couldn't even imagine carrying on by himself...

No—

He wasn't alone, was he?

Curling his fingers around his necklace, he clenched his jaw. His friends were still out there, and as long as they were counting on him, he couldn't give up. He had to save them!

Swinging Oathkeeper out, he charged straight into the darkness to help Donald, ready for the heartless that launched out of the black to ambush him. His first strike cut through a shadow and slammed into a round mass whose maw was spread to take a chunk out of him.

"I don't think so!"

With a powerful swat, he knocked the darkball into the horde, then threw himself into a roll as a crimson-edged sword plunged into the ground next to him. He flew back to his feet using his momentum and raced blindly into the darkness, feeling the air tremble around him as a small tornado flew past.

But even with the keyblade's radiance, the darkness was unexpectedly powerful here.

As the mist constricted around him like a heavy blanket, muffling all of his senses, he realized that this was what the darkness had been planning—separate them, then strike. Luring his friends away from him, then using them as bait... Now it had him exactly where it wanted him. And in a world made of darkness, what hope did he have of outrunning it?

He struggled through the ocean of heavy shadows, silently calling for his friends, but even Oathkeeper's light seemed to fade in the intense darkness. It twisted inside of his chest, his lungs, every breath growing labored, searing his throat and lungs like ice water.

He was drowning—drowning in darkness...?

Stars danced behind his eyelids as the pressure grew. Numbness rapidly trickled through his veins until he no longer felt anything, not even the impact of his body hitting the ground when his legs gave out on him. Thoughts slipped away from him like water in a sieve, and he suddenly felt...

…free…

_Donald... Goofy... _

His mind spun, unraveling into a gray nothingness.

_Riku..._

Then he sank down, down...

Down...

Into the black.

-o-o-

They woke to the whisper of sand against their hair and gentle waves sloshing against the shore. An ocean breeze rustled through palm fronds, carrying the scent of seasalt and suntan lotion.

Light streamed through Riku's lashes as he lazily cracked one eye open.

Shadows danced over his face as the palm above him swayed and creaked. It had a single fruit hanging beneath its fronds—small, yellow, and shaped like a star.

Home…?

No… This wasn't sunlight.

Another eye slipped open, and he focused on the dark void above. A single ray of light cut through the black like a spotlight, highlighting the tiny, circular beach he was lying on. Crystal clear waters surrounded the small shore and faded into the deep black of the abyss.

A fragmented oasis…

In his hand rested the hilt of a keyblade.

Someone's fingers brushed against his, then brushed again as if checking to make sure he was real.

Realizing he wasn't alone, he turned his face and pressed his cheek into the warm sand.

Sora did the exact same thing.

Sleepy blue eyes met green, and they shared a smile.

This—this was the sand they remembered. Not the course grains of the Agrabah desert, or the endless white dust of the world of darkness... This was _home_.

Riku's fingers brushed back against Sora's, a silent reassurance that yes, yes, he was real.

Sora's smile softened.

Between them, Oathkeeper emanated a soft glow, a silent witness to their unexpected reunion.

Sora didn't know how or why he had ended up here, but he knew one thing for sure: his heart was at ease. It hadn't felt like this in a long time.

"Where are we…?" he wondered.

Riku's eyes focused past Sora, staring into the darkness beyond the islet. "Not sure…"

Around them, the very air seemed to shudder, and Riku's words echoed like a song rehearsed in a tiny room. Flecks of light began to fall through the darkness like delicate snowflakes, drifting past their little oasis.

_Sora! Hold on!_

Somewhere, someone was calling for him, but Sora tried to cling to the warmth in his heart, not wanting this small paradise to end. He wanted to stay here a bit longer, just a little while.

If he was in the darkness, this wasn't anything like when he had become a heartless. He could remember everything—his name, where he had come from, what had happened… He remembered Donald and Goofy being taken by the darkness, and he had gone after them. But if the darkness had taken him—why was he here with Riku?

This was too… perfect.

Sora swallowed as he stared up at the warm light shining down on them. "Is this… the end?"

_Riku! Pal, you gotta fight it! _

"I don't think so," Riku murmured, feeling his heart stir. He knew that voice… That was the same voice that had been trying to help him all this time, the one guiding him through the darkness. This couldn't be the end, not if he could still hear him.

Whatever this oasis was—a cruel illusion or a pleasant dream—this wasn't their whole reality. They were still out there somewhere. That heartless still had him.

"I'm still in the darkness, aren't I…"

It wasn't a question directed at Sora, but a quiet realization. His fingers shifted to rest over Sora's, the keyblade thrumming gently beneath their joined hands. The flecks of light beyond their oasis began to fall faster.

"If you're still in the darkness, I must be, too," Sora said.

Just for a moment, Riku felt an icy vise tighten around his heart. "What were you doing in the darkness?"

But then Sora smiled at him again, and the burden eased.

"I was comin' to find you."

Simple, and honest. Riku realized he had no right to be mad, not if he would have done the exact same thing if Sora had been in his shoes, and Riku had been in his.

He would always look for Sora, no matter what.

Allowing himself a selfish little smile, Riku clenched Sora's hand. "Well, you found me..."

_Keep fighting, Riku!_

He flinched, and the illusion of their oasis quivered, all of its beauty dispersing into the darkness like colorful smoke, briefly, before solidifying again.

"Someone's calling me..."

_I'm almost there—Sora—please hang on!_

"Me, too." Sora's gaze wandered as he fell deep into thought. "You know… it's weird, but I'm not scared anymore."

Riku cracked half a smile again. "Think maybe it's because we're not alone?"

"Maybe." His blue eyes returned to Riku's with an unwavering intensity, and he tightened his fingers around Oathkeeper. "You know what I think? I think the keyblade helped us find each other."

Focusing on the glowing weapon, Riku's smile softened. "It's possible."

_I've got you, Sora, don't worry—_

There was a distinct tug on Sora's hand, as if someone were trying to drag him away.

Sora looked surprised. "Huh…?"

Riku clamped his fingers around Sora's hand without hesitation, not ready to let him go so soon.

"Not yet—give us a few more minutes—"

The world shuddered, and the beacon of light above them began to dwindle, shrinking their tiny oasis. The darkness slowly swallowed the clear waters and crept onto shore, encroaching upon them.

_You're doin' great, pal! Just a little longer!_

The invisible force pulling at them grew stronger, and Riku's fingers began to slip away from Sora's. He wasn't strong enough to hold on—he was going to lose Sora again—he didn't want to go back to the darkness!

Sora's eyes filled with worry, but even as the shadows swept over Riku and Sora, the thin beacon of light from above lingered on their clasped hands. Oathkeeper's radiance never faltered between them, and somehow, seeing it there in Sora's hand made it easier to accept what was happening.

They weren't going to be together, but... whether or not it had been Oathkeeper, _something_ had brought them here. Something had tried to give them hope.

They weren't going to be together, but they wouldn't be alone.

Sora pushed the keyblade towards Riku as Riku strained to hold onto him. "Hang onto it—"

"Don't worry," Riku reassured, his voice strained as his hand slipped farther from Sora's, holding on by only two fingers now. "Us meeting here?" Another finger slipped, but Riku held on, his gaze bright with conviction. "It's proof we weren't meant to fade into the darkness."

_Sora? Can you hear me? Wake up..._

The beacon of light faded completely, plunging them into the shadows, but not before Riku saw Sora give a determined nod.

"Right!"

Riku's grip gave way at last, and he slid through the velveteen sand as the oasis collapsed in on itself.

As he tumbled through the disintegrating beach, Sora's warmth stayed with him.

Just before the dark void swallowed him again, he thought he heard Sora's voice through the rushing sand.

"Remember our promise!"

Their promise…

That's right.

As long as he had friends in his heart, he could never fade.

_I see ya, Riku! _

The voice in the darkness resounded louder than ever, anchoring his heart amongst the void, helping preserve his existence.

_Hold on!_

Then light suddenly cut through his reality and thrust him into a world of pure white.

-o-o-

Warmth enveloped Sora like an old blanket just pulled from a dryer, soft and wrapping him in its ultimate comfort.

When he squinted his eyes open, he was met by a gentle light. Not too bright.

Familiar.

Red hair and blue eyes blurred into focus, and Sora dazedly stared at the ghostlike figure.

"Kairi...?"

A relieved smile crossed her face. She tucked her arms behind her back and nodded, looking proud.

And with a blink of his eyes, she was gone. The light began to fade, though not completely.

Still woozy, it took Sora a second to realize he actually _was _enveloped in light—some kind of protective aura—and he was moving.

Strong arms held him against a lean back, and hands were clenched into his thighs, keeping them draped over a pair of hips. Trying to remember the last time he'd had a piggyback ride, he turned his face and pressed it between his savior's shoulder blades, feeling the sweep of soft hair against his cheek.

He breathed deep, smelling darkness, but just beneath that—old books, and the sweet tang of magic.

He knew this scent.

"Yami?"

Fingers curled more firmly against his thighs, as if worried about dropping him. That was when Sora knew he had guessed right, even though Yami didn't acknowledge it.

"What are you doing here...?" Sora wondered, staring off into the bubble of light surrounding them. Kairi's power. Beyond her light, Sora could see just how thick the darkness was, and how deep into it Yami must have traveled just to find him.

This time Yami answered, hesitant, probably not sure if Sora was mad at him. "I couldn't sit still knowing someone was out there fixing the mess _I _made. So when Cid told all of us that he lost contact with your gummi ship... we feared the worst." His arms tightened against Sora, and he shook his head. "I couldn't stay."

Then, with a quietest of sighs:

"I'm glad I found you..."

Yami sounded so relieved. Sora must have had a really close call back there.

"Thanks..."

What would have happened if someone hadn't been there to pull him out of the darkness? If Yami and Kairi hadn't been there to come for Sora, would he have made it out of there?

And Riku... He was still out there...

Sora swallowed hard, his dizziness beginning to pass. "Was anyone else down there too...?"

"No... I only sensed you."

Disappointed and worried, Sora fell silent as he thought about how Riku was all alone, and had been alone for weeks... But he was still carrying strong.

Which meant Riku was doing okay. If he'd lasted this long, Sora still had some time to find him.

Clinging to that comforting thought, Sora relaxed against Yami's back and closed his eyes. Beneath his ear, he could feel Yami's heartbeats, steady and strong, like Kairi's light.

"S'warm," he murmured, basking in the light's presence. "Been a long time... since I felt light..."

Here in this dark world that swallowed all light... he'd only had Donald and Goofy. And now they were lost...

It was funny, in a sad way, how Sora had been so determined not to bring Yami here with him. He'd wanted to protect Kairi, yet now she was the one protecting _him_.

"Thanks, Kairi..."

He didn't receive an answer, but from the way Yami's heart seemed to quicken beneath his ear, he knew she had heard him.

When they reached the edge of the world graveyard, where the dark mist had thinned, Yami came to a stop and carefully set Sora on the white sand. As Sora steadied himself against the remnants of a crumbled old cottage, he felt the refreshing sweep of a cure spell as it passed through him, powerful and leaving him feeling like new.

Yami said nothing after healing him. He stood quietly beside Sora and stared off into the writhing shadows ahead.

Sora followed his gaze and tried not to feel discouraged. Out of the darkness, and into more. Looking into the pure black, it was hard to imagine that his friends could be okay. After days of having them right there by his side, he'd grown so used to having their never ending optimism to lean on.

Reaching up, he wrapped his fingers around his crown necklace once again.

"Hang on, guys..."

A strong hand curled against his shoulder, and when he glanced up, Yami offered him an encouraging smile.

"Let's go find them."

Returning Yami's smile with a grateful one, Sora nodded and turned to face the shadows ahead. That's right... He wasn't exactly alone anymore. They probably still had a long road ahead of them, but somewhere out there, their friends needed rescuing.

Calling Oathkeeper, he held it firmly at his side, feeling its power resonate with Kairi's protective light.

Then, gathering his courage, he darted into the darkness again, this time with Yami's quiet strength at his side.

-o-o-

Light cut through the darkness, shattering the illusion in one strike.

Riku fell through the cage's disintegrating remains, disoriented and unable to see anything but the shadows surrounding him. Landing hard on his feet, he fell forward onto his hands and knees, recognizing the powdery sand of the world of darkness.

He was awake—and free from the cage—but how?

Wait...

There was light?

He squinted up through his bangs at the blurry figure standing next to him, short and silhouetted by the brilliant light emanating from the weapon he held. The keyblade's outline was unmistakable, but what caught Riku's attention were the figure's large, round ears, shaped exactly like Riku's first keychain.

Standing between him and the massive heartless that had captured him was none other than… a mouse?

"I gotcha, pal!"

But there was no mistaking it—he knew that voice!

The mouse glanced over his shoulder to smile at Riku, fearless even in the face of such a daunting foe.

"Don't worry, Riku—I'll protect you!"

Darkness erupted around the heartless as it lunged to attack, but Riku's warning caught in his throat when the mouse reacted instantly. Small but nimble, he leapt from the ground to meet the heartless in mid-strike, the keyblade's light burning away the creature's protective shadows and exposing its armor.

Riku watched in awe as the brave mouse bounced off the heartless's helmet and somersaulted to safety, narrowly escaping getting slugged by the heartless's cresset. As the darkness reformed the cresset's cage, it swung around to strike the tiny keyblade master, almost too quick to see.

"Watch out!"

But the mouse rolled away just in time and, with a fling of his keyblade, sent a ball of pure white energy into the heartless's breastplate.

The heartless recoiled, but barely, and in the blink of an eye, it was already barreling down on the mouse again.

Everything happened so quickly and with such a brutal intensity that Riku had a difficult time keeping up with what was happening. Every attack the heartless made was made to exterminate, but the mouse was always a step ahead of the danger.

What surprised Riku was that the heartless was actually paying more attention to the mouse now instead of trying to capture him. When the cloaked figure had tried to protect him, the heartless had been far more interested in Riku. Was it because the mouse had a keyblade?

When the heartless suddenly lurched back to put distance between itself and the petite keyblade master, the mouse hesitated, eyes sharp with determination and his keyblade held at the ready. It was the briefest of glimpses, but in that moment, Riku saw the weariness in the mouse's stance and the slight trembling of the keyblade.

He was exhausted. He had probably been exhausted before he had even leapt into battle, from trying to reach Riku all this time.

The heartless, on the other hand, wasn't getting any weaker. It took advantage of their hesitation to launch its next attack.

Spheres of intense darkness burst out of its lantern and honed in on the mouse. One after another, they narrowly missed him as he ducked and wove through the barrage, but he couldn't escape the heavy tremors each of them created when they made impact with the ground.

Stumbling, the mouse pitched forward and yelped as he crashed face first into the sand.

Riku sprang to the rescue without hesitation, darting through the fallen spheres of darkness as they began to bleed the white sand black, spreading into shadowy pools. Tendrils lashed outward, trying to snare Riku's legs as he leapt over them, and just ahead, he could see the heartless raise its cresset for a finishing blow.

Dropping into a slide, Riku glided across the sand and scooped the brave mouse into his arms, feeling the stinging cold of the darkness as the cresset came crashing into the sand inches behind him. Thrown forward by the shockwave, Riku fell into a roll, holding his new friend close to protect him.

Darkness rapidly swallowed the road behind them, spreading across the sand like flames scorching through paper. Everything seemed to quake, even the darkness itself, as the heartless dove into the shadows and out of sight.

Riku struggled back to his feet as the ground continued to shake, warning him that this was far from over yet. Still on guard, he set the mouse down safely.

He was rewarded with a cheerful smile.

"Gosh, thanks!"

Reminded of Sora's sunny grin, Riku couldn't resist a small smile back. "Don't thank me yet…"

Especially since the sand beneath them was suddenly bleeding black, and the rumbling grew worse.

The mouse's eyes widened with realization, and before Riku could react first, his new friend shoved away to safety as the ground erupted beneath him. Riku staggered back, now recognizing the attack as the darkness arched around the mouse and solidified into a cage, capturing the wrong prey.

As the mouse began cutting away at the cage with his keyblade, the heartless resurfaced beneath it, lifting the cage into the air as it climbed out of the darkness.

"I don't think so!" Riku called, darting from the ground as the darkness spread around his feet.

He caught onto the bottom of the cage as the heartless swung it, trying to swat him out of the fight, but he held on and rode the momentum even higher. Throwing his weight with the heartless's powerful swing, Riku launched off the side of the cage and through the air, flying straight back towards the heartless, heels first.

His feet slammed into the creature's helmet, staggering it, but the impact was powerful enough to disorient Riku himself. As the heartless stumbled from the blow, Riku fell against its broad shoulder and scrambled to hang on, managing to take hold of its angular armor.

The cresset fell from the heartless's grasp just as the mouse's keyblade struck through its shadowy bars, releasing him.

Planting his feet against the heartless's armor, Riku pushed away from it and sailed through the air, catching the small keyblade master as he tumbled out of the cage. The sandy road cushioned Riku's fall as he fell on his back to protect the smaller mouse, but the landing was still hard enough to knock the breath out of him.

"Wah!" Startled, the mouse leapt to his feet. "Are you okay?"

A shimmering minty light enveloped Riku, who recognized the healing spell and cracked a smile at his odd new friend. "Better."

Neither of them saw the gauntlet until it was too late.

The mouse was there—and then suddenly gone, as the heartless's crimson gauntlet cracked into him and sent him flying. His small body tumbled through the air and hit the ground yards away, rolling once before becoming motionless.

"NO!"

A scream tore out of Riku, who flew back to his feet in an instant.

The mouse's fallen keyblade skittered across the sand, and Riku snatched it from the ground, a vengeful fury driving him as he sprinted straight for the heartless.

-o-o-

"Is this it?"

Dread twisted inside of Sora as he stared up at the large doors in front of them. He and Yami stood side by side at the end of the road, Kairi's protective bubble of light still holding strong as the toxic shadows pressed in around them.

"Has to be," Yami said as he stepped towards the doors. They were tall and ornate, a black so polished they could see their reflections against the elegant panels.

Sora shook his head. "This can't be it…" Pressing a hand over his heart, he thought about what he had seen before he'd lost Donald and Goofy. "Wasn't there a light…?"

Yami turned to him in question. "Light?"

"I remember sensing a light, somewhere in the darkness."

The soft smile that crossed Yami's face was understanding. "The only light I sensed was _you_."

"But—"

Sora began to disagree, ready to insist he really had sensed a light, until he realized what Yami's smile actually meant.

Yami had found Sora so deep in the darkness because he had sensed Sora's light, which meant… Sora's light had led Yami to him. The same must have been true about Yami. All along, that light Sora had been following, leading Donald and Goofy to, must have been Kairi's.

"Oh." Sora stepped back to glance at the bubble of light around them. Folding his arms behind his head, he smiled. "I get it. You followed my light, and I followed yours, and that's how you found me…" Then he returned his attention back to the door they had found, suddenly feeling less intimidated. "Hearts are pretty amazing."

"Yeah…" There was still a smile in Yami's voice. "Even when you feel alone, you never really are."

With a nod, Sora thought about Donald and Goofy again, and Riku… He hoped they believed in him and knew he was coming for them.

"So—do you think this is the way out?" he asked, more than ready to get out of here and find his friends.

Yami's amber eyes focused on the pair of doors standing before them. "Every exit is a door to somewhere else."

In other words, Sora shouldn't get too hopeful. Their struggles weren't over yet.

"Then let's hope that somewhere else is better than this place!"

Sora reached for the doors and pulled them open, ready for anything the darkness wanted to throw at them.

Light poured into the misty shadows around them, brilliant and blinding, and Sora shielded his eyes with a grimace as his entire world went white. The door's power didn't feel anything like real light, but cold and enveloping like the darkness itself.

When the radiance began to fade, Sora warily peeked out from under his hands to see what had happened—and he could actually _see_.

The darkness had cleared, revealing the vast interior of an elegant ballroom, or at least what had once been elegant.

Inches of ash layered the dance floor that Sora now stood on, almost burying his shoes. Scorched, withered draperies still hung from the wall, and beneath them, an intense heat had cracked and curled paint on the walls, creating veins amongst the charred black.

Whatever inferno had consumed the ballroom was long dead, but the air was still saturated with the musk of old smoke and the tang of burned debris.

Somewhere beyond the shadows above, soft cinders drifted endlessly from the ceiling like gray snow, beginning to dot Sora's hair and clothes with monochrome. Any royal colors that the ballroom had once displayed were now covered in the falling cinders, casting the whole room in a surreal brown glow from the faint, murky light that streamed through the shadows above.

Sora kicked at the layer of ash around his shoes and turned to glance at his companion.

Right at that moment, Yami kicked at the layer of ash around his boots and turned to glance at Sora.

They both froze when they saw what now separated them.

The ballroom was cut perfectly down the middle by a wall of large ornate mirrors, dusty and tarnished from their time resting here in the dead ballroom. Only, these mirrors didn't reflect their reflections—they reflected each other.

Sora found himself blinking at Yami, as Yami blinked at Sora from the other side of the mirrors.

Feeling the hair on the back of his neck stand on end, Sora summoned Oathkeeper and approached the mirrors, already looking for a way to break through them to get to Yami. "How did you end up over _there_?"

"Not sure…"

As breath tickled his ear, Sora leapt in surprise and whirled around—but Yami wasn't there, even though Sora could've sworn he had just heard him right there next to him!

And there were footsteps in the ash that weren't his own…

Sora glanced back at Yami, who seemed to have noticed the same thing. With a curious tilt of his head, Yami drew a line in the ash with his boot.

On Sora's side of the mirror, beside him in the ash, a line was drawn by an invisible boot.

Their eyes met with sudden understanding. Even though they were on opposite sides of the mirrors, they could still interact with each other. Wondering what for, Sora took another good look around. Why had they ended up here of all places? One thing he did notice was that the mirrors cut right through a pair of massive doors, one door on either side of the glass.

"Maybe that's our way forward," Sora said, already heading for the doors.

"Wait, Sora—" Yami hurried to catch up to him, passing from mirror to mirror, as his footsteps appeared in the ashes beside Sora. "The darkness brought us here for a reason."

Sora stopped in front of the cinder-covered door and nodded. "Right, and I'm not stickin' around to find out _why_."

Swinging his keyblade up, he concentrated his power, and Oathkeeper responded with a familiar shimmer. A jet of light connected the keyblade to the door on Sora's side of the mirrors, and with almost no effort at all, it unlocked and began to creak open.

"Piece of cake," Sora laughed, swinging the keyblade onto his shoulder. He reached for the door to finish opening it, seeing nothing but shadows beyond. "Well, every exit is a door to somewhere else, right…?"

He glanced at Yami with a grin.

Then immediately regretted it.

"Close the door!" Yami yelled, backing away from the open door as darkness flooded out of it—only on _his_ side of the mirror. In a swirl of shadow, Soul Eater appeared in his hand and blocked an onslaught of attacks from the swarm of neoshadows that lunged at him from the darkness pooling around his feet.

Sora's heart leapt into his throat when he saw that he had put Yami in danger, and an instant later, he shoved the door closed with a thunderous _SLAM_, cutting off the flow of darkness on Yami's end.

Nothing had escaped the door on Sora's end, but even though he had closed the door as quickly as possible, Yami was still trapped on the other side of the mirror with a dozen powerful heartless.

He needed to help Yami.

Without hesitation, Sora charged at the wall of mirrors with a determined cry.

"Hold on—I'm coming!"

He struck the glass with his keyblade, bracing himself for the shatter that never came.

Instead, the blade ricocheted right off the mirror, trembled up his arms, and sent him staggering back as if he'd just been the one struck.

Not giving up, he slung a fire spell at the mirror next, then yelped and danced aside as the spell bounced right back at him, nearly catching the ends of his spikes. That was enough to clear his head and warn him to slow down.

He watched as Yami ducked through the heartless with unnatural speed, the battle reminding him of the first few times he had seen Yami fight; usually facing grim odds, Yami had always come out on top. After Kairi's light had burned away most of Yami's darkness, he had lost the advantage and strength he'd had back then.

But even now, as Sora watched his friend block a fierce kick from a neoshadow and then retaliate with a counterstrike mighty enough to reduce the heartless to nothing, he was still left in awe of Yami's innate power. He didn't _need _the darkness's strength to be dangerous.

As Yami sent another neoshadow flying into the wall, the scorched draperies near Sora suddenly fluttered as if something had flown past it. Sora stepped back and looked around, realizing the ash on the floor around him was moving, getting swished aside by the chaos of an invisible battle.

Gripping his keyblade harder, Sora looked back at the battle in the mirror, then at the empty space on his side. If opening the door on his side could unleash heartless on Yami's, then maybe Sora could do more to help.

Sora raised Oathkeeper into the air, deciding it was worth a shot. Channeling his magic through the blade, his most powerful thunder spell rained lightning bolts down around him, scattering ash into the air.

On Yami's side of the mirror, the neoshadows abruptly recoiled, their lean bodies sparking with the aftershocks of Sora's spell.

Fueled by his success, Sora cut his keyblade through the empty air ahead of him, feeling nothing—but in the reflection, a neoshadow staggered sideways from his blow, giving Yami more room to maneuver.

Sora fended off the invisible foes as best as he could as Yami leapt back to gain the advantage.

Once Yami wasn't surrounded anymore, he swung his sword out, summoning a sphere of fire at the end of it, and then whirled around, launching a barrage of fireballs into the air that honed in on the heartless. Just when Sora thought he was done, Yami whirled in the opposite direction, unleashing another intense barrage, each fireball striking through the neoshadows.

As the last heartless disintegrated into fragments of darkness, both Yami and Sora released sighs of relief.

Yami lifted his face to offer him a cautious smile. "That was unexpected…"

Sora couldn't help wondering if Yami was talking about the door unleashing heartless… or that awesome spell he had just done. When this was all over, Sora _had _to get Yami to teach him that one!

"Tell me about it," Sora said with a small laugh, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry about that."

With a shake of his head, Yami dismissed Soul Eater. "It's all right. You had no way of knowing what would happen."

Sora smiled. He was just glad he was with someone as level-headed as Yami. "So what now?" he asked, turning back towards the doors. "Looks like we can't go that way."

Silence followed Sora's question as Yami surveyed the decrepit ballroom, calmly brushing cinders off his arms. Then, almost to himself, he murmured, "I've… been here before. It's just a feeling, but I know this place."

Recalling Sephiroth's theories about Xehanort and Ansem and who Yami really might be, Sora wondered if maybe this was a place from Xehanort's missing memories. "Well—is it a good feeling, or a bad feeling?" Sora asked.

After hesitating, Yami slowly approached the doors and turned around to face the entire ballroom, his expression deep with contemplation. Sora didn't know what he was looking for, but he waited to see if anything about this place could jog any of Yami's real memories, somewhere beneath all of the warped lies Id had fed him.

Finally, Yami's amber eyes filled with a sad fondness, and he looked down at his hand. "Half a dream is dreaming… The other half is hard work. Someone told me something like that once." He glanced at Sora. "I don't know if that helps at all."

Sora pursed his lips as he thought about that. It was a weird bit of wisdom, especially for their situation, but Sora could relate to it. "It makes sense. Ever since we were little, me 'n Riku dreamed about seeing other worlds, but trying to build that raft was really hard work…" Then, with an embarrassed smile, he added, "But Riku did most of the work."

Yami quietly laughed at that. "Well, I could be wrong, but I think we're being tested." His gaze strayed towards the doors again. "Or toyed with. Either way, we'll have to play by the darkness's rules if we want to make it out safely."

"Yeah." And this time, Sora would try to listen to Yami if he was told to wait. "The question is… _How _do we get out?"

Even as he asked the question, he saw Yami focus on something on Sora's side of the mirror.

"There," Yami said with a nod. He was referring to a pair of blackened, tattered curtains hiding a large section of the ballroom. "A balcony."

Sora realized Yami was right. There _was _a balcony on his side. Before Sora got his hopes up, though, he noticed something kind of important.

"But there's no balcony on _your _side."

"Maybe only one of us needs to make it out," Yami suggested. "Come on—" He started towards his side of the ballroom where the balcony would be. "I'll boost you."

Sora faced the covered balcony, spotting footsteps tracking through the ash that weren't his. "This is so weird…"

Directly under the balcony, the tracks stopped, and Sora knew that was where Yami was standing. Hoping this worked as well as his spells had, Sora took a deep breath and readied himself.

"Here I go!"

Sprinting straight for the balcony, Sora abandoned all doubt and pictured Yami crouched there in front of him, waiting with his hands ready. In that moment, Sora's trust was absolute.

Just as he reached Yami's tracks in the ash, Sora heard him loud and clear—

"Now!"

Sora stepped into a pair of waiting hands and threw all of his weight forward, feeling Yami's invisible strength beneath him, steadfast and _real_. Using Yami as a springboard, Sora launched high into the air and sliced Oathkeeper through the rotten curtains, cutting them away from the balcony as he somersaulted through.

Rolling with his momentum, he leapt back to his feet and shook himself free of the ashes covering him.

"Made it!" he called down to Yami, turning to see if he could spot the mirrors below.

He couldn't.

The balcony had disappeared completely, and Sora now stood next to an empty fireplace.

"Yami!"

Rushing to the fireplace, Sora ran a hand along the stone mantle to see if it was just a trick of his eyes, but no—it was solid.

A knot formed in his throat, and frantic thoughts began running through his mind as he tried to come up with a solution to get back to his friend before something even worse happened. Maybe there was a door somewhere that led to Yami's side of the ballroom!

Dismissing Oathkeeper, Sora turned to explore the new area, only to discover that he wasn't even in the same castle. Nothing was burned or covered in cinders, and the architecture was completely different. The décor was colorful and intricate, the lavender floor patterned with petal shapes, and the elegant furniture dressed in rich orange and gold fabric. Two tapestries hung on the wall, one of a knight with his shield and sword drawn, and the other of three robed ladies, one in red, one in green, and the last in blue.

A small door did exist directly to his right, but there was one big problem.

Giant, twisted roots with knife-length thorns grew unchecked everywhere, winding through cracks in the walls, out of the fireplace, and blocking the splintered door of the bedroom he had ended up in. He could only really tell it was a bedroom because of the vanity and mirror lying broken and twisted amongst the thorns.

A tall purple curtain covered in gold swirls stretched across the width of the bedroom from floor to ceiling, hiding the rest of the room from view, including whatever window or balcony might have been on the other side. Judging from the faint light casting through the thin material, it could have been dawn outside.

It wasn't until the curtain rippled that Sora noticed the silhouette of someone standing in front of him on the other side.

"Yami?"

There was no doubt about it. Sora knew that hair.

But Yami wasn't saying anything…

Stepping over the tail of a thorny root, Sora reached out to touch the curtain, just as Yami reached out to touch it. Though Sora's fingers met Yami's silhouette, Sora felt no pressure behind his hand. It felt like he was touching his own shadow.

Heart sinking, Sora grabbed a fistful of the curtain and yanked it up to see what was behind it.

A beautiful four-post bed, another pair of double doors, and an ornate balcony—as he'd suspected.

But no Yami.

In fact, the doors and balcony were thoroughly sealed by a dangerous thicket of thorny roots. Any light Sora had seen on his side of the curtain must have been part of the darkness's illusion.

"Yami?"

Silence followed his tentative tone, and Sora stepped through the curtain and let it fall behind him.

Almost immediately, a green light flickered to life on the other side of the curtain, dancing like flames in a fireplace, and Yami's silhouette reappeared across from Sora.

So, it was just like the mirrors… only this time, Sora couldn't hear his friend or interact with him.

How was he supposed to get out of _this _room?

Folding his arms across his chest, Sora frowned and hummed to himself as he stared at Yami's silhouette. Yami would know what to do here… but _what_?

"Think, Sora."

Imagining Yami's voice in his mind, Sora inspected the room again and came up with nothing. He crossed the curtain again in hopes of finding Yami on the other side this time, but of course it wasn't that simple. No matter what side of the curtain he stood on, Yami always stood on the other side, silhouetted by a light source that didn't exist.

Back on the side with the fireplace, Sora sighed, already frustrated. Trying to think like Yami wasn't easy… Still, if they _were _being tested, Sora didn't want to be the one that made them fail.

Not giving up yet, he focused on Yami's silhouette again.

"What's the darkness trying to say **this** time?"

With the way Yami mimicked every move Sora made, it was almost like Yami _was _Sora's shadow. Was it trying to say something about Yami's darkness? But with Kairi's light, Sora thought that Yami's darkness was balanced…

Wait, maybe the trick here wasn't about Yami's shadow, but the room's light.

Turning towards the fireplace, Sora thought about how he had seen a green fire in it when he had been on the other side of the curtain. It was worth a shot.

Summoning his keyblade, he flung a fire spell into the hearth to ignite it.

For a second, the spell flared and filled the room with a powerful light. When it cleared and Sora could see again, everything had changed. No curtain bisected the room, and a green flame burned brightly in the fireplace, casting long shadows across the room. Gone were the colorful oranges and purples of the room's décor; now everything was in shades of the darkness. Even the thorns looked more like tendrils of shadow instead of the menacing vines from before.

Most importantly, Yami now stood in front of Sora, looking as lost as Sora had when he'd examined the room.

Sora smiled with relief. "There you are!"

Only, Sora's voice came from far away, muffled and echoing strangely through the transformed room. Yami didn't even glance at Sora, almost as if he hadn't heard him at all.

"Hey—I'm right here!" Sora called, trying to wave his hands, to no avail. He couldn't move. Only when Yami began to move, Sora began to move. Yami turned to glance around the room, and Sora turned to glance around the room, mirroring him.

When Yami finally spotted Sora and froze in surprise, Sora realized what had happened. Now _Sora _was his shadow.

A look of understanding crossed Yami's face as he came to the same conclusion. "So that's what happened…" He reached out towards Sora, much like Sora had done to him earlier. Sora felt no pressure, only warmth when Yami's hand passed through his. "This feels so backwards."

Yami pulled the curtain up and passed under it, entering the other half of the room. Here, the four-post bed, balcony, and doors were all wrapped in shadowy vines instead of thorns. The faint aura of daybreak filtered through the balcony's shadows, but it paled in comparison to the fireplace's light, which followed Yami even through the curtain, the shadows dancing along behind him.

Instead of examining this side of the room, Yami hesitated in front of the elegant bed. Sora waited in silence, wondering what he was doing.

Slowly, a haunted look of recognition filled Yami's face.

"I've been here before, too…" There was certainty in his words as he reached out to touch one of the bedposts. He closed his eyes, his brows knitting. "I can't remember, but I can _feel_ it. Something happened here." He pressed a hand over his chest, his voice quiet, almost pained. "Something bad."

Another room Yami recognized? Then these places weren't so random after all. Maybe the darkness wasn't testing _Sora_.

Drawing in a deep breath, Yami pressed a hand to his forehead and took a moment to himself. Sora had no choice but to watch and mirror his every action, worry fluttering inside of him as the shadows seemed to strengthen around Yami.

"Don't worry, Yami," Sora said, aware that his friend couldn't hear him. "We'll get out of here together." Whatever the darkness wanted with Yami, he wouldn't let it have him. Sora had lost too many friends to it already.

The tension in Yami's shoulders seemed to ease as if he had heard Sora. A few seconds later, Yami calmly surveyed the room again, already back to business. "I think I know what to do from here." Glancing at Sora's silhouette, Yami nodded towards the thorns blocking the smaller door. "See those shadows on your side? Your keyblade can probably take care of them."

Oh—right! Sora realized that it might be better that they had switched places. If the keyblade could get rid of the shadowy tendrils, maybe the thorns on Yami's end would disappear, and they could get out.

Yami held a hand out and summoned Soul Eater, and Sora's hand stretched out on its own to expect the keyblade.

But as Soul Eater appeared clasped in Yami's fingers, the keyblade didn't materialize in Sora's hand. A shadow of Soul Eater did.

Yami's smile fell. "That wasn't supposed to happen…" Dismissing his weapon, Sora's sword disappeared as well. Yami tried again, but with the same results—a shadow of Yami's sword appeared in Sora's hand, not the keyblade they both wanted.

"Let me try," Sora offered, even though Yami couldn't hear him. He concentrated, tapping into the wellspring of warmth in his heart to summon Oathkeeper. For just a moment, Sora felt its weight against his fingers, and he thought it had worked.

But then the keyblade clattered to the floor at Yami's feet, and a shadow version of the keyblade fell in front of Sora. Both of them were still holding Soul Eater.

Yami stooped down to pick the keyblade up, frowning as he studied Sora's shadow do the same. "How are we supposed to get the keyblade over there?"

Even if Yami could have heard him, Sora wouldn't have had an answer. Sora couldn't help thinking that they were just wasting time here… His friends were still out there, and the darkness was making them play games—and for what? Because these places were _maybe _from Yami's past? He missed having a bad guy to beat up… Everything had been so straightforward with Jafar, Ursula, and Maleficent. Beat up the bad guy, save the world, and move on. He liked knowing what to do. But this? He hated riddles!

Frustrated, Sora dismissed Oathkeeper, and it disappeared from Yami's hand in a flash of light.

Yami focused on Sora's silhouette and, with a sympathetic smile, he nodded as if sensing Sora's impatience. "Let's try this again, okay? There's something I haven't tried…" He released his power on Soul Eater, letting it disintegrate into darkness. Now both of them were empty-handed.

Thinning his eyes, Yami's expression filled with intense concentration. Sora felt his hand lift back into the air as Yami lifted his.

This time Sora didn't call to Oathkeeper, but he felt a sudden flare of warmth in his heart and knew immediately what it meant. His eyes widened as the keyblade's light swirled into existence, as weightless and wispy as a shadow but made out of _light_, resting without a doubt in Sora's hand. And in Yami's hand, gleaming shades of black but definitely solid, was a dark Oathkeeper.

Mind boggled, Sora gaped at Yami, wondering what he had just done.

Again, as if sensing his emotions, Yami glanced at Sora's silhouette, looking as surprised as he felt. "I didn't think it'd actually work..."

Whatever had just happened, Sora smiled to himself, confident that they were on the right path now. "Let's do this!"

Even if he couldn't hear Sora, Yami gave a quiet laugh as if he had.

He turned towards the double doors blocked by the thicket of impassible thorns, and Sora faced its shadows. He felt Yami tighten his grip on the keyblade, in turn tightening Sora's grip on his. Everything between them in that moment—their breaths, the tensing of their muscles, and even their heartbeats—were one.

And when Yami lunged forward, angling the dark Oathkeeper high, Sora was his shadow.

Their keyblades sliced through the barriers in one powerful swipe, the light of Sora's Oathkeeper searing through the shadows in his realm and disintegrating them. In Yami's realm, a line of green fire burned across the thorns where the keyblades struck, and the flames spread across the thicket in an instant and consumed it.

When the green fire dispersed, the charred skeleton of the thicket crumbled under its own weight, and Yami knocked it aside with his keyblade to reach the doors.

Free at last.

Sora and Yami pulled open the doors at the same time, both of their keyblades fading to nothing as they stepped through the threshold together, right into the darkness's next trial.

-o-o-

Riku flew through the battle without care for his own safety, glancing off the heartless's blows and getting right back to his feet to deliver punishment. His only concern in that moment was the wellbeing of the brave mouse who had come to help him.

Now it was Riku's turn to protect _him_.

Armed with his friend's keyblade, he unleashed all of his fury into fending off the massive heartless, narrowly escaping its merciless sweeping attacks and the cage that often tried to trap him.

He let his instincts guide him, the keyblade's power resonating with his heart in a way he hadn't felt in ages. He felt its warmth trilling deep inside of him, and he was fearless. Nothing held power over him—not Ansem, not the darkness, not even the light.

As the heartless launched spheres of darkness from its lantern, Riku crouched and stood his ground, angling the keyblade in front of him as he waited. For each sphere that came at him, he swung hard and knocked the darkness right back at the heartless, slamming its own attacks into it like a dangerous game of ping-pong.

He staggered it only briefly, but in that split second, Riku caught a glimpse of yellow eyes beneath its helmet. It was armored, but it wasn't invincible. Then the split second ended, and the heartless's lantern whipped towards him like a mace.

Getting an idea, Riku sprung from the ground and caught the pole with the end of the keyblade, again using his momentum to swing up onto it. As the heartless raised the lantern back into the air, Riku surfed down the pole and leapt straight for the heartless's helmet.

Twirling the keyblade, Riku plunged it into the creature's visor.

The heartless recoiled, thrashing its head side to side to throw him off, but Riku hung on with all his strength. He swung his legs up and pressed his feet against the visor, cracking it open to expose the unarmored heartless beneath.

Straining to hold onto the keyblade as the heartless continued to thrash, Riku narrowed his eyes down at the heartless's burning yellow gaze. He thought about the brave mouse lying motionless where he'd fallen; he thought about all of the friends that he had let down when he had submitted to Ansem; and he thought about Sora, wherever he was, fighting for _him_.

All of his pent-up wrath rose within him at once, and he opened his heart to release it.

A burst of black and purple energy erupted out of him, channeling through the keyblade and straight into the heartless. A powerful shockwave sent the heartless reeling backwards, toppling like a tower collapsing under its own weight, and Riku held on for the ride.

The heartless slammed into the ground, scattering gray sand into the air, but Riku kept his grip on the keyblade firm, never letting go. While the heartless lay stunned from his attack, Riku used his boot to shove the rest of its visor wide open, revealing even more of its unarmored face. Lingering dark electricity crackled around the keyblade and Riku's hand as he regarded the fallen heartless, and a vindictive smile curled at his lips.

"Say _hi _to your master for me."

Lifting the keyblade, he unleashed the energy in his heart again, feeling it materialize around him. Orbs of darkness circled him in a deadly halo, brightening for just a second—before they suddenly stretched and shot forward as a salvo of shadowy swords.

No, not swords—_keyblades_.

One after another, they pierced into the heartless's unarmored head, discharging even more dark electricity before dispersing back into darkness.

Violent spasms seized the heartless, its helmet splitting open and fading into shadow. A brilliant light enveloped its massive body and exploded, filling the dark world with white.

Shielding his eyes, Riku felt the light's warmth sweep through him. His feet gave way as the heartless began to disintegrate beneath him, its body dissolving into shadows and fragments of light, and Riku landed in a crouch where the creature's head had been. A large pink heart floated out of the shadows and disappeared into the abyss.

Only when the battle was over did Riku feel the effects of it.

His world careening, Riku dropped onto his knees and panted for air, his racing heart feeling as though it wanted to burst. He clutched the keyblade harder and shook his head to clear his mind. There wasn't time to rest right now. Someone needed his help.

A deep breath later, Riku picked himself up and hurried to the mouse's side. To his surprise, the small keyblade master was already sitting up and gaping at him.

There was a look of awe in his wide eyes—both wonder, and a hint of fear. He glanced at the keyblade in Riku's hand, and then at Riku himself.

In that moment, Riku could see the ambivalence in the mouse's expression as he silently deliberated about something. But when Riku smiled, glad to see that his new friend was conscious and okay, the mouse's hesitation vanished.

In fact, he looked downright impressed. "Gosh—that was amazing!"

Riku cracked an amused smile. "You're pretty good yourself."

He offered the mouse his hand, who gave a happy laugh and took it.

"Ha-ha, thanks!"

Riku helped him up and gave him a concerned once-over. "You all right? He hit you pretty hard."

"Yup!" The mouse patted himself to make sure he was whole, and then laughed again. "It'll take more than that to knock me out of a fight when a friend needs help!"

Unable to resist, Riku's smile widened. "Thanks for showing up. Here…"

Turning the keyblade around, he presented it hilt-first to the mouse.

The tiny keyblade master took his weapon back with a smile. "It took me a long time, but I knew I'd find ya."

Riku thought about all of those times he had heard the mouse's voice, often when he had needed it the most. If he hadn't had that guidance or a friendly voice to drag his spirits back up, he wasn't sure how far he would have gotten here in the darkness.

Grateful, Riku kneeled in front of the mouse and offered him his hand again, this time as a hello.

"I'm Riku."

-o-o-

The only thing the next trial tried was Sora's patience.

The checkerboard staircase they had ended up in had separated him and Yami yet again. By some twist of gravity, Yami stood beneath him on the other side of the staircase, walking upside down in an upside down world as Sora walked the upright world. When Yami had explained _his _side was upright, too, at least to him, that was when Sora's head had started to hurt.

From there, his headache had only gotten worse. The whole room seemed to have been designed just to frustrate Sora even more.

It was one nonsensical puzzle and riddle after another as they worked together to unblock the stairs so they could continue the descent together in their own topsy-turvy checkerboard worlds. Whether it was using darkness to create a hole in the wall to open a door, or using magic against a series of colorful flowers to unlock a gate, Yami ended up solving all of the puzzles himself, including Sora's.

But it was the last one that stumped him.

"It's a heart," Yami insisted, beginning to sound frustrated himself. "Or a nobody."

"Then how come the next part of the stairs is still blocked by these giant mushrooms?" Sora said with a whine. "There _has_ to be another answer."

He whacked the fattest mushroom with Oathkeeper, frowning as it wobbled but didn't capsize as he kept hoping. Nothing they had thrown at the mushrooms had destroyed them; if anything, some of their spells had just grown _more _of them. It seemed like the only way through them, like the past six roadblocks, was to solve the puzzle given to them.

With a sigh, Yami read the passage aloud again. "_I was born in light but end in darkness…_" He paused to clarify to Sora again, "All hearts return to darkness, according to Id."

"Right," Sora agreed. Head hurting, he turned and slumped against the mushrooms, sliding down into a crouch. The riddle was written on the stairs on his side, too, in a large spiral where he was standing. "_Though I am unique, my replicas share my talents,_" he read, continuing for Yami. "Can you really clone a heart?"

"That would be a question to ask my nobody, if we ever find him," Yami said in a curt tone, and then continued. "_The shell made for me is a perfect fit, but I can never call it home._"

"And you think 'shell' means body? But then how come it can't call it 'home'? I don't get it…" Groaning, Sora reaching up to ruffle his own hair in frustration. "And the next part doesn't sound like a heart at all! _My teeth have never known the touch of food, and I can exist without the light of life._ Hearts don't have teeth!"

"But nobodies do," Yami pointed out. "That's why I keep wavering between the answers…"

"But those answers aren't even right," Sora said, throwing his head back with a sigh, bouncing it against the mushroom's cap repeatedly to see if it would ease the ache any.

"_If my master loses me, he will never again know the secrets I bring to light,_" Yami finished in a thoughtful murmur. "_Has _to be a heart…"

Rubbing at his forehead, Sora tried not to think about how much time they were wasting here. "Maybe we're focusing on the wrong clue," he suggested. He spread his legs to stare down at the riddle beneath him. "Has a master… and is unique, but can have copies… What else has teeth but can be lost?"

Frowning as he fell into deep thought, he tapped Oathkeeper against the checkerboard floor, scratching into the spiraled riddle.

Wait a second…

Sora leapt to his feet, swinging Oathkeeper out as all of the clues fell into place.

"I got it! The answer is a _key_!"

As soon as the word was out of his mouth, the flowerlike lamps along the diamond-patterned walls dimmed, casting the stairwell in shadows. Sora's keyblade shimmered to life—the only sign of life it had shown since they had entered this room.

All this time, he'd been holding the answer in his hand!

The keyblade's light radiated outward, and the mushrooms blocking the stairs suddenly burst, scattering into playing cards that then dissolved into darkness and slithered away.

Still beneath him on the other side of the stairs, he heard Yami's relieved sigh.

"Good job, Sora."

Beaming with pride, Sora swung his keyblade onto his shoulder. "Thanks." He glanced down the cleared stairwell into the thick shadows below. "So… Did this place feel familiar at all? Like the other two rooms?"

"No," Yami admitted. "And I never want to see this place again. Let's get out of here."

The _"now" _went unspoken, but it was written in his tone.

Sora laughed, completely understanding.

Together, they descended the stairs and back into the darkness.

The stairwell led into an overgrown yet withered garden filled with a pale, cold mist. Decaying roses littered the brown grass, and bushes with thorns as sharp as glass created a winding maze at the base of a crumbled castle. Every clearing housed a dried fountain decorated with impish figurines, and every dead end led to a gargoyle statue.

Sora searched the beginning of the garden, yelling for Yami to see where he'd ended up, with no answer. Finding no sign of his friend anywhere, Sora feared he had wound up in the garden alone. But every once in a while, over the sound of his shoes crunching through the dried grass, he would hear a low, menacing growl somewhere in the mist ahead of him.

He kept the keyblade tight in hand, ready for an attack that never came. Whenever he turned a corner, the growls would resound from somewhere else, always just ahead of him and never with a glimpse of what creature he was trapped in the maze with.

He wandered for what felt like hours, occasionally calling for Yami in hopes of hearing his friend respond, but the only answers he ever got were from the invisible creature that stalked him from the mist.

After a while, he began worrying that he had solved the riddle in the staircase right, that maybe Yami hadn't made it out of the staircase with him, that maybe Yami was still stuck back there and waiting for him to come back to help him.

The longer he wandered through the maze alone, the more he doubted himself.

He thought about how it had been _his_ mistake that had unleashed the heartless on Yami back in the ballroom, but Yami had been the one who had defeated the heartless and Yami had solved the trick of the mirrors. Then, even though Sora had figured out the fireplace trick in the next room, _Yami _had solved the secret of the keyblades and opened the door. _Yami _had solved most of the puzzles and riddles in the stairwell. And Sora had left him behind…

When Sora finally had enough of his endless wandering through the garden, he turned Oathkeeper on the maze's thorny hedges, whacking the blade through the withered brambles and dead roses.

An intense growl stopped Sora in his tracks, and as the brambles fell away from his keyblade, he finally saw it—on the other side of the wall of thorns, hunkered down and bristled as it bared its fangs at Sora.

A lion, Sora thought—but no, not a lion. As the mist cleared around the creature, he saw a pair of leathery dragon wings, black as night, pressed tightly against its coffee-colored fur, and beyond the wings, it had a long scorpion tail that looked as though it had been dipped in the deep shades of the darkness.

Ears pressed back against its skull, a pair of amber eyes thinned at him from beneath a feathery mop of silver mane.

Sora's heart missed a beat, and for a moment he was terrified as he stared wide-eyed at the beast, Oathkeeper held high and ready to defend him.

But the beast didn't attack him. It stayed hunkered in its corner, tail poised as if it _would_ attack if Sora made the first move. It almost seemed like the beast was as scared of him as he was scared of it. Those eyes weren't narrowed with malice—it was a warning. It was an instinctual reaction out of fear.

Those colors, and its eyes…

Sora knew those eyes.

Relieved, he lowered his keyblade. He carefully slipped through the hole he had made in the hedge, wincing as a few razor sharp thorns caught his skin. Once he was through, the creature backed a few more steps, another growl rumbling inside of it as Sora approached.

Dismissing his keyblade, Sora held up his hands in surrender.

"It's okay… I'm not gonna hurt you."

The creature's ears perked, and the tension slowly left its body.

Sora stepped towards it, cautious at first, but the scorpion tail began to lower, a silent acknowledgement that the beast understood his intentions. With a smile, Sora paused in front of the magnificent creature and reached out, tentatively resting a hand on its fuzzy forehead. Its mane _was _feathery soft, and Sora couldn't resist petting it with admiration.

"Looks like we were both lost, huh?"

The beast's eyes slowly closed as it tilted its head towards Sora's hand, and a gentle purr began to rumble deep inside its chest.

A grin crossed Sora's face. "Hehe… you're actually kinda cute like this, Yami."

Yami's amber eyes snapped open.

Light suddenly erupted around them, searing through the dark world and transforming it. The withered rose hedges burst into shadow, and rusted elegant gates sprang up around them, the grass dissolving away into algae-covered tile. Flower beds lined a beautiful fountain plaza, or at least had once been beautiful. Several inches of water filled the plaza, green and murky with age, spreading mold across the pale stonework of the fountains. The gates that lined the plaza had once been a glistening white but were now rusted from whatever flood had swept through here.

Finding the sudden stench of mildew and stagnant water overwhelming, Sora covered his nose.

His other hand still rested in Yami's soft hair—though, with a glance at his friend, he realized Yami was human again.

"Wah—sorry," Sora said, jerking his hand away. He was expecting Yami to give him an amused smile, but instead, his eyes were still widened in surprise as he took in their new surroundings. "Did you recognize the rose garden?" he wondered.

Yami shook his head. "No, but I know _this _place…" Swallowing hard, he took a slow step forward, sloshing the green water against his tall boots as he continued to stare at the drowned plaza.

This wasn't like the other two times their surroundings had been familiar to Yami. Sora realized that Yami _knew _this place, without a doubt.

"Where are we?" he asked him. But even as he asked, he spotted the tall castle in the distance, beyond a drowned village, and recognized its elegant clockwork design. "Hollow Bastion?"

"No," Yami said quietly. He turned to glance at Sora, a haunted look in his eyes. "Radiant Garden."

-o-o-

"I'm Riku."

The mouse dismissed his keyblade and grabbed Riku's hand with a surprisingly firm grip for someone so small.

"I know!" he laughed, looking happy. "But it's nice to meet you finally, Riku. I'm Mickey."

Finally, a name for his new friend.

Wait—it sounded familiar. Very familiar.

"Mickey?" Riku asked, his eyes widening. "_King _Mickey?"

Mickey nodded, spreading his hands to the side. "Yup, that's me! But you can just call me Mickey."

When Donald and Goofy had told him about their king, Riku hadn't really been picturing someone like Mickey. But then—he should've known better, after discovering how downright strange those two could be. Being saved by a keyblade wielding mouse was only slightly less strange than being saved by a keyblade wielding mouse who also happened to be a king.

Now Riku understood why Donald and Goofy had spoken about Mickey with such high regards… He was selfless. Someone who was willing to search the darkness and leap into danger to save a stranger—that was something Sora would do. And what was all Riku needed to know, really. He liked Mickey immediately.

"All right…" Riku couldn't help the warm smile that crossed his face. "Nice to meet you, too—Mickey."

Finally, he wasn't alone anymore.

Maybe it was his imagination, but he could almost _feel _Mickey standing right there. Now that he was close by, there was a definite power—a bright strength, resonating with Riku's heart like the keyblade had. Wondering about it, Riku figured maybe he had just been in the darkness so long that he was now sensitive to any light.

"Oh, and this is for you!" Mickey said, suddenly remembering something. He reached into one of his large pockets and pulled out a familiar looking vial. "I thought you would need a pick-me-up."

An elixir. Riku hadn't seen anything that beautiful in what felt like forever. Taking the offered potion with a nod of thanks, he wasted no time in drinking it.

As he felt its rejuvenating effects trickle through him, he sighed in relief and discarded the empty vial. Once again, the gray road was empty, no other threat in sight, but Riku was glad that at least now he had back-up in case anything else came for him. Speaking of which…

"What _was _that thing anyway?" he asked. "The heartless. It was like it was trying to take me somewhere."

Mickey raised his head to stare off into the darkness, growing thoughtful. "You know—I know you're right." Then he returned his gaze to Riku, serious. "Whoever sent that heartless must be lookin' for ya."

"In that case, I'm not sticking around to find out why." Riku climbed back to his feet and dusted sand off his pants. "Do you have any idea where we are? Or… what's going on? And…" He raked a hand through his hair, looking away. "What happened to me?

The smile fell from Mickey's voice. "Gosh… I guess I have a lot to explain, huh?"

Riku nodded, glancing at the mouse king again. "Yeah… Sorry. It's just… I'm really relieved I'm not alone anymore. And it's been so long since I got any answers…"

Mickey lifted a hand, suddenly serious. "No need to apologize!" But then his smile returned, warm with understanding. "You've been through a lot, Riku. I'm the one who should be apologizing! I should have gotten to you sooner…"

"I'm just happy you did," Riku said as he glanced around. "I've been wandering this place for a really long time. I don't know how long, but I can feel it. A lot of time has passed. So—" He nodded to Mickey. "What matters is that you came through just in time. I saw how exhausted you looked. It must have been really hard trying to find me… wherever we are."

"Right! You have a lot of questions."

Mickey turned and began heading down the road, and Riku fell into step beside him, trusting without hesitation.

"We're in the realm of darkness," the king began to explain. "Which is obvious. But we're also behind the door to darkness. That's where we're going right now."

"The… door to darkness?"

"Yup," Mickey said with a serious nod. "It's the door that connects this realm to the realm of light. It's been unsealed, and if we don't close it, everyone's in big trouble!"

So that was what Id and Ansem had been after. That led to another question that had been bothering Riku. If Ansem had taken him over…

"How did I end up here?" he wondered.

When Mickey paused to turn to him, his eyes filled with sadness, and Riku knew he wasn't going to like the answer.

"Well… your heart was strong enough to overcome the darkness, but you couldn't take back your body," he said. "Only your heart was left behind—here—in the realm of darkness, where stolen hearts are gathered."

A deep chill settled inside of Riku. He pressed a hand over his heart, confused. He hadn't lost his heart… But Ansem still had his body?

"…what should I do?"

Mickey placed a hand on Riku's arm, a resolute look in his eyes. "Don't lose sight of your light."

His light…

He imagined a single paopu hanging beneath palm fronds, Oathkeeper between his hand and another's, and Sora's sunny smile as he told Riku he was coming to find him in the darkness.

No, he hadn't lost sight of his light yet.

Riku lowered his hand and nodded, resuming their journey down the gray road. "You said the door to darkness is unsealed," he said. "If we go through that door, we're free, right?" And he'd be able to find Sora.

Mickey followed along beside him, his tone regretful. "Golly… I'm sorry, pal, but… only darkness can pass through the door to darkness."

And Riku wasn't darkness. His heart sank inside of him, and he lowered his gaze. "I get it. We're stuck here on this side."

"Don't worry—there's more than one way to make it back," Mickey assured. "There's always a door to the light!"

Hearing his confidence did make Riku feel better. He let Mickey's optimism lift his spirits, and he nodded, deciding that even if he was stuck here for now, he could still be useful.

Strengthening his resolve, Riku gave Mickey a more confident smile. "If the door is what Ansem wants, that's where I'll be to stop him."

Mickey actually looked proud. "I was hopin' you'd say that!"

Releasing a quiet laugh of his own, Riku gave him a bewildered look. "You were?"

"Yeah! See, to close the door, two hearts and two keys are needed," Mickey explained. He picked up his pace, forcing Riku to take longer strides. "I actually came here, to the darkness, to get the key for this side." He gave Riku a wide smile. "And found you, too. So I think maybe it was fate that the two of us ended up here."

"How… did you find me, anyway?" Riku wondered.

Mickey laughed. "I followed your heart!"

Not expecting _that_, Riku missed a step and stumbled to keep up with Mickey, his heart suddenly racing. This wasn't the first time Riku had been told those words. He couldn't help thinking about Yami and how, when Riku had been stranded on Atlantis, that was exactly what Yami had told him.

_Simple. I followed your heart._

Riku suddenly understood what he had meant.

That bright strength he felt coming from Mickey was his _heart_.

And if that was true…

"Think I can do that with Sora's?" he asked.

With an encouraging smile, Mickey nodded. "That all depends on you. Come on—let's try it together."

They both came to a stop in the middle of the gray road, and Riku glanced down as Mickey extended his hand.

Riku slipped his hand into Mickey's and slowly closed his eyes.

This time when he opened his heart, it wasn't out of wrath or desperation or fear. It was almost delicate, like the times he had used Oblivion to sift through Leon's memories. He felt the darkness around him like a heavy shroud, but he ignored it, reaching past it to look for the light of his friends.

Like warm currents amongst a sea of ice, he could feel them, pinpricks of light in the darkness, distant but not forgotten.

And there was one heart in particular that burned brighter than all the others.

Concentrating, he poured all of his faith into reaching that heart.

_Don't you go forgetting our promise either, Sora._

-o-o-

"Radiant Garden?" Sora asked. "But isn't that the bastion…?"

Yami fell silent, his brows furrowing as he surveyed the watery plaza.

Fighting a frown, Sora moved to stand beside Yami. "At least we're not separated anymore," he said, deciding to try to be optimistic. "I wonder what that last test was about. Why you were some kind of monster… well, a cute monster…"

As if lost in thought, Yami replied quietly as he sloshed forward through the water. "It was testing our hearts. You saw through the illusion and recognized me instead of attacking me." His eyes shifted back to Sora. "And I wasn't cute."

Sora snickered. Folding his arms behind his head, he followed Yami through the flooded plaza. If this really was Hollow Bastion or some form of it, Sora could imagine that this place had been really beautiful once upon a time.

"It's hard to believe we're still in the darkness," he commented. The sky was a dreary gray, an unnatural purple glow coming from somewhere beyond the thick clouds.

"Call it a form of purgatory," Yami said. "We're still not completely in the realm of darkness. Rather, somewhere on its borders…"

If this was purgatory, Sora wasn't looking forward to seeing what the realm of darkness was really like. And Riku had been trapped in there for _weeks_. Sora wasn't even sure how long he and Yami had been traveling together. It felt like hours, but it could have been days. There was no way of knowing, really. Time didn't seem to matter here. Sora must have missed a few meals by now and hadn't slept a wink since he'd woken up to find Yami carrying him, but he didn't feel the effects of hunger or exhaustion, not like before when he had been in the graveyard of worlds with Donald and Goofy. They may not have been in the realm of darkness yet, but they were close.

Sora wasn't so scared of the darkness anymore after their long journey. If anything, he was ready to take on their next test so he and Yami could get one step closer to finding Ansem and Riku.

As Yami paused in front of a rusty gate, Sora took another good look around.

"So what's this test, I wonder. And why keep us separated until now?"

"Not sure," Yami admitted. He tilted his head back to inspect the tall gate, which had rusted chains locking it tight. "When I think about it… all of the areas have tested our ability to work together, trust each other, know each other… If the darkness is indeed trying to tell us something, its final tests will likely deal with the same." Hesitating, he turned to glance at Sora again and then nodded towards the locked gate. "Mind doing the honors?"

Smiling, Sora nodded. He called to Oathkeeper, its familiar form swirling into existence, summoning it so naturally now that he didn't even have to think about it anymore. Twirling the keyblade, he stepped past Yami and whacked the rusty chain.

It burst apart with a flash of magic, and the chain disappeared into fragments of glittering light.

The gate swung open with a rusty screech, and Sora used the end of the keyblade to push it open wider.

Gesturing to the open gate, Sora then folded his arm over his chest and gave a formal bow.

"After you, Princess," he said with a teasing smile. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but Sora thought he saw an embarrassed look on Yami's face before he turned away and passed through the gate.

As Sora stepped through after him, he wasn't expecting the scenery to change so soon, but it did.

The rusty gates faded behind them, stranding them in a snowy glade.

Silent and still, it was as if time had frozen the land in the dead of winter. Gnarled gray trees surrounded the small white clearing they had entered, and a forest lined the edge of the glade, its wintered branches reaching towards the midnight sky like fingers begging for mercy. Above and beyond those trees was nothing but pitch black darkness—not even a pinprick of a star in the sky. The clearing sloped gently upward like a bowl around them, and a tiny stream cut through it, solidified by winter's icy grip.

Sora's skin stung from the deep chill in the air, so sudden and intense that it took his breath away. Not a breeze stirred in the forest, but the cold was so absolute that Sora's clothes did nothing to protect him.

He and Yami crossed the wooden bridge that spanned the tiny stream, icicles hanging from its frosty planks. Their footsteps crunched softly in the glade's deep snow as they trekked side by side into it, their breaths trailing after them like fading ghosts.

Yami came to a stop in the center of the clearing, his eyes solemn as he stared off into the dead forest ahead.

There, with Yami framed by the stark monochrome landscape, Sora felt a distinct sense of déjà vu.

But why?

He glanced around at the colorless world and tried to remember if he had ever been here before, but he didn't recognize it. The only time he'd been in snow had been on Mulan's world, not a place like this. So then why the familiar feeling?

"This is where we met."

Though whispered, Yami's tone was set with certainty. Sora's heart wavered with surprise.

"No way."

But when he took another good look around, he could see the similarities. The trees were lifeless, but he could imagine the lush green of the forest, and though the grass was sleeping beneath a thick layer of snow, he remembered the wildflowers—thousands of them, a veil of warm reds and golds with sparse clusters of violet. He remembered the stream, like this one, trickling softly along its narrow banks. This was Snow White's world, back before the darkness had consumed everything...

This was where he had met Yami.

Why were they here? What was the test?

"I get it now," Yami said, focusing on Sora. "All of these different places… They're the lost worlds of the princesses of hearts. Cinderella, Aurora, Alice, Belle, Kairi, and now Snow White…"

Sora counted them off on his fingers, getting even more confused. "But… aren't there seven princesses?"

"Jasmine never lost her world, thanks to you," Yami pointed out. "Radiant Garden might not have had a test for us because Kairi is with us… or because she called a different world her home."

Sora shivered, rubbing furiously at his arms to try to bring some feeling back to his skin. "If that's true… this is the last test." It was too soon to feel any relief, not when he didn't know what they were going up against next. "But if this really is the last one… why _this_ world?"

Yami shook his head. "Not sure…"

He turned to face Sora, who hesitated as he met his gaze.

Sora remembered the first time he had seen those amber eyes. He remembered being startled when Yami had introduced himself, and he remembered not really trusting him at first but warming up to him over time. They'd had their differences, _big _differences. Sora still couldn't forgive Yami for some of the things he had done.

But the only thing about Yami that mattered to Sora right now was that they trusted each other. Sora knew, in his heart, that their friendship was real.

And he wouldn't give that up for anything.

Sora gave Yami a reassuring smile. "Well, we've made it this far," he said. "I'm sure—"

Yami cut him off with an abrupt wave of his hand, his eyes sharp with warning.

Before Sora could ask what was wrong, Yami grabbed his hoodie and yanked him close.

"Wah!"

Kairi's light flashed to life around them, and Sora suddenly found himself huddled against Yami's chest, his ear pressed close enough to hear his hearts racing with fear.

One glance through the protective halo of light told Sora exactly what was wrong.

A tidal wave of darkness crashed through the forest, scattering snow and snapping trees, and Sora had barely enough time to tense as the flood of black swept into the glade and swallowed them, plunging them into a world of black.

Yami stumbled from the crushing force of the darkness, but Kairi's bubble of light held strong around them. At least for now. Sora summoned Oathkeeper and plunged it into the ground, concentrating all of his power into their halo to try to help Kairi and Yami stay firm.

But the darkness kept coming.

It converged around their tiny haven, pressing in to smother the light like two hands crushing an egg.

With a deafening _crrrraaAACK_, their halo of light fractured, and Yami winced as if struck. He threw his arms out, his entire body rigid and trembling from the pressure, like a bow string ready to snap.

Sora began to panic as veins of darkness spread along the halo's cracks, and tendrils of shadow began to seep in.

Trapped.

Sora clutched Oathkeeper tighter, not knowing what to do. His light wasn't enough, _Kairi's_ light wasn't enough—and the darkness was so strong, Sora knew that if their lights failed, there was no coming out of this in one piece.

Was this the final test?

Were they supposed to lose?

Yami dropped to a knee, his head bowed as he strained to keep the halo whole, his hands pressing against the splintering light.

"Sora, I _can't_—"

With another _CRACK_, the light fragmented even more, and Yami cried out from the intense pressure. Darkness poured into the halo, pooling around their feet, but when Sora stabbed Oathkeeper into the shadows to burn them away, more darkness swept in to take its place.

He opened his heart to the keyblade, reaching desperately for more power, but the darkness was too strong. The shadows began to snake up its glowing blade as if it were nothing.

As the darkness crept over his legs, rising up to his knees, Sora thought about Destiny Islands—and Riku, standing amongst the rising darkness, holding a hand out to him. That was the first time Sora had ever felt the darkness. In that moment, he wondered—what would have happened if he had never taken Riku's hand? What if he hadn't joined Riku in that darkness? What would have happened to them? Would he still be _here_?

"_Sora_—"

Yami's shaking voice was filled with regret. Regret for failing, for being unable to protect Sora.

They only had seconds left.

Sora swallowed past the knot in his throat and closed his eyes, feeling the darkness coiling around his waist now. He hadn't always feared the darkness. For a while, he had even liked having control over it. If he still had that kind of power, he could just _stop_ this from happening.

He hadto do something. He had to protect Yami and Kairi.

Not knowing any other way out, Sora thought about the one person who could put an end to this.

"Yami—"

He looked up to meet Yami's desperate gaze as the darkness curled through Yami's long hair.

"Call Id out."

Amber eyes widened. "No—that could be _exactly_ what he wants!"

"If he takes me over, both of us will be saved!" Sora yelled. "He needs me alive, and he wants _you_ alive, and Kairi—"

He paused, realizing there was no guarantee Kairi would be safe. Except…

"Here!"

He clasped his hand over the crown necklace and pulled it off. Standing on his toes, he slipped the necklace over Yami's head, as the darkness climbed to their ribs and constricted around them.

"This will protect you! With the light of the princesses, Id won't be able to mess with either of your hearts!"

Another sharp crack resounded in the darkness as Kairi's halo splintered more. Flecks of light rained around them as it began to fall apart, and the shadows poured freely in.

Yami stared at Sora in disbelief. "I won't do it. You don't _know_—"

"_Do _it, Yami!" Sora cried, grabbing a fistful of Yami's coat as the darkness flowed in around their chests. "Call him out!"

Hesitating, Yami rested a trembling hand over Sora's, wasting another precious second they couldn't afford to waste.

"What are you waiting for?" Sora demanded. "We're running out of time!"

Something hardened in Yami's eyes, a sudden purpose. "_No._" His voice set with resolve, he tightened his fingers around Sora's. "Not again. I'm not losing anyone else to the darkness!"

Kairi's halo shattered, and panic swept through Sora as the darkness swallowed both of them, muffling his cry. The shadows dragged him down, pulling at his hair and clothes to haul him away from Yami, and he struggled wildly against it, clutching Oathkeeper harder as the darkness tried to wrench that from him, too.

The remnants of Kairi's light gathered in front of him, burning brightly through the darkness, and Sora felt Yami's hand press that light to his heart.

From deep within the darkness, he heard Yami's voice—

"I'm sorry, Sora—"

The light burst outward, brilliant and blinding, and Sora screamed, feeling the shadows rip away as the light enveloped him in all of its intensity, expelling him from the darkness. Yami's hand slipped away from him, and the last Sora saw of him was a glimmer of Kairi's light as they sank into the darkness without him.

"_YAMI!_"

Sora tumbled through the black alone, gripping Oathkeeper with all of his strength, and flew out of the darkness. Flailing, he cried out as he dropped through the air and landed in a bed of cold sand. Grimacing from the hard landing, he squinted up through his bangs just in time to see a portal of darkness disappearing above him.

"Yami…"

Tears stinging his eyes, Sora rolled onto his side and pounded a fist into the sand, hopelessness welling up inside of him as it all sank in at once. Not only had he been so desperate to save them that he had been ready to ask the _darkness_ for help, he had just lost even _more _friends to the darkness, and now he was alone… really alone.

His heart wrung with despair, and he hit the sand again, sniffling hard as he fought back his frustration.

Then, flowing like warm honey through his heart, he felt it, faint but real—

_Don't you go forgetting our promise either, Sora._

Riku's light.

He was still okay…

Forming a watery smile, Sora curled a hand over his heart. He remembered their promise, that they'd always be best friends, no matter what. No matter what separated them, no matter what happened to them, no matter what they had to do to find each other.

He reached back to Riku, grateful for the trace of light.

_I won't._

Right. All hope wasn't lost.

Yami and Kairi had made sure he could make it this far, and Sora wasn't going to waste their sacrifice.

Stabbing Oathkeeper into the ground, he used it to pick himself up.

White sand, gummi boulders, and a fountain of light trickling into a small pool… From the look of the small cave he'd landed in, he was definitely still somewhere on the outskirts of the realm of darkness, but at least not in the world graveyard anymore.

There was just one small setback.

Where was the way out?

Wishing Yami were here to help him, Sora sighed and rubbed the back of his head, feeling exhausted. He hoped that wherever the darkness had taken Yami, the necklace would keep him and Kairi safe until he could come for them.

Riku, Donald and Goofy, and now Yami and Kairi...

Something he had learned from them was that there was always a way forward, and always a friend willing to help him, even if they were miles away. Kairi's light in the graveyard of worlds had proven that; Sora had been following Yami without even realizing it had been him. All of his friends, those lost in the darkness and those safe on their own worlds—they were all counting on him. Even though Sora was alone here at the end of the worlds, he knew he wasn't alone in his heart.

He wouldn't give up, for them.

Holding onto the warmth of his friends in his heart, Sora raised Oathkeeper and focused on his resolve. Like hundreds of silk threads, he felt his friends' hearts and the hearts of their friends and loved ones and even the worlds themselves, spreading out beyond his heart in a vast web of light. Silently calling to them, he closed his eyes and felt the worlds reach back.

A deep power trickled through him, and Sora opened his heart, focusing the power through the keyblade.

When Sora slipped his eyes back open, it was to find a pair of ornate doors shimmering into existence in front of him.

He stood before them, somehow knowing that the worlds had given him this chance.

This was where he needed to go.

Gripping Oathkeeper tighter, Sora drew in a deep breath to steady his racing heart.

_I'm coming, guys._

Then, reaching out to the doors, Sora pulled them open and stepped inside.

-o-o-

Deep within his heart, Riku felt that bright heart reach back to him.

_I won't._

A gentle tug, warm with a familiar light.

Riku pressed his hand over his heart and smiled.

"I feel him. Sora's there…"

And he felt closer than ever.

Slipping his other hand out of Mickey's, he gave him a determined nod. "Let's go find that door."

With an animated smile, the small king nodded back. "Right!"

They turned towards the road together, and the endless abyss seemed less daunting now that Riku had a renewed hope and purpose. That, and a friend at his side.

"I'm coming, Sora," he whispered with resolve. He was aware that just because he had defeated the heartless that had come for him, it didn't mean he was off the hook, that the darkness was probably still after him—but if he and Mickey could take down a heartless that size, he was confident they could handle anything else that was thrown at them.

Clenching his fists, he took off into a run, following that strong tug on his heart that he knew was Sora.

No sooner than Mickey had fallen into step beside him, Riku felt the darkness gather for its next attack. He wasn't sure how he could feel it so strongly—was it Ansem's power inside him?—but it was there, a sudden concentration of shadow somewhere close by.

_Very _close by.

He glanced at Mickey as the mouse king sprinted beside him. "Do you feel that?"

Expression growing grim, he nodded silently in reply.

All Riku heard was a susurrus of feathers, like an owl's wings beating in the night, and then he saw it, impossibly fast—

A blur of silver and black streaked past him and slammed into Mickey, who flew back with a howl and slid across the gray sand to the edge of the road.

By the time Riku could even react, Sephiroth already had a boot planted to Mickey's chest, and his lengthy sword was at the king's neck.

"S-_Sephiroth_?" Riku demanded, too stunned to process what was going on. "What are you doing?"

Sephiroth's glossy black wing fanned outward, and he slowly turned his hawklike gaze towards Riku. A slow smirk curled at his lips. "Nothing personal, Riku. The bounty on your heart will ensure my contract's fulfilled."

Contract? _Bounty_?

Riku's eyes widened as he realized what that meant. He knew who Sephiroth was working for, and he remembered how serious that contract was to him.

"No—"

"You can't have him!" Mickey cried, and in a flash of light, his keyblade knocked Sephiroth's sword aside and hurtled a blast of holy magic into him.

Sephiroth's massive wing snapped forward to shield him from the attack's intensity, but as powerful as Mickey's spell had been, it hadn't been enough to stun the dark warrior. In the blink of an eye, Sephiroth's sword whipped towards the mouse.

"_NO!_" Riku screamed, barreling towards them.

Mickey's keyblade spun through the air and plunged headfirst into the ground, its keychain clanking loudly from the brunt force. Unharmed, Mickey glared up at Sephiroth, his gaze unwavering with resolve.

Sephiroth's eyes thinned to dangerous slits.

With a powerful shove, Sephiroth sent Mickey sailing over the edge of the road and into the abyss beyond.

"Mickey!"

Throwing all hesitation aside, Riku yanked Mickey's keyblade out of the ground and flew past Sephiroth, launching himself off the road after the small king.

The darkness whipped past him with gale force, frigid and stifling, but Riku angled himself and dove deeper, sliding through the shadows with all the expertise of a mermaid gliding through water.

Tendrils tangled around his arms and legs to try to swallow him, but he didn't bother to fight them off. Through the thick darkness, he could already see a faint light ahead—Mickey, with ribbons of shadow already creeping in around his small body.

"_Mickey_!" he called, his voice cutting through the darkness.

Mickey stirred, too disoriented to focus, and for the briefest of moments, Riku thought he might have lost him. Then his eyes blinked open, and Riku's heart lifted with hope.

"Catch!"

Putting all of his strength behind it, Riku hurled the keyblade at him.

He watched as it streaked through the darkness towards the king, but before Riku could see if he caught it, he heard the whisper of feathers behind him, and a firm arm caught him around the waist.

Riku's dive jolted to a stop as he was pulled against Sephiroth's solid body.

"_No!"_

He struggled and kicked against Sephiroth, crying out with anger when Sephiroth didn't even budge, as unyielding as a brick wall.

A halo of dark magic surrounded them, flaring outward into an intricate series of magic circles, and Riku felt himself being swept away by its rush of power.

When Sephiroth finally released him, Riku shoved away from him and stumbled onto solid ground, his fists clenched to defend himself as he turned to face his kidnapper.

But Sephiroth calmly stared past him, his expression one of chilled respect.

"It's done."

Riku spun back around, and through the gloom, he caught sight of bookshelves filled with tomes, the edge of an elegant lounge, and a fine desk holding candles lit with dark flames. He knew this place. He had seen it in Sephiroth's memories.

And in the shadows, relaxed on the lounge as if he hadn't a care in the world, was the figure with yellow eyes that had haunted Riku both in his dreams and through his best friend.

"_Finally_, someone who can get the job done right."

It was Sora's voice.

"I wanted to torture you some more, but I didn't think that annoying mouse would actually find you."

No, _darker _than Sora's… Cold, self-seeking, and without compassion. It was everything that Sora's voice _wasn't_.

A chill crept up Riku's spine as the shadowed figure leapt to his feet with feline grace, and Riku tensed, his heart wrenching with dread as his enemy slinked into the dim light.

Sora… older than Sora but lacking maturity, with hair as black as the darkness curling off his lithe body.

Riku narrowed his eyes at the dark Sora, a growl in his voice.

"Id."

A cruel smile twisted the corner of Id's mouth as his hungry gaze raked over Riku.

"The one and only."

-o-o-

* * *

_Check back later this weekend for part two of the final chapter, followed by the epilogue!_

_HOLY CRAP YOU GUYS, IT'S ALMOST OVER!_


	47. Final Ch: Hope Within Darkness part two

_Author Notes: _

Huuuuuuge apologies for the delay! Long story short: laptop problems SUCK, but I salvaged the update…. Except, I hated it when I finally reread it. It was obviously rushed, and I refused to post it until I was proud of it. So, much of the delay in posting this was me going, "MUST REWRITE!" Somehow, I managed to rewrite it in between huge life-changing events over the last few months. Being an adult is hard—there's no time for anything fun, and when you do get time, you're too tired to do anything! But! I got it done AT LAST.

A huge thank you to those of you who reviewed the previous part (and sent me messages asking me if I was alive!). Your words always mean a world of difference to me. These days when I can barely make time to find solace in my writing like I used to do, I really treasure any and all acknowledgement from my readers! I love you all. I always read every review, email, or message I get from you, and it brightens my days.

Thanks for all of your continuing support! Here's to 9 years of writing this beast of a story.

There are **no** spoilers for 358-2 Days or Birth By Sleep, but plenty of references.

* * *

_**Final Chapter, Chapter Twenty-eight: **__Hope Within Darkness – _part two

-o-o-

The painted faces on the thalassa shell charm gleamed in the warm sunlight, smiling as if to give Sora hope. Sora traced his fingers over the silver hair and green eyes that Kairi had painted on the pendant to represent Riku, crooked smirk and all.

He thought back to the start of all of this when their dreams of the future had been simple. Riku dreamt about seeing what other worlds were waiting for them beyond the sea's horizon, something more exciting than rowing to the play island for day after day of make believe heroics.

That dream had been contagious, Sora admitted. It had started out as Riku's, but after years of trading stories and escaping into their imaginations, Sora had long ago began to share his best friend's dream. Other worlds. Princesses, dragons, and good triumphing over evil…

A sad smile tugged at Sora's lips.

Good triumphing over evil?

That remained to be seen.

On Oathkeeper's charm, Riku's painted smirk seemed to tease him.

This was one of those times when he would have picked on Sora for being soft-shelled.

_C'mon, Sora. You're stronger than this,_ he would say. _Where's the dork who would go one-on-one with me and fall flat on his face, then get back up and do it all over again?_

Or something like that. Riku had his _Riku_ ways of getting Sora to do what he wanted, even if it was to help Sora keep his chin up. If the cartoon Riku could've talked, he would have been right, anyway. One of the things Sora prided himself in was never giving up.

Sora flipped the star-shaped charm over to study the front again where Kairi had painted him.

Each spike of brown hair showed just how much heart had gone into perfecting his cartoon face. It had been Kairi's quiet way of showing him her feelings, which were no secret now. Based on how desperate she had been to protect him with her light, Sora knew how much she really cared about him.

In a way, that made Oathkeeper more than a promise between just Riku and Sora.

Kairi's heart had gone into making the pendant, and so, Oathkeeper tied the three of them together.

Curling his hand around the good luck charm, Sora pressed it to his chest and closed his eyes.

Sand whispered across his shoes as the salty breeze picked up behind him, shaking the palm trees and scattering the trickle of the waterfall. He could feel the warmth of the island sun soaking through his hoodie as he stood on the beach, listening to waves slosh against the shoreline.

The play island…

He could almost imagine he was home.

Almost.

Under the salty tang, he could smell the darkness.

When he opened his eyes again, he knew what he would see:

Palm trees, snapped like twigs. Golden sand, bleeding into darkness. A poisoned sea, weighing the horizon like a velvet blanket. The beach, fragmented and crumbling into the nightshade water below.

This was where it had begun. Fitting, then, that this was where Sora would end it all.

This place wasn't home, but the worlds had brought him here for a reason.

Slipping his eyes open, he glanced down at the thalassa shell charm again.

His cartoon's sunny smile seemed to cheer him on.

"Time to go," he whispered to the smiling face.

He tucked the charm away, ready to summon Oathkeeper at any given moment.

The unexpected crunch of sand behind him told him that moment might be sooner than he'd thought.

Sora turned around, his hand resting over the keyblade's charm.

But he froze when he saw who had joined him on the beach, his heart wavering with surprise.

"Riku…"

No—it couldn't be.

Decked in the dark bodysuit he had worn when he had taken Sora's heart, Riku paid Sora no mind as he strolled past him.

He approached the crumbled shoreline, his green eyes focused on the brilliant sky.

"Take a look at this tiny place."

His voice was deep and fluid like the darkness itself, commanding authority without having to raise his tone, as a father would. It resounded with an indifference that struck Sora as resentful, as if the islands were nothing more than a speck of dirt on his boot.

Sora fought back a shiver, knowing for sure this was Xehanort talking, not his best friend.

"To the heart seeking freedom, this island is a prison surrounded by water."

He sounded as calm as the dark sea, but his voice carried the weight of time.

Xehanort paused at the cliff's edge, his dark boot kicking sand into the purple water below.

As Sora watched him, Riku's silver hair rustled in the breeze, longer and shaggier than he remembered. Xehanort may have been in control, but there was no doubt that this was his best friend, too, at least in body.

"And so this boy sought to escape from his prison."

The things he was saying…

It almost sounded like Xehanort wasn't patronizing Riku, but rather identifying with him.

"He sought a way to cross over into other worlds."

When the dark Riku began to turn towards him, Sora shifted into a defensive stance, not yet summoning his keyblade.

Green eyes finally regarded him, thinned with amusement.

"And he opened his heart to darkness."

Shadows erupted around Riku, whose unwavering gaze bled into amber, and when the darkness cleared, Sora found himself facing a man who looked remarkably like Yami but definitely _wasn't_.

While Yami displayed a quiet conviction, this man radiated overbearing confidence, from the noble way he dressed and carried himself, to the way his sleek hairstyle accented his regal face and lionlike eyes. He had nothing to hide; he _loved_ his darkness.

After all, Xehanort's heartless _was_ darkness—and using Riku's body as his puppet!

With a desperate hope welling inside of him, Sora reached out to his best friend.

"Riku?"

Xehanort chuckled.

"Don't bother. Your voice can no longer reach him where he is."

He curled a white glove against his bared chest where a heartless emblem was proudly displayed.

"His heart belongs again to darkness."

But despite what Xehanort claimed, Sora could still feel Riku's light close to his own heart. His best friend was still out there somewhere.

"Not for long!" Sora flicked his hand out, and Oathkeeper flashed into existence. "That body doesn't belong to you. Give Riku back—or I'll _make _you."

Xehanort's lips pulled into a wicked smile. "Such confidence. Did losing all of your friends give you that strength?"

Gripping the keyblade with both hands, Sora narrowed his eyes at the heartless. The words stung, but they also filled him with resolve. He hadn't come this far just to get bullied. He was going to fight—not just for his friends, but for _all _worlds.

"Shut up!"

Xehanort approached him slowly, with all the poise of a lion facing a mouse. "How did it feel," he asked, "to watch every single one of them get dragged into the darkness right from under your hands?"

Sora tensed and swung Oathkeeper outward, his heart thundering as Xehanort closed the distance between himself and the keyblade. Every ounce of his willpower went towards keeping his hand steady as his enemy paused right in front of him, letting the tip of the keyblade brush against his chest.

"Some hero." Xehanort's eyes didn't stray from his as his smile grew a malicious edge. "What did you hope to accomplish, boy?"

A swell of anger rose inside of Sora despite his best efforts to stay focused. All it would take was one swing… No matter how intimidating he was, a heartless was still just a heartless.

Xehanort leaned close, long hair sweeping over his shoulders as he towered over Sora, unconcerned by the keyblade pressed to his chest.

And as his face drew near Sora's ear, a dark satisfaction laced in his voice.

"I only let you come this far so that I could savor smothering the last of your light."

An angry cry of determination tore out of Sora as he lunged to attack, feeling the keyblade's light flaring to life beneath his fingers.

"Give Riku _back_!"

There was a split second of realization when he saw Xehanort's smile spread, but by then it was too late.

Sora's keyblade swung forward, and Xehanort's form blurred into shadow as the blade harmlessly passed through him.

A massive claw of darkness erupted out of the ground and snatched Sora in midair, lifting him like a ragdoll.

Screaming, Sora struggled and kicked, his arms pinned to his sides as the claw constricted around him, squeezing the breath out of him. The pressure brought tears to his eyes, but through them, Sora could see the sadistic grin of the monster holding him captive—not Xehanort, but his _shadow_.

The heartless dangled Sora above Xehanort, who hovered off the sand to meet Sora face to face, wearing his satisfaction like a crown.

When Xehanort reached towards him, Sora struggled harder, kicking out to land a foot in Xehanort's chest—but Xehanort's shadow caught his leg with its free hand, and Xehanort chuckled as Sora's defiant screams grew louder.

There was a fierce tug on his keyblade, but Sora gripped it harder, refusing to give up his only weapon. There was no way Xehanort was getting his hands on it!

But the keyblade wasn't what Xehanort wanted.

When Sora felt Oathkeeper suddenly revert to the keyblade's original form, he realized what Xehanort had been after.

Dangling from his white glove was the thalassa shell pendant.

On it, Sora's painted smile was as hopeful as ever.

As the stitched star slowly rotated in the sea breeze, the painted Riku's face came into view, confident little smile and all.

Sora watched with wide eyes as Xehanort's fingers curled around the charm's delicate shape.

Xehanort met Sora's gaze, his smirk spreading with triumph.

"He belongs to _me_."

Then his hand clamped shut with one crushing blow.

Sora's heart missed a beat when he heard the hard grind of shells breaking together.

"_NO!_"

Shards of shell trickled from Xehanort's fingers, who laughed as he dropped the mangled pendant to the sand below.

Writhing against the heartless's grip, Sora called out to Riku, called out to Kairi, then to all his friends—

But his only answer was the darkness as the heartless dragged him into it, swallowing his cries in the endless black.

-o-o-

Though every other muscle in his body was screaming for him to get away and get away _fast, _Riku's heart hadn't faltered.

Riku stood his ground as he faced Id, his eyes following every move his enemy made as he circled Riku with predatory grace.

He looked like Sora but didn't move anything like him, too nimble and fluid and without a hint of boyish swagger. He flowed like the darkness in Riku's nightmares, though all he could remember of them now were nuances of that dark-winged Sora.

What Riku did remember, as clear as if it had happened hours ago, was his first run-in with Id—at the bastion, with Id's mob of heartless staring down at him with his own face and ravaging his body with their cold hands.

Skin crawling at the memory, Riku stretched a hand out beside him, itching to call for his keyblade.

Id noticed.

"Look at you," he said with a vindictive smile. "Just got here and you already want to stir up trouble."

He paused in front of Riku, an arm's length away. From this close, Riku could see that his suit was made of pure darkness, little tendrils snaking off of it as if searching for something, many of them already arching excitedly towards Riku.

Riku felt his stomach twist with dread, but he didn't rise to Id's bait.

"I always liked you more, Riku," Id continued, and as he stepped towards him, Riku inched back, tensing to attack if he had to. Id only laughed. "See? Your first instinct is always to fight. You never go down quietly." Another step, and a dark thrill gleamed in his eyes. "Even when you _do_ give in, your heart never gives up. That's one of the things that makes your heart so impressive. So…"

Trailing off, he curled a hand in the air between them as if to seize Riku's heart, and a hungry purr laced through his next word.

"_Perfect_."

Goosebumps crept up Riku's arms, but he met Id's gaze with defiance. "Stop acting like you know me."

"But I _do _know you," he said, his eyes widening with sadistic glee. "I've been watching you a long time, Riku. I know every heart my darkness touches."

He pointed to Riku's chest, the darkness curling off his finger.

"And your heart, especially."

Riku backed another step, his voice edged with caution. "What do you mean?"

"You've always been the curious one, reaching out to things beyond your knowledge." Id gestured to all of Riku. "Always wanting to be the best, to be the strongest, to have more power than anyone. And that didn't change, not even when your childish dreams came true."

Riku's jaw clenched as he bit back a retort, settling on a glare instead.

Id took another smooth step forward, his grin spreading with delight. "You act tough… but I can _feel _your fear, idiot." He advanced on Riku, yellow eyes never straying. "Not so brave without that oversized key, huh?"

Undeterred, Riku kept backing away, passing a bookshelf as he edged towards the door. That was where Sephiroth still stood, watching in silence as Id played with his prey.

Id blurred into shadow and reappeared next to Riku, cutting him off before he could reach the door. "Want to borrow one of mine?" he said with a tease frozen by malice.

Stretching his hand out, a burst of intense darkness illuminated the shadows as Id summoned a keyblade, dark flames dancing across its blade as it solidified.

Riku's heart leapt inside of him in shock, but before he could get a good look at the weapon, Id shoved him against the bookshelf and stabbed the end of the blade into the shelf beside Riku's head, scattering pale parchment into the air.

As the pages fluttered around them, Id leaned in, his eyes relishing the sight of Riku's surprise.

This close, Riku could see the details of the keyblade, and it was even more intimidating than Oblivion, with a brilliant blue eye embedded at its collar and another at its hilt, a thick chain crisscrossing down its shank past a brass gear, and a guard and keyward both shaped like black cogs trimmed in red.

Id had said _one of_.

Did that mean he had more than one? How was that even possible?

Riku's brows furrowed, the question at the tip of his tongue.

"There's that curiosity again," Id said with bitter smile. In another flash of darkness, he summoned another keyblade and plunged it into the shelf on the other side of Riku's head, this time knocking a few books to the floor.

Riku's heart finally wavered when he recognized the keyblade.

_His _keyblade. Way to Fall—the one Yami had given him!

Beyond confused now, Riku glared up at Id. He'd thought that Sora was using his keyblade—so why did Id have it?

"You want answers."

Id's dark fingers gripped both of the keyblades hard as he leaned in, drawing so close that his breath brushed Riku's hair against his cheek.

"The real question is—what are you willing to sacrifice to get them?"

Deep in his heart, Riku felt a light reach out to him, strong and familiar—and desperate.

_Sora?_

It felt like he was in trouble…

He was running out of time. He needed to get out of here so he could find Sora and the others.

Growing impatient with Id's games, Riku steeled himself and finally rose to his bait. "How about…" He clamped his hand around Way to Fall's blade and narrowed his eyes at Id with a dare of his own. "I wipe that smirk off your face?"

And in a flash of light, Riku called the keyblade to his hand and held the tip to Id's neck.

"Take me to the door to darkness."

If anything, Riku's defiance made Id smirk even more.

"Idiot. That weak little keyblade doesn't scare me. And why would I ruin the fun of watching all of you struggle desperately against my machinations, powerless to stop what I've spent over a decade trying to perfect?"

"If you're really that confident in yourself, you'd still have _me _running around out there, too." Riku pressed the keyblade's tip against Id's throat, watching its power sear away the shadows making up the high neck of Id's dark suit. "But you sent that heartless after me—and then _Sephiroth_ to take care of the king. So obviously you're scared of _something_."

Id's eyes narrowed with silent warning. "You have no idea how deep this goes. It's almost cute, how naïve all of you really are. None of you have a clue what all of your fighting and suffering is actually for or who's been pulling the strings all along." His malicious grin returned. "It's been a long time since I had this much fun messing with someone."

"Who _are_ you?" Riku demanded, steadily holding his keyblade to Id's throat.

All of these hints of the past, of events that happened before Riku and Sora had even dreamed of leaving Destiny Islands, before Kairi had come into their lives—Riku knew that they were important, that he had been dragged into someone else's war, and that Id was a key player in all of this mess, maybe even central to it.

Something flickered in Id's expression, a hesitation, a desire for something real—and for the briefest of moments, he actually seemed human.

Then he scoffed and stepped back, yanking his cogwork keyblade out of the bookcase.

"When I get what I want, you're going to find out the truth anyway."

Dismissing his keyblade, he spread his hands out before Riku, his dark suit's tendrils licking the air as if still searching for something.

Keeping his own keyblade angled to strike at any moment, Riku watched him in silence. He could still feel Sephiroth's powerful presence nearby, guarding the door. Riku wanted nothing more than to get out of here and find Sora and Mickey, but he had to take care of these two problems first.

When Id continued, it was with a faraway tone as he stared down at his hands, his expression devoid of any emotion. "I'm the dark half of someone's heart," he explained. "Pure darkness, like a heartless—with one big difference." He pressed a hand to his chest, and the darkness of his suit seemed to fall still. "I'm not heartless," he said, lifting his bright eyes back to Riku's. "I'm _me_. My mind is my _own_."

The dark half of someone's heart?

Riku's fingers tightened around Way to Fall's grip as he stared hard at Id, his mind jumping to the obvious conclusion. Riku had met a lot of people with hearts so full of light that it almost seemed like darkness didn't exist inside of them at all.

But this was _Id_—and Riku could only think of one person who was the complete opposite of him.

"You're… Sora's darkness?"

Riku wasn't sure what to expect from his sudden revelation—

But what he hadn't been expecting was for Id to abruptly burst into laughter.

"What—you think I'm part of that pathetic _loser_?" he crowed, throwing his arms out. "HAHAHA! _Sora's_ darkness?"

Then, as abrupt as his laughter had begun, it ended as Id cut a hand through the air.

"That's ridiculous!" he snapped, eyes blazing with anger. "No, I'm trying to _find _my other half!"

Not finding it funny either, Riku clenched a fist at his side. "Well you sure look like Sora. So explain _that_."

"Or maybe—" Id paused to gloat, his lips splitting into a cruel little grin. "He looks like _me_."

Trepidation weighed inside Riku, who suddenly found it hard to swallow past the knot in his throat. When he found his voice again, it was heavy with suspicion. "And how would you explain that?"

Id's smile darkened with triumph.

"Because his heart is tied to the one I want."

-o-o-

_Sora?_

His name.

"That's me," he whispered to the darkness.

He fell through the black nothingness, remembering this sensation. This had happened to him before, when he'd lost his heart…

Had he lost it again?

_Sora!_

No—he knew who he was. He remembered everything.

He remembered Xehanort's heartless. He remembered him crushing Oathkeeper.

He remembered losing.

_Sora._

Warmth brushed against him, and Sora slipped his eyes open.

Flickering lights drifted past him.

The deeper he sank into the darkness, the more they gathered in number, as warm and reassuring as candles lighting his room during a bad storm. The rest of the world could go dark, but their small flames would always be there to illuminate the night.

Shimmering more brightly than most, one glided past his face as he continued his shadowy descent.

_Sora…_

A touch of familiarity, like his mother's hand resting against his forehead to check if he was well.

Sora's eyes watered as he watched the light drift out of reach, but when he saw it join countless others twinkling amongst the darkness in a vast, starry loom, his breath caught.

_Sora—_

He could hear them, he realized.

All of the hearts he had touched.

These were all of the people who were counting on him, the people whose lights had been stolen.

Somehow, deep within the darkness, Sora had found them.

Or maybe they had found _him_.

He spread his fingers out as if to hold all of them at once, and though he sank deeper into the black, he found that he wasn't afraid.

Smiling, he pressed his hand to his chest and reached out with his heart to greet them.

Gentle but powerful, all of them reached back.

Then, something even deeper than the darkness woke up.

Like sunlight breaking through a winter gloom, it warmed him to the core as it suddenly enveloped him in its comforting embrace, bright and real and coming from within.

_I'm still here_, it said with a familiar kindness. _Let's do this together._

Sora relaxed in its solace, trusting it with all of his heart as if they were brothers.

"Who are you?" he murmured, basking in its dreamy presence.

Fingers of light gently ruffled his hair, as a soft laugh filled his heart.

_Someone you helped… a long time ago._

Before he could question that, the countless hearts converged around him, each stripping away the darkness one ribbon of shadow at a time, until only two hearts were left.

Colorful light illuminated the emptiness below him, and Sora glanced ahead as he hurtled towards it, the pair of hearts streaking after him like wings.

All he saw was a blur of color as he crashed through a wall of stained glass, shattering it completely.

Colorful shards rained around him, harmlessly splashing against him like drops of summer rain and turning into light, growing brighter and brighter until it bathed him completely.

He closed his eyes and kept his heart open, trusting it to guide him to where he needed to be.

He felt the two hearts nestle against him as if welcoming him back.

Then he plunged back into the darkness with them, and to his fate.

-o-o-

"Because his heart is tied to the one I want."

The look Id was giving him…

Riku drew in a shuddery breath and held it, his heart beginning to race when he thought about what those words really meant. Id was talking about _him_, wasn't he? Id wanted _him_? His heart was tied to Sora's?

Then it hit him.

"The paopu fruit," Riku said in realization.

He knew he had felt it—he _knew _it had been real—but this was proof. All of those times he thought he had felt Sora, he _had_. Their hearts were connected, bound by destiny, thanks to the paopu fruit.

"Believe what you will," Id said with a derisive laugh. "Though, that stupid fruit _did_ bind your hearts."

When he saw the look of understanding on Riku's face, however, he put two and two together.

"Wait—_wait_—you mean you _just _figured that out?" Id asked, his eyes widening. The grin that crossed his face was both disbelieving and eager to humiliate. "All this time, you didn't know _how _Sora kept taking _your_ keyblade from you? Hahaha, what an idiot!"

But Riku didn't feel belittled at all. Now he knew why he had felt Sora so strongly when he had reached out to him with his heart.

They were already connected.

Even now when he concentrated, he could feel Sora's warmth radiating softly outside his own heart like a small sun, and it was filled with a peaceful strength that hadn't been there minutes ago. Sora's desperation was gone. He must not have been in trouble anymore…

Relief washed through Riku, who opened his heart to Sora as he'd done before.

A gentle light brushed back as if to say hello.

"Man, how disappointing."

Id's voice drew him out of his reverie, and Riku shifted back into an attack position, determined not to leave himself open.

"I expected more from you," Id said with a shake of his head, still chuckling.

Riku frowned. He had to get out of here, but he couldn't take on Id _and _Sephiroth. Which meant some creativity was in demand.

If Id was as confident as he let on, maybe that pride could work to Riku's advantage.

"I saw Sephiroth and Leon's memories," he said, cutting through Id's chuckling. "All of the things you did… The Gemini Project, Ansem's lost memories, spreading the darkness, releasing Ansem's heartless, and then messing up my relationship with Sora—I don't understand what the point is." He knitted his brows, giving Id a pretentious smile. "For someone so full of himself and his own power, you sure ruined all of our lives for something so…" He paused to enunciate the word. "Stupid."

The shadows making up Id's dark suit bristled like a threatened cat, and suddenly Id was in his face, his yellow gaze burning with a reproachful fury.

"Stupid?" he hissed. "You don't know the first thing about what I'm trying to do. Your lives are _nothing _compared to what my master–"

He froze, catching himself in mid-sentence, and aggravation flashed across his face.

"—what _I _want to accomplish."

Riku lifted his brows at that significant slip of the tongue.

Id had a master?

Riku thought the heartless had called _Id _their master—so then who could possibly be more powerful than _Id_?

But Id kept going, not giving Riku a chance to process much of what he was hearing.

"The Gemini Project was my ticket to Kingdom Hearts," he explained, beginning to pace in front of Riku. The tendrils of his suit were still bristled, giving away how furious he still was. "The man _you _know as Ansem was a stepping stone. Getting through to him was the key—but strong hearts are easy to manipulate. You plant an idea, and they begin to bend to it. Once I tickled his curiosity, everything began to fall exactly where I wanted it..."

Riku said nothing, aware of Sephiroth's intense silence as well. Both of them watched and listened to Id's tirade, and Riku kept his keyblade held high, ready for his opportunity.

"He and the others started their experiments into the mysteries of the heart, in order to uncover his own lost memories, and all I had to do was… nudge the darkness inside of him." Id laughed, clearly proud of his work. "The Gemini Project was a side experiment into light and darkness in order to try to make an ultimate weapon. We were trying to see if the weapon was possible to create _without_ one of the halves dying. If the two could just become _one_…"

"So Sephiroth and Cloud were your lab rats," Riku said.

Behind him, he heard Sephiroth shift, just a slight creak of leather and a shuffle of feathers, but it was enough for Riku to know that he had gotten Sephiroth's attention.

"In a much bigger plan that was already _years_ in the making," Id said, taking Riku's bait without realizing it. "And 'Ansem' was my willing pawn, even if he didn't understand everything he was doing back then. He knows _now_, of course…"

He focused on Riku, his yellow eyes wild with an almost ferocious obsession.

"And that's how I got _you_."

He came to a halt in front of Riku.

It was too soon for Riku to feel smug. He had finally gotten information out of Id, but at what cost? Id's patience was hanging by a thread now, and Riku didn't want to be there if that patience snapped. Id had the upper hand here.

"Fine," he told Id, buying himself a breath's time as Id hesitated, probably to think about everything he had just revealed to Riku. Telling himself it was now or never, Riku pressed on, this time with a different tactic. "You dragged me here for a reason," he said. "I want to know what role I play in whatever scheme you have planned."

A pleased little smirk tugged at Id's lips, and Riku knew he had him hooked. The darkness of Id's suit relaxed, and some of the tendrils once again reached towards Riku as if begging for a treat.

Riku didn't let his guard down, Way to Fall's blade still poised for any unexpected attacks.

"I want _you_ because you can make me whole," Id said, his smirk spreading with dark intent. "I could've easily had Sora if the brat hadn't already had way too much light…" He planted a hand over his chest again. "I need a heart that can sustain my darkness, and _you_…"

Id stepped closer, ignoring Riku's readied blade, and curled his hand beneath Riku's chin with a delicate touch.

"Your heart has that rare, remarkable capability. Most hearts collapse under the weight of too much darkness, but not yours..." He smiled, his feral eyes full of veneration. "Yours flourishes."

Riku felt his eyes widen.

His heart could do that? Is that why he had ended up in the realm of darkness instead of becoming a heartless?

"I told you, Riku. I've been watching you for a long time." Seeing Riku's reaction, Id's delight only grew. "I had a plan, but 'Ansem' and I couldn't carry it out in our current forms. He needed a new shell with _potential_, and I needed a heart that wouldn't collapse under my darkness." Id's fingers clenched against Riku's jaw as his voice grew more fervent the more he revealed. "_Years_—we searched, experimented, failed, and then..."

He tilted his head, yellow eyes scanning Riku's face with admiration.

"We found you," he said. "Tucked away, _hidden_ on a small nowhere world."

As he felt the darkness of Id's fingers tickle his chin, Riku shuddered and pulled back.

Realizing he had lowered his keyblade, he angled it again to attack and glared at Id in warning.

Id's grin returned, encouraged by Riku's discomfort. "All we had to do was bide our time until you were ready. And when your heart was desperate enough to reach for the darkness, I sent 'Ansem' there to claim your body as his own. Once he had that, I was supposed to get your heart."

But that wasn't what had happened, Riku realized. He had first met Ansem in the secret place, but Ansem hadn't tried to take him over. Something had changed Ansem's mind… but what? Why had Ansem chosen Kairi instead?

"When he became Yami, I thought he had betrayed me," Id said with a chuckle—a stark contrast to how he had reacted before when he thought his partner in crime had abandoned him. "Now I know what really happened… and why the loser chose a _princess _as his host. But it doesn't matter now. Yami failed to stop me, and I still haveAnsem's heartless out there, my perfect little pawn playing his final move."

Riku didn't have time to wonder about Ansem or what that final move might be. While he was still trying to absorb everything he had just learned, Id closed in on him again.

"So there you have it," he said. "Your role." He drew close enough for the tendrils of his suit to brush against Riku's chest, his voice a low purr. "And I must say, you fell into our hands as if you were madeto be one of us."

Riku clutched Way to Fall tighter and met Id's crazed eyes without fear. "Keep dreaming."

"Not a dream anymore. Ansem has his host."

Id's shadow-clad fingers slid up Riku's sides with an unmistakable, possessive hunger.

"Now I want what's mine."

-o-o-

Darkness howled past Sora, whipping his clothes around him as he plummeted through the black abyss, leaving a wake of light behind him.

He could feel them all reaching out to him—his friends, his family, the worlds, familiar hearts with unknown faces—

And he wasn't scared.

The shadows peeled away from him, ribbon by ribbon, as the inviting warmth of the light blanketed his senses.

He didn't know where he was going, but as the last of the darkness slipped away, he saw the pale ground of the world of darkness rushing towards him at a breakneck speed.

Okay—_now _he was scared!

He was gonna crash!

Two hearts chased after him in a golden spiral, streaking ahead through the abyss.

Were they trying to cut him off?

"W-WHOA!"

No time to brace himself!

Sora screamed and flailed and crashed into his final destination, white sand erupting around him into a cloud of glitter.

His world wavered around him, the sudden stop knocking the breath out of him.

He was alive.

As he lay there in the sandy crater, he expected an onslaught of pain to catch up with him. How many bones had he broken? Would he be able to crawl out of this hole? How was he supposed to go after Xehanort now?

But after he sank against the cold ground, he saw the glittering sand settle back around him, and that's when he noticed the faint aura surrounding him.

The light had protected him? It must have cushioned his landing…

He grimaced and rolled onto his back.

Above him, the dark abyss was as empty and vast as an ocean of black.

Heart still racing, Sora soaked in the light's comfort until the last of its aura finally faded from around him.

He didn't know where he was, but at least he was alive.

Sighing with relief, he sat up and shook the sand out of his hair.

"SORA!"

Sora heard the thundering feet too late to protect himself.

All he saw were blurs of color before he was suddenly attacked with ferocious hugs.

"Soraaaa!"

"Ahyuck!"

He crashed back onto the sand with Donald and Goofy clutching him with bone-crushing strength, and Sora barked out a laugh of surprise when he realized he _wasn't _be mauled.

"GUYS!" he cried, throwing his arms around them.

Eyes watering, he hugged them to himself, and understood then how much they had meant to him.

He didn't know how or why they were here, and he didn't care. He just held them until his heart didn't feel as though it would burst with relief anymore.

When their laughter finally faded, Sora pulled back to grin at them.

"You have _no idea_ how glad I am to see you guys," he said as he wiped at his wet lashes, not ashamed of his happiness.

Goofy exchanged a knowing look with Donald and laughed. "Ya know, I think we do have a pretty good idea."

"Yeah—we heard your heart," Donald said with an enthusiastic nod. "And when we knew where to go—"

"We came running!" Goofy said, clapping a hand on Sora's shoulder. "So thanks, pal!"

Sora's heart ballooned with joy.

He had saved them from the darkness? Donald and Goofy must have been those two hearts that had stayed with him in the darkness.

"Just happy to have you guys back." He rubbed the back of his head and laughed, looking around to see where he had ended up now. "Wherever we are…"

White sand glittering like snow…

A long, winding road leading into that vast, empty darkness…

And immense white doors towering in front of them, radiating with unspoken power.

"Whoa…"

Sora stumbled to his feet and stepped back to gape at the doors.

Beside him, he heard Donald and Goofy's quiet comments as they also stared in awe.

Somehow, Sora knew just by standing in front of them that these doors were more important than any of the others he had crossed through to get here.

He didn't know why they were here or where they led or what lay beyond them, but he had a feeling that all of those hearts had led him _here_, to these doors, to seal them for good.

But to seal them…

Sora glanced down at his empty hands.

He could still hear the crumble of broken shells as Xehanort had crushed Oathkeeper's charm.

A righteous anger bubbled up inside of him when he thought about how much work Kairi and Yami had put into that pendant, and what it had meant to him and Riku. Not only was his favorite keyblade gone, so was his last memento of his best friends.

"Kairi… Riku…"

But Oathkeeper hadn't been his only keychain.

Sora patted his hoodie pocket, hearing a metallic clink that was pure music to his ears. With hope in his heart, he pulled out a polished black crown pendant.

Oblivion.

Man, was he glad he'd decided to let Riku give it to him. It had been a last second decision, but he'd accepted the keychain since Riku had decided to use the one Yami had given him. At least he had this little reminder of Riku to carry with him.

Oathkeeper's demise weighed on his heart, but Sora held onto the hope that Kairi could make him a new one when they all made it home. He clenched a hand around Oblivion's pendant and rested it over his heart, silently vowing to ask her—after he saved her.

"Wak!"

Donald's sudden squawk sent Sora on alert, and with a flick of his hand, he summoned Oblivion for the first time.

Its fierce strength flowed into him, connecting with his heart, and radiated with their untapped potential together. Sora fought through a brief moment of dizziness, trying not to let the empowering sensation get to him, and he turned towards his friends to see what was wrong.

Both of them stood beside him with their weapons ready, all eyes narrowed up at the menacing figure that now hovered above them.

Xehanort's heartless.

If the heartless was frustrated to see Sora alive and standing between him and the doors, he didn't show it.

"Why don't you give into the inevitable," he said with a chuckle, like an amused parent dealing with a child who just didn't get it. "No matter how many times we face each other, the result will always be the same."

Glaring, Sora drew Oblivion forward.

Undaunted by Sora's defensive stature, Xehanort descended through the darkness to meet them face to face. "The light has no power over the darkness. It's too late for any of you to make a difference." He curled a hand towards them, malice in his smile. "Haven't I already proven that darkness is supreme?"

"That's not true!" Sora clenched a fist and swiped through the air. "You can try over and over again to use darkness to destroy me, but deep down in that darkness, I saw _light_."

All of those glimmering lights had been there for him in the darkness, had led him out of it, had led him _here_. All of his friends, his family, the worlds and the people he had met, and the hearts he had touched…

Riku… Kairi… and Yami…

They, and all the others they were connected to—their hearts were one.

Sora pressed a hand over his heart where his necklace used to be. "As long as my friends believe in me, I'll always find that light."

Stepping in front of him, Goofy raised his shield, his brows drawn together with determination. "And Sora will always be in our hearts!"

"Yeah—he's stuck with us!" Donald chimed in as he pushed forward to be seen. He too moved in front of Sora, his staff readied.

Sora glanced at each of them, unable to resist a brief smile at their courage. He wouldn't trade their friendship for anything, that's for sure. Xehanort had manipulated Riku and taken his body, and he had already bested Sora once—but never again. Sora knew that his friends would keep him from falling to the darkness again, and he refused to lose them again.

With their confidence boosting his own, he met Xehanort's gaze with unwavering ambition. "The darkness can't touch my heart. It'll always be with my friends." He swung his keyblade out and pointed it right at the heartless. "My friends are my power!"

Sora's voice resounded through the empty abyss, carrying the hope that the friends in his heart had given him.

Xehanort's eyes thinned.

"So… you have come this far, and still, you understand nothing."

-o-o-

Id's gaze grew predatory as his shadowed fingers caressed up Riku's sides, possessive and fearless.

"Ansem has his host. Now I want what's mine."

Shuddering hard, Riku jerked away from him—

"_Not _happening!"

—and instinctively lashed out with his heart, feeling power awaken inside of him. He wanted Id to pay for everything he had done—not just to him, but to all the worlds, to Mickey, Sephiroth and Cloud, and to Sora—but in that moment, it wasn't vengeance that drove his power.

It was the devotion to his friends.

Trusting his heart, he channeled the power through the keyblade, and a sudden wall of blue energy burst to life in front of him.

It slammed into Id, throwing him back as its light burned through his darkness, and he recoiled, backing away a few more steps. Even as the wall shattered back to nothingness, Riku could already see that damage had been done to him. Some of the darkness of Id's body suit had seared away, exposing his pale hands and forearms.

Within moments, the shadowy tendrils snaked back over Id's bare skin, reknitting his dark suit.

Still, that had been enough encouragement.

Riku swung Way to Fall out to the side, prepared for another strike. "I'm _no one's_ puppet."

"Idiot." A dry laugh, lacking Id's usual humor. "Did you forget you have a heartless riding around in your body?"

"Not for long," Riku said with certainty. He gestured at Id with the keyblade. "Once I'm finished with you, I'm going to get my body back."

Id's expression darkened as he calmly lowered his arms. "You're forgetting something else..."

Tensing in preparation, Riku held his breath to steady his heart as Id took a slow step back.

The dim lighting in the room began to fade completely, the dark flames shrinking on their candle wicks before flickering out, one at a time.

"All hearts return to the darkness—and this is the world of darkness," Id said. "_My _domain."

The last candle snuffed out, plunging the room into total darkness.

Then, in a whisper meant to tremble Riku's nerves:

"Do you really think you stand a chance?"

His voice had lost all playful character, now as cold and empty as the dark abyss that Id ruled. Through the shadows, Riku could still see Id's vibrant gaze, glinting like the eyeshine of a nocturnal beast.

Though his heart raced with apprehension, Riku pressed a hand to his chest, feeling Sora's heart resonate with his own. Somewhere out there, Sora was fighting for him and holding strong.

No turning back now.

Riku held Id's gaze with his own, carrying an indomitable faith. "My heart belongs to _me_."

Id released another dry laugh. "So you _did _forget."

He reached a hand towards Riku, his fingers fanned.

Without warning, the warmth in Riku's heart faded, and there was a sharp _yank _inside of him—

"You _gave _your heart to the darkness."

And in a whirl of magic, the keyblade disappeared from Riku's hand.

_No—!_

Light illuminated the darkness as Way to Fall swirled back into existence, this time clutched in Id's hand.

Riku clenched his fists and growled under his breath. This couldn't be happening—not _again_! He finally knew what he needed to do; he _finally_ had his real enemy in front of him—but not only was Id stronger than him, he had control of his one weapon!

"In other words, I already own you."

The faint glow of the blade highlighted Id's expression, filled once again with pure malice, as he aimed Riku's own keyblade at him.

But in that moment, Riku remembered why he had opened his heart to the darkness in the first place and how his desperation had allowed Ansem to take control of his body. He remembered his brief time with Mickey and the confidence he had instilled in him, along with the reassurance that Riku's heart was still whole—which meant _something_ had kept his heart from collapsing beneath all of that darkness. Whether or not it had been the strength of his own heart or the support of his friends, he didn't know.

What he _did_ know…

Even if his heart hadgiven into the darkness, it didn't _belong_ to the darkness. And it sure as hell didn't belong to _Id_.

Armed with that certainty, he set his jaw with determination and spread his arms.

"Prove it."

-o-o-

"So… you have come this far, and still, you understand nothing."

As bigheaded as Xehanort was, Sora knew that he had a reason to be. A lot of the truth behind Xehanort, Ansem, the heartless, and Id had gone right over Sora's head… and there were things he'd probably never understand even if they were explained to him a hundred times.

But whatever Xehanort had been after, did it matter now? His heartless was evil—_that _much was obvious.

What mattered to Sora wasn't Right or Wrong—it was whether or not people were getting hurt. So when it came to picking sides, Sora knew his heart was always in the right place.

"I don't need to understand," Sora said. "What I see is pretty simple. You're messing up our worlds, and I'm gonna take you down!"

"_We're_ gonna take you down!" Donald corrected, and beside him, Goofy nodded without hesitation.

"You're not gettin' past us!"

Xehanort only chuckled. "Your friends are your power?" He lifted his chin as a wicked smile crossed his face. "Aren't you forgetting someone?"

He spread a hand towards them, and darkness began to blossom in front of them.

Sora inched back, ready to defend himself.

But Xehanort hadn't summoned an attack.

As the portal of darkness unfolded in front of Sora, the shadows slithered around a figure unmistakably humanoid, and Sora swung his keyblade out without hesitation, holding it close to the figure's throat as the shadows began to disperse.

As soon as Sora saw the head of pale silver hair hanging lifelessly before him, he recognized him.

"Yami!"

He hadn't lost his heart to the darkness?

Sora began to lower his keyblade as he studied his friend with worry.

He looked untouched like the darkness had only put him in a deep sleep when it had taken him. Dangling around his neck was Sora's crown necklace, still glimmering with a hint of light this far into the abyss. Was that Kairi's power…? Maybe she was the reason Yami hadn't become a heartless.

Sora felt his heart clench as he thought about how desperate Yami had been to protect him, desperate enough to use the last of his strength to shove Sora out of the darkness and sacrifice himself for it.

"Yami…"

Even when Sora called his name, Yami didn't lift his head, his entire body loose as if suspended from strings.

Around him, the darkness of the portal didn't fade like it usually would.

Instead, its ribbons slithered tightly around Yami's body into a skintight suit and then continued to grow, spreading over his limbs and building into a set of sleek armor tainted by the colors of darkness. After swallowing Sora's necklace, the shadows enveloped Yami's head to seal off his face, forming a helmet topped with a pair of tall points like wolf ears.

"Whoa—"

Sora backed away and drew his keyblade forward, unsure of what was happening and definitely not trusting it. Whether he was Yami or not, this wasn't a darkness that Sora recognized. From the way Donald and Goofy readied their weapons, he could tell they weren't taking any chances either.

His hand still spread towards them, Xehanort closed his fingers in the air with a gesture of finality.

Yami's entire body grew rigid, and a smoky darkness drifted off of him as the heartless's hold on him intensified.

"A gift from Id," Xehanort said with a bitter smile. "Enjoy your reunion."

Yami's helmeted head finally lifted.

Sora swallowed hard as he watched his friend, hoping that Yami would be _Yami_ and not someone or some_thing_ else.

Nervously, he called out to him.

"Yami?"

And at the sound of his voice, Yami's armored hand slowly lifted towards him.

Sora tensed and raised his keyblade back to Yami's chest, but the silent warning didn't deter him. Yami's fingers flew forward and closed into the front of Sora's hoodie, clamping tight.

Yelping, Sora grabbed Yami's arm—"What are you doing? It's me!"—and winced at how icy his armor was. Even the knuckles pressed to Sora's chest felt like they had come out of a freezer.

"Sora!"

Donald and Goofy cried out with worry, but before they could help Sora, the darkness sprang up around him and Yami, pushing his friends back, and Yami began to heft him off the ground with one arm.

"Stop it, Yami!" Sora yelled, but his voice only seemed to encourage him. As Yami lifted him into the air, shadows rose around them, the chill creeping through Sora's clothes into a bone-deep freeze. He'd felt this before: when he'd lost his heart, and almost again when Xehanort's guardian had dragged him into the darkness.

He didn't want to hurt Yami—but if that's what it took to get his friend back, so be it!

Sora pressed Oblivion to Yami's chest and concentrated, opening his heart wide to Yami's to try to reach him beyond the darkness.

"Wake up!"

Light burst between them, and Yami released Sora with a cry.

Sora landed on his feet, his heart pounding as he watched Yami recoil in pain, both of his hands clutching his chest.

The darkness had released Sora, but the distraction had done its job.

Xehanort was already hovering in front of the white doors.

"At last… We've come this far."

"And you ain't gettin' any farther!" Goofy cried, sliding through the sand to stand between Xehanort and the doors, and Donald leapt to his side with his staff raised.

"Yeah!"

A massive shadow lurched out from behind Xehanort, and Sora instantly recognized it as the guardian heartless that had dragged him into the darkness.

"Watch out!" he called to his friends, turning to rush towards them.

A streak of darkness cut him off, and Sora found himself staring down the blade of Yami's wicked sword. As Yami swung to strike, Sora met the powerful blow with his keyblade and held his ground, grimacing at the immense strength Yami possessed.

"K-Kairi—I know you're in there—!"

Faint veins of light began to spread along Yami's armor, centered over his chest where Sora's necklace rested beneath the darkness. Sora realized then that his necklace _was _working and Kairi _was_ fighting—but the darkness was just too powerful for their light alone, especially here in the realm of darkness. Most of her strength was probably focused on keeping Yami's heart whole.

"Keep strong!" Sora cried. "I'll help you!"

Nearby, he heard Donald and Goofy's surprised yelps as Xehanort began to absorb his guardian for its power, its darkness billowing outward and swallowing him.

Through the writhing shadows, he could see Xehanort's body stretching as he embraced the power, transforming him into something even more dangerous.

And in that moment, Sora stood trapped in a dilemma.

Defeat Yami to save him, and risk losing Donald and Goofy again to the darkness—for the hopeful chance to fight Xehanort with all three of them. Or ignore Yami to join the others, and risk battling both Yami and Xehanort at once.

As the veins of light began to fade along Yami's armor, returning to pure shadow, Sora thought about Kairi and Oathkeeper's broken charm that he had lost to the darkness. After everything he and Yami had been through together…

Sora still trusted him with his life.

No amount of darkness would take that away from him.

Turning away from Yami, Sora steeled his heart and darted towards the white doors to help his friends, and he heard Yami take pursuit behind him.

-o-o-

Even through the heavy shadows of the room, Riku saw Id's malicious smirk.

"I don't need to prove anything to _you, _idiot."

But Riku knew better than to let his guard down.

Before he could even think of a comeback, both of Id's keyblades were flying towards him.

Riku threw himself into a handspring and leapt past Id, flipping back to his feet—and he felt the intensity of the missed strike as it trembled the room, hitting the bookshelves instead of Riku and raining heavy books to the floor.

He didn't stop to watch the aftermath.

He moved through the darkness, feeling with his hands to see where he was, and ducked around Id's large desk, keeping plenty of space between him and those glowing keyblades, as Id came for him again.

"Didn't take you for a coward, Riku!"

His voice was across the room and then suddenly _there_, behind Riku, who felt the cold sweep of darkness as shadowy vines erupted beneath him to hold him in place.

_Damn—too fast!_

Riku tore himself away as a keyblade slammed into the ground next to him. The shockwave sent sizzling red energy sweeping through him, like claws scraping across his nerves, but he had to keep moving—had to get away—he couldn't fight Id like this!

He didn't have much of a choice but to run, at least until he could find an opening to take his own keyblade back, but he didn't have time to come up with a plan with Id raining such intense attacks on him.

Riku launched himself over the desk, scattering books and candles as he slid across the surface to the other side, and broke into a run towards where he remembered the door.

"Where do you think you're going? I told you—this is _my _realm."

As Riku flew towards the door, he could feel Id's darkness streaking through the air towards him, its chill chasing his back and gaining on him.

"You can't escape!"

Riku crashed into a solid chest, remembering Sephiroth's presence too late.

The darkness caught up instantly and swept around Riku, wrapping him in its icy embrace.

Fighting against it, Riku tore at the darkness with his hands as it squeezed around him, making it hard to move or breathe. This was familiar—too familiar—but Riku wasn't going to give in to the darkness again!

_Sora! Mickey! Kairi!_

"_NO!_"

He squirmed against Id's power to loosen its hold, but struggling was useless. Sephiroth slipped an arm into the darkness and wrapped it firmly around Riku's waist to hold him still while Id advanced on him.

Riku screamed in defiance and writhed against Sephiroth's indomitable grip, his heart crying out for help.

"Sephiroth! Let me _go_!"

Releasing a triumphant laugh, Id reached for Riku, sinking his hand into the shadows to take hold of his prey.

Riku felt Sephiroth's arm tighten around him, but then—

_SHHK._

—light.

Lamps and candles flickered to life around the room, and the shadows fell away from Riku like a discarded robe, freeing him from its icy vise.

_What?_

Still trapped by Sephiroth's arm, Riku released a shaky breath and turned to see what had just happened.

He found himself facing his enemy—yellow eyes wide with shock.

"_You_…"

Venom dripped from Id's voice, and as Id stumbled back, clutching his gut, Riku finally understood what had interrupted his attack.

A long, familiar sword pierced straight through Id's chest, Sephiroth's hand wrapped tightly around its hilt.

Sephiroth's gaze narrowed with dangerous resolve. "I'm done being your rat."

Id's wound wept shadows along Sephiroth's sword and onto the floor, spreading into a deep pool around them. Id clenched a hand around Sephiroth's blade, his eyes bleeding into pure amber as he slowly smirked at the winged warrior.

"I always knew one day you were going to backstab me…"

Darkness exploded around them, and Riku cried out as Sephiroth threw him out of its range.

Riku landed amongst the scattered books, already scrambling back to his feet as the explosion swirled higher, orange flames dancing within the shadows, as Id's power began to swallow Sephiroth's.

Sephiroth endured the attack, his wing twisting with pain behind him, but his expression never faltered, never filled with fear as the flames and darkness swept around him. His green eyes focused sharply on Riku, and only Riku, whose heart shuddered at the power he felt there behind his gaze.

"The darkness in your heart is _yours_," Sephiroth said. "Don't fear it. Know that it's there—and don't give in."

Is that what Sephiroth had done? Is that why he could wield it without letting it consume him?

Riku had never accepted his own darkness… He had thought of it as weakness.

But Sephiroth had embraced it as strength.

Id growled and angled both of his keyblades to strike Sephiroth through.

"Shut up!"

But Sephiroth didn't budge, the flames of the dark attack dancing in his eyes as a wicked smile touched his lips.

He wasn't afraid. Riku knew that smile was meant for him.

When Id's blades struck, Sephiroth disappeared into a cloud of feathers, and the darkness dispersed with the feathers, leaving nothing standing between Riku and Id—or the door.

His throat dry, Riku swallowed hard and hoped that Sephiroth had escaped and would go looking for his friends. Judging from the ferocity of Id's expression, Riku assumed that was what had happened.

Id turned his attention back to his prey, but Riku's thoughts were with Sephiroth's parting words.

Don't fear the darkness in his heart… _His_ darkness?

"Now… where were we?"

Shadows crept along Id's chest, healing whatever damage Sephiroth had done to him. He frowned at Riku as if he were dealing with an annoying little brother.

"Oh, right. Taking what's _mine_."

Riku focused on Way to Fall as Id held it aloft to resume his attacks.

The keyblade that was _his_.

He reached out with his heart, letting Sephiroth's words guide him. His darkness was _his_, and if that was true, Id shouldn't hold any power over him.

Without any lingering hesitation, Riku reached out and called to his keyblade.

"I'd like to see you _try_."

The flare of magic rekindled in his heart as the keyblade responded, and Riku's hope grew with it.

But when he felt the blade's familiar weight appear in his hand, it wasn't Way to Fall's skeletal form.

He saw the polished black crown of a keychain dangle in front of him, and realized what he'd done—and whose keyblade he had summoned.

Sora must have been using Oblivion, and Riku had just taken it from him.

Clutching his old keyblade, he silently called to Sora to let him know he was there.

_Sorry—gotta borrow this for second!_

Then he launched forward to take care of Id once and for all.

-o-o-

The intense energy of Xehanort's transformation saturated the air. Dark lightning crackled through the shadows that surrounded him as he lifted high into the air in front of the white doors. He threw back his head and spread his arms, his voice deep with powerlust.

"_Kingdom Hearts_—"

The darkness completely enveloped Xehanort then, swallowing him from sight as he finished his transformation.

Sora skidded to a stop beside Donald and Goofy, grimacing at the sight. "Oh man, this doesn't look good…" He didn't have time to stand and gawk at the heartless, though—not when there was a more immediate threat headed right for them. "Guys, back me up!"

Yami closed in behind them, his dark sword raised to kill, and Sora sprung to meet his attack, effortlessly swinging Oblivion forward—

Until the weapon's weight dissolved beneath his fingers.

The keyblade vanished into fragments of light, leaving him suddenly empty-handed.

"Wha—?"

Too late to get away!

Bracing for the blow he could no longer block, Sora held his arm over his head and cried out Yami's name.

The clang of clashing weapons snapped him out of his shock, and when he peeked out from beneath his arm, Goofy's shield was driving back Yami's winged sword.

Donald came tearing past Sora with a vengeful fury, his sharp cry ringing through the abyss as he shot three firagas toward Yami at once.

Yami leapt forward and slid through the air, passing above them on a stream of flames, and though Donald's spells honed in on him, they struck a wall of fire that surrounded him in a protective shield.

Before Donald or Sora could even react, Yami whirled around in midair and kicked at the sky, hurling himself toward the ground behind the trinity and slamming his sword into it as meteorites rained around them, creating a brutal blast of energy that engulfed them and threw them away from each other.

Sora crashed into the ground, the shockwave showering him with white sand, and everything had happened so quickly, it took Sora a moment to collect himself and clamber back to his feet to face their friend turned foe.

He had never seen Yami display this much power before. He remembered how powerful Yami was—but this was different. Instead of the calm, dark elegance Yami often carried, this was a blend of that and something _else_—a masterful strength that wasn't Xehanort or Kairi. It was as if the darkness had awoken a part of Yami that Sora had never met.

Sora flexed his hand, debating on summoning Oblivion back to him… but it had occurred to him that the keyblade might have left him because _Riku _had needed it. Riku didn't have a trinity to protect him. Sora did.

And they weren't giving up.

Back on his feet, Donald chased after Yami, staff raised.

"Take that!"

Three more spells flew at Yami—large projectiles of ice that zeroed in on him—but with a sweep of his arm, Yami held his sword before him and deflected the powerful spell as if it were nothing. The ice shattered against it, but instead of disappearing into fragments of magic, the shattered ice crystallized around Yami's sword.

A surprised Donald stumbled to a halt in front of him when he saw what had happened to his spell.

"Wak!"

And in the blink of an eye, Yami's sword flung forward with an icy counterattack.

"Watch out, pal!"

Goofy's shield intercepted the strike, which was so powerful, Sora could see the force of it tremble through Goofy's body as he stood steadfast in front of Donald. The ice shattered again, this time for good, and Goofy pressed against the sand to drive Yami away from his smaller friend.

In front of the white doors, the darkness around Xehanort was beginning to disperse, and Sora knew they only had seconds before they'd have to face their real enemy. No time to hesitate!

He raced past Goofy and tackled Yami around the waist, knocking him away from his friends.

"Guys—_Xehanort!_"

Goofy yelped, "Careful, Sora!"

As Yami staggered from the attack, he twisted their weight around and used Sora's momentum to hurl him into the sand. A powerful swirl of warm wind surrounded Sora as he leapt back to his feet, Donald's magic blanketing him just in time to muffle the burst of dark fire that Yami flung his way.

"Thanks!" Sora called, rolling himself back to his feet.

It was then that he noticed Yami pausing, his helmeted head lifting as something behind Sora had caught his attention.

A dark chill stood the hairs on the back of Sora's neck.

He couldn't hear the storm of darkness behind him anymore.

"Supreme _darkness_..."

Xehanort's voice resounded through the abyss, smooth and sonorous like a rumble of thunder hunting the horizon.

Holding his breath, Sora cautiously turned to glance at their real enemy.

The two heartless had melded together into a chimera of man, darkness, and beast, but nothing grotesque like Sora had been expecting. He was still mostly humanoid, just demonic, like the darkness had crafted something straight out of a twisted fairytale.

Xehanort's eyes now glowed with the unearthly yellow of the heartless, reflecting his true nature. A pair of thick horns swept from beneath his silver hair in flawless obsidian, angling high behind him. Lightning blue markings twisted and winded along his toned body, and his pants bled into solid darkness towards his feet, morphing them into demonic hooves.

The heartless emblem rested over his heart, centered on a pair of belts crossed over his bare chest. His aristocratic coat was gone, replaced with a pair of immense, billowing sleeves that trailed past his feet, tattered at the ends and tainted by the bright indigo and magenta of the darkness. Within them were the guardian's massive black claws—the same ones that had dragged Sora here, into the darkness.

Two double-edged weapons hovered crossed behind him, their blades shaped like Yami's winged sword… not that Xehanort needed any weapons, judging by the intense aura of darkness surrounding him.

Sora drew in a deep breath to calm his racing heart.

There was no way he was going to win this fight without using the keyblade.

A blur of black swept past him, and Sora backed towards his friends as Yami flipped over him, landing in a graceful crouch in the sand. His helmeted head lifted to regard the trinity, just as Xehanort, in the air beside him, narrowed his eyes down at them.

Sora felt Donald and Goofy tense beside him as they too stared up at their adversaries, sizing them up and dreading the power they sensed within them.

Drawing strength from his friends, Sora curled a hand over his heart and concentrated.

Deep inside, he could feel someone calling to him—Riku—and knew he was fighting, too.

Holding onto that knowledge, Sora prayed he wasn't making the wrong choice.

He needed the keyblade.

_Sorry, Riku!_

He called Oblivion back to him.

As the keyblade's strength sprung to life in his hand without fault, Sora charged towards Xehanort to meet him head-on.

-o-o-

Ducking past a volley of black and red flames, Riku overturned Id's desk as both keyblades cut towards him. They effortlessly cleaved through the fine wood, leaving the desk smoldering with darkness and fire.

Id's power was beyond anything Riku had faced before, stronger than Maleficent's and Ansem's, maybe even Sephiroth's—and it had to be, if he really _was _the source of the darkness infesting the worlds.

But Riku couldn't lose this fight.

All of the selfish decisions he couldn't take back or make right… All of those grave mistakes weighing his conscience…

He had spent his entire journey second guessing himself and regretting every misstep and letting people take advantage of him for all the wrong reasons. He had been surrounded by the light of all of his friends, but he had pushed them away, choosing instead to embrace the one thing they had trusted him to face:

The darkness.

It wasn't until he had come _here_, where darkness reigned, that everything had become clear.

What he was meant to protect, and what his true weapon was—

What he was fighting for, and who his real enemy was—

They were all one and the same.

And he would rather die than let his heart become Id's.

As Id yanked his keyblades out of the smoldering desk to ready another attack, Riku sprang from the desktop to strike first.

Oblivion sliced through the air and sent a shockwave of crackling darkness barreling into Id, who slammed into the wall with so much force that the entire room trembled.

Id reeled from the impact, shock written on his face, and Riku seized his opportunity.

"Checkmate!"

He raised the keyblade high to strike Id down—

But before he could land the blow, the keyblade dissolved beneath his fingers.

Riku caught himself inches away from Id, suddenly weaponless, and realized that Sora must have called Oblivion back.

Noticing Riku's keyblade trouble, Id gave a nasty laugh.

"Amateur."

And abruptly vanished into darkness.

Sensing movement above him, Riku whirled around.

"Too slow!"

A dark boot slammed into Riku's chest.

All of his breath left him with a cry as he crashed into the splintered desk.

Jagged slivers of wood pierced into him where his hoodie didn't protect him, and with a grimace of pain, he struggled to breathe. He had to get up, had to get to his feet, get the keyblade back, ignore the pain—all that mattered was escaping—!

But before he could recoup, Id planted a foot against his chest and pinned him there, digging the desk fragments farther into his skin.

"_Rrrgh…!_"

He writhed in agony, trying to alleviate his searing wounds, but when he felt the tips of Id's keyblades press to his throat, he obeyed the silent command and stopped struggling. His world carouseled around him as he lay still, his heart fluttering with fear as the sharp keyways dragged slowly down his neck, between his collar bones, and came to rest directly over his heart.

Beyond the sleek lengths of the keyblades, he focused on Id himself, those yellow eyes wild with triumph.

"Heh. And now you're _mine_."

Panicking, Riku reached for his best friend's heart and frantically clung to his light.

_Sora!_

Oblivion slammed into the double-bladed swords guarding Xehanort just as Sora felt Riku's presence flare within him, the deep warmth closer and stronger than ever before, but roiled with desperation.

_Riku—_

Sora loosened his grip on the keyblade, expecting it to disappear this time, and he let it.

It burst into fragments of light and vanished, and Sora rolled out of the way as Xehanort's swords came crashing down on him. Darkness erupted from the sand, riving the ground and sending Sora tumbling and landing on his back—just in time to spot the string of meteorites that was hurtling through the air towards him.

"Wah!"

He rolled again, catching a glimpse of Goofy as his friend ducked beside him with his shield raised to deflect the powerful spell that Yami must have conjured. Several meteorites struck the shield, but Goofy's strength didn't waver, even as he was driven back from the force of the impacts.

Around them, bat-winged heartless filled the air, emerging out of the darkness leftover from Xehanort's attack. Sora hastily climbed to his feet as the heartless flitted towards them, surrounding them as their large mouths pulled into toothless grins.

"Look out!"

Sizzling streams of red energy suddenly shot across the area from all directions at once, a cross beam striking Sora's back as he stumbled to get out of the heartless' range. Agony seared through his back, like fire crawling along his spine, and he staggered with a cry, struggling not to fall—until he felt a sharp yank as he and Goofy were dragged towards Donald, the magnet spell rescuing them from the rest of the barrage.

Goofy's strong hand rested on his shoulder to keep him steady as a cure spell trickled through him, soothing his pain and leaving a minty tingle along his skin.

"You okay?" Donald asked with worry, lowering his staff.

"Yeah—thanks, guys," Sora said with a quick breath.

With the way they were fighting disorganized and scattered, they were outmatched. They didn't even have time to gather their wits. If it wasn't Yami hounding them with vicious attacks, it was Xehanort's heartless and his pets driving them away from each other.

What they needed was a strategy.

Sora clenched his hands at his sides and concentrated.

Riku's presence in his heart hadn't faded. Though Sora was weaponless once again, this time was different. He could still feel the keyblade there, just outside his reach, and knew Riku would let him have it if he called for it.

And Riku, as he successfully summoned Oblivion, felt Sora reaching back to him with his own heart.

He knew then that Sora had _let _him have the keyblade this time.

Not wasting a moment, Riku jerked Oblivion up between Id's keyblades in one clean slice, cutting him from navel to neck, and then planted his feet on Id's hips, driving him away with a powerful kick.

In that moment, as Sora turned to face his toughest enemies yet, Riku's heart resonated with his own—

Fierce. Fathomless.

As powerful as the keyblade itself…

Or maybe even more.

Sora clung to Riku's unyielding strength, understanding now that he didn't just have a trinity. Riku was there, too.

That was when both of them realized that they didn't have to play tug-of-war with their one weapon.

They could work together.

This time when Riku opened his heart, it wasn't to darkness. It was to Sora.

And Sora, trusting the profound strength that was purely _Riku, _opened his heart in return.

Years of friendship, of Riku's playful encouragement and Sora's never ending optimism as they laughed and played and grew up together beneath the watch of the island sun—

Years of trust, of Sora understanding when Riku just needed someone to smile at him, and of Riku's fierce loyalty to his best friend, as they worked flawlessly together in everything they did—

Years of love, of kissing scraped knees and wiping away tears, and always, _always _being there to chase away the shadows of their fears, their nightmares, and often their realities—

Everything had culminated into this.

Sora believed in his best friend, and Riku trusted Sora with his life.

As long as they had each other, nothing could come between them.

Not the darkness, not the light.

They would always be in each other's hearts.

No matter what.

Id stumbled back, raising his keyblades to welcome Riku back into the fight, and a cry of determination tore out of Riku as he sprang towards him, reaching into Sora's heart for strength.

Oblivion flashed with a brilliant power, and Riku swung their keyblade, unleashing a hail of both light and darkness that he hurled straight into Id's laughing face—

And as Riku executed his attack, Sora reached into Riku's heart in return, summoning the keyblade back in a swift swirl of light. Everything happened at once, with Yami and Xehanort closing in on the trinity at the same time, with the bat-winged heartless circling them to unleash another barrage.

"Cover me, guys!"

Goofy hunkered in front of Sora with his shield raised as Donald's solid aero spell sprung up around all three of them, their combined effort forming an impassible barrier—but temporary.

With only a moment to act, Sora drew upon Riku's strength as he plunged the keyblade into the ground, setting his magic free, reinforced with all of his hope, his faith in his friends, and the courage of the hearts who were counting on him.

A luminous circle of magic spread out beneath him, and then grew, branching outward in all directions into a web of smaller circles that erupted into brilliant columns of concentrated light. The light burned through many flying heartless and radiated through the air before the rest could escape, dissolving all of their brethren into clouds of nothingness in one fell swoop.

When the radiance of Sora's attack faded, only Xehanort and Yami remained, but not unscathed. Xehanort had faired the best, both of his double-bladed swords crossed above him in a protective halo, but Yami was down on a knee and his armor had sustained massive damage, the dark suit fragmented along his entire left side and exposing the skintight layer of darkness beneath.

Yami stabbed his sword into the sand and used it to push himself back to his feet, the darkness already bleeding along his body to reform his armor.

Sora stood beside his friends, ready to defend them, but instead of readying the keyblade for another attack, he released his hold on it, feeling Riku call for it. When the keyblade flashed out of existence, Sora didn't fear its loss.

Riku was already in mid-swing when Oblivion appeared in his hand. With a swirl of light, Riku swept one of Id's keyblades aside and ducked the other, hearing Id's frustrated growl as his dark keyblade slammed into the splintered desk and got stuck.

Hope in his heart, Riku took advantage of Id's distraction to roll behind him, and, with Sephiroth's words echoing inside of him, he welcomed his own darkness and felt it spring from his fingertips, flowing through the keyblade into a burst of dark fire that struck Id's back—

And in another flash of light, the keyblade was in Sora's hands, rising to deflect Yami's sword as his friends rushed forward to attack him head-on, Goofy's shield glowing with Donald's focused magic as they barreled into Yami like an unstoppable train.

The impact was powerful enough for Sora to feel a small shockwave as Yami was knocked away from him, Yami's cry of defeat lancing through Sora's heart as he crashed into the sand and fell still.

_Sorry, Yami—!_

Vowing to free his friend from the darkness's grasp as soon as Xehanort was down for the count, Sora whirled towards the heartless, who had taken advantage of the trinity's distraction to approach the white doors alone.

Without hesitation, Sora launched the keyblade through the air, sending it spiraling into the heartless, who flinched and turned to face him.

As the keyblade arched back towards him, Sora chose not to catch it, instead letting it flash out of existence—

—and into Riku's hand as he came out of a roll, barely missing the rays of Id's power that erupted from the floor. Drawing encouragement from Sora's light, Riku counterattacked as soon as he was back on his feet, a large chunk of ice launching from the keyblade and bursting into daggerlike shards that struck Id with staggering force.

"What—!"

Id swiped the icicles off of him, his amber eyes burning with rage.

An undeniable thrill tickled Riku's heart when he recognized _Sora's _magic.

At the same time, Sora ducked between Xehanort's massive claws as they came crashing around him, trying to pull him into their grasp. He stretched a hand out and summoned Oblivion back, feeling Riku's exhilaration course through him as if it were his own. Reacting on instinct, Sora let that exhilaration fuel him as he charged Xehanort, sliding forward with impossible speed as he drove the keyblade into the heartless.

Xehanort reeled back with a furious howl, one of his hooves flying forward and slamming into Sora's stomach, knocking the breath out of him and throwing him to the ground. His heartless claws swooped towards Sora before he could recover, snatching him from the sand and lifting him into the air, constricting around him with crushing force.

"Gck—"

Overwhelming pressure wracked his body, his mind dwindling to a hazy gray as the world spun around him, agony laced with every panicked thought.

_Sora—don't you dare give up now!_

Sora's heart leapt.

_Riku!_

Fighting unconsciousness, Sora held onto Riku's unwavering spirit inside of him, and the keyblade responded, humming with a medley of their powers. Darkness and light enveloped him in a tangible aura, and then—

Freedom.

Sora fell to the ground, disoriented but alive and still clutching Oblivion, his body tingling from the effects of another cure spell—but not the minty familiarity of Donald's magic. Picking himself up, Sora caught a glimpse of the dark aura as it faded around him, and he knew then that Riku had protected him, even stranded in the darkness.

_Thanks, Riku…_

He flicked the keyblade out and tightened his grip on it as he charged back into the battle, Donald and Goofy both struggling to keep ahead of Xehanort's powerful attacks. Even when he had been distracted with Sora, his darkness hadn't relented, creating large pools of shadow to snare them in place as he'd conjured more winged heartless to finish them off.

Sora cut through one of the bat-winged snipers right as it tried to fire its lasers, then whirled around to whack another, sending it hurtling into a third. As Donald's thunder spells rained around them and Goofy's shield bashed into one heartless after another, Sora released Oblivion when Riku called for it—

—to defend himself as Id's keyblades came crashing in front of him, erupting spears of ice to pierce him. Riku leapt back and jerked the keyblade through the icicles, shattering them, and lunged forward to strike Id down.

A grin spread across Id's face as Riku landed a successful blow—

"Heh, where are you hitting?"

Only for Id's voice to come from behind!

Id's foot smashed into his back and sent him sprawling onto the ground where he had been attacking Id's shadow.

Oblivion vanished, summoned back to Sora, and with no time to pick himself up, Riku rolled out of the way as Id's keyblades plunged into the floor where his chest had been. What he hadn't been anticipating was the attack that came from below as Id's darkness exploded upward from the keyblade, erupting into smaller spheres of fiery shadow that scorched Riku's skin and hair.

Gritting his teeth, Riku rolled his weight onto his back and then kicked forward, slamming into Id's torso as he flew back to his feet, then swiftly handsprung away as Id sliced at him. A deadly shockwave of Id's power rushed past him, fiery and shaped like crossed blades, and burned clean through another bookcase, shelves collapsing in on themselves and scattering charred books.

In that same moment, columns of Xehanort's darkness swept past Sora with typhoon force, frigid and intense enough to freeze the edges of his hoodie as he rushed forward and rolled right between two of the tornadoes.

Sora was back to his feet an instant later, charging at Xehanort with Oblivion at his side. The heartless's blue markings radiated with unspoken power as he controlled his dark tornadoes, too distracted to notice Sora closing in on him.

Sora drew on Riku's strength and courage and struck the heartless with relentless force—

—as Riku called Oblivion and slung another dark fire spell at Id—

—before Sora summoned the keyblade again, then again, and again, laying into Xehanort without mercy, and for each swing he took, the keyblade disappeared in a shimmer of light each time the blade pulled away, only gone for the briefest of seconds—

Because Riku was doing the exact same thing, trading the keyblade with Sora as their hearts acted as one, Riku anticipating Sora's every move as Sora anticipated Riku's, and Riku knew without a doubt that Oblivion would be there in his hand whenever he landed a strike.

Riku slung magical spells he knew Sora knew but he himself had never cast before—lightning crackling through the room, fire igniting fallen books, ice crusting over the rug.

Likewise, Sora found himself summoning powers he knew weren't his own, Riku's unique strength flowing from his fingers and melding with his into a fierce darkness that took many forms—dark flames and shadowy swords raining upon Xehanort's heartless.

He drove Xehanort away from the white doors, borrowing Riku's agility to dodge Xehanort's swift strikes, and called upon Riku's strength to help him block the ferocious attacks he couldn't escape.

And no matter how many times Sora let the keyblade go, it always returned to him when he called, his heart and actions completely in sync with Riku's.

Together, they were almost unstoppable.

Almost.

Desperate to smother Riku's sudden power, Id streaked a wave of black flames at Riku, catching him in it and plunging him into darkness.

Everything went dark around Riku as the darkness infested his eyes, throwing his senses into confusion, but Oblivion's steadfast power still came to him when he called for it.

And, deep inside his heart:

An unwavering wellspring of warmth he had come to recognize as his best friend's own strength.

_Sora—_

Riku reached for Sora's support, and the warmth inside of him flared in response.

An intense light blossomed around him and seared through the darkness, and for a split second, Riku could have sworn he saw Sora—there, a shimmering ghost amongst the light, shielding Riku against the shadow keyblades that Id had summoned to catch him unaware.

The light billowed outward and drove Id back, dissolving his shadowy keyblades into nothing and corroding large sections of his darksuit. Then the figment of Sora vanished, its job done, and left Riku facing an outraged Id.

The light surrounding him didn't fade, not completely. It filled him with an incredible but quiet energy that resonated with the keyblade's song, and his heart shuddered as it called to him the way the darkness used to.

Riku threw the keyblade into the air and opened his heart completely to the power, feeling it flow through him—and through Sora, whose arm was raised high in the air, the glowing outline of a keyblade clutched in his hand as he stood before Xehanort.

Magic circles blossomed beneath Sora and Riku, illuminating them at the same time.

Id staggered back and tried to regroup his darkness to heal himself, just as Xehanort staggered from Donald and Goofy's magic shield combo drive. All humor was absent when they saw the keyblade wielders embrace their true power.

As Riku concentrated on the power growing within him and Sora, Sora did the same, the rest of the world fading as he focused his and Riku's strength, their powers melding with perfect harmony.

Their hearts resonated as one…

And so they were one.

The darkness ripped open above them.

Countless gleaming stars rained down on them, driving straight through Id and Xehanort's bodies and piercing into the ground around them in a heart-shaped ring. As the light cut through them, Id screamed and recoiled, more of his suit melting away, and Xehanort howled with rage, drawing his swords up to protect himself.

"You _insolent_, little—!"

When the last of the glowing stars came to a rest in their heart-shaped pattern, their sleek forms became visible.

They weren't stars at all, but the ghosts of keyblades, shining with the strength of their masters' hearts.

Moving together, Riku and Sora thrust Oblivion into the magic circles beneath them.

Then, with all the calm of a knight drawing his sword, they both wrapped their hands around the hilts of two ghostly keyblades each, out of the many that made up the heart-shaped rings that encircled their foes, and drew the blades from the ground.

Xehanort and Id were anything but calm as they focused their attention on Sora and Riku.

Throwing his head back, Xehanort curled his claws in the air and bellowed, his voice trembling through Sora and his friends.

"All shall be extinguished!"

A massive sphere of darkness materialized around him and suddenly swelled, swallowing him before sweeping across the sand with torrential ferocity to envelope Sora and his friends with him, plunging them all into a world crafted from Xehanort's darkness.

But despite Xehanort's power surrounding them, Sora's ghostly keyblades lingered, two still clutched in his hands, the rest standing erect in a heart-shaped ring around the heartless. With his heart thundering inside of him, Sora turned to face the monster that had led them all the way out here.

Id, too, wasn't just going to stand around and let Riku embarrass him.

Riku could feel the darkness shifting around him, gathering around Id with alarming intensity, but the power singing inside of Riku kept him from being afraid. Whatever Id tried to do, Riku could handle it as long as he and Sora worked together.

He clutched the ghostly keyblades with resolve and watched as Id began to hover off the ground in front of him, the tendrils of his darksuit lashing angrily at the air.

The darkness converged into three distinct clockwork gears of shadow that framed Id's body in a triangle of power. His amber eyes thinned to slits, murder reflected in the gaze he focused on Riku.

"Didn't I tell you before?"

Id swung both of his keyblades toward Riku.

"There's no escape!"

Streams of concentrated darkness shot out of the gears and triangled into a single point at the ends of the keyblades, fusing into a river of dark energy that coursed straight for Riku.

Even though Riku had been ready for the attack, when he spun past the deadly flood of darkness, the beam followed him. He ducked through the debris of the room to keep ahead of the darkness, his ghostly keyblades raised and ready as he honed in on Id's back—

—right as Sora ducked through a swarm of black portals as heartless invaded Xehanort's dark world. He put his trust in Donald and Goofy to cover his back as he zeroed in on Xehanort's exposed side, his own keyblades angled and ready to strike—

—and they plunged their first set of keyblades into Id and Xehanort without mercy.

The darkness recoiled and began to sear away, but neither of the boys stopped there. As soon as their weapons struck, the ghostly blades burst into fragments of light, and both Sora and Riku spun towards the next pair of keyblades, drawing them out of the heart-ring of blades.

Two by two, Riku and Sora sank the keyblade into their enemies, moving faster and faster with each pair until the best friends were mere blurs of light, channeling each other's power and fueled by the hearts of everyone who believed in them.

When the last of the ghostly keyblades struck their final blows, Sora and Riku landed back inside of their magic circles, as Xehanort and Id collapsed, haggard and hardly keeping themselves together.

Sora reached down, his fingers closing around the hilt of the shimmering blade he had driven into the ground, and as he withdrew it, its light fell away like glitter, exposing Oblivion.

The light of the magic circle followed the keyblade, curling at its tip like a ball of ribbon and rapidly growing into a brilliant sphere, the energy washing through Sora with its soul deep warmth, its light so intense like the sun that he couldn't look anywhere near it.

Closing his other hand around the hilt, he raised the keyblade over his head.

"You're finished, Xehanort!"

And with all of his strength, he slammed the keyblade down with one mighty strike, unleashing all of its power.

A tidal wave of light swept through Xehanort, all of his heartless, and shattered the dark world he had conjured.

A howl of defeat resounded in the abyss as Xehanort writhed, shadows cascading off of him and dropping into black pools in the sand. He crumpled into his own darkness, too weak to hold onto his powerful form, and Sora knew he was done with.

Turning away from Xehanort, Sora rushed back to Donald and Goofy to join them, and Oblivion's sleek form vanished from his grasp.

As the keyblade appeared in his hand, Riku stood before Id, watching him reeling from the impressive light attack he and Sora had released through the darkness. For that one intense instant, Id's domain had been as bright as day, and the warmth of the light had felt like stepping out beneath the Destiny Islands sun once again.

Disoriented from the overwhelming attack, Id stumbled and fell against a demolished bookshelf, panting for breath. The darkness of his suit was beginning to disintegrate slowly, baring patches of pale skin, only this time the shadows had no strength to reknit the suit.

Still feeling Sora's heart synchronized with his own, Riku calmly approached the fallen Sora lookalike to finish him off for good.

"You… put up a good fight," Id laughed, his voice hoarse as he clutched himself. His keyblades lay fallen at his feet. "But you still can't escape."

"Just give it up already," Riku said. "You're through." He pressed Oblivion to Id's pale chest and watched as the darkness peeled off of him and fell to the floor in lifeless ribbons. "You can't even hold onto your own darkness."

Donald and Goofy were leaning over the fallen Yami, Goofy with his shield raised as Donald cast a healing spell on the unmoving figure.

"Careful, guys!" Sora called, and for good reason.

As soon as the green glow of the spell faded from around Yami, an aura of darkness bloomed and shrouded him. He stirred, grunting softly as he began to pick himself up, his dark armor as good as new—which gave Sora a very, very bad feeling.

If Xehanort was done for, why wasn't Yami free?

Goofy and Donald quickly backed away, ready to continue the fight.

With a burst of darkness, Yami summoned his sword back to him and whirled towards Sora's friends, lifting his weapon into the air.

"Look _out_!"

A shadowy clock faded into existence in front of them, its hands rotating to a dead stop, freezing them in a powerful time spell. Then, just as Sora reached his friends and ducked between them to defend them, Yami sank into a pool of darkness and out of sight.

"No!"

Sora glanced around, his heart missing a beat for fear that his former friend was gone for good—

But then the ground beneath him erupted into shadows, and a massive claw of darkness swept around him as Yami shot out of the portal, throwing Sora into the air.

Flailing, Sora cried out and landed a distance away, rolling to a stop before he could fall off the edge into the abyss.

Knowing he had to get back to his friends and _fast_, Sora leapt back to his feet. An abrupt pain shot through his ankle, but Sora gritted his teeth and beared it and raced back to Donald and Goofy without hesitation.

Riku held Oblivion to Id's chest where his heart would be, but he hesitated, sensing something wrong.

If he did this, would all of the worlds return to normal? If Id was gone, would he get his own body back? Would he be able to go home with his friends?

He didn't know, but… if it meant he had a chance to get out of this place, he sure was willing to try.

Wait—why was Id smirking at him?

"You're still on my turf, idiot."

Shadows sprang up around Riku without warning and snapped around his limbs, jerking his keyblade aside and yanking him towards Id before he could react.

His heart leapt with panic as Id drew him against his chest, the darkness lashing their bodies together as Id's darksuit continued to melt. Riku could feel the shadows slither against him as if welcoming him back, and his eyes widened when he felt Id's darkness tug him even closer—not just against Id, but _into _him—because it wasn't just Id's darksuit that was melting, it was _all of him_.

Riku had won the fight—but he had played right into what Id had wanted.

Hurrying back to Donald and Goofy, Sora held onto the strength in his heart that he recognized as Riku's, knowing he'd need his friend's speed. As he raced across the sand, he reached out to Yami's heart, too, seeking the part of Yami he knew would recognize him.

_Kairi—I know you're in there!_

Yami already had his sword raised for another attack.

"YAMI, _stop it!_"

The darkness above them opened up, releasing fiery meteorites that cut through the abyss and plummeted straight towards them.

"_YAMI!_"

Sora slid in front of Donald and Goofy, his arms spread wide as the spell came crashing around them—

_Sora!_

But didn't make contact.

Heart fluttering, Sora glanced up through the smoke and shadow to see radiant domes of magic surrounding each of them.

Kairi's power.

Beneath Yami's dark armor, the veins of light began to spread again, as Kairi's heart tried to reach Sora's.

She had heard him! She was trying to fight back!

"You can do it, Kairi!"

Sora reached back to her heart, crying out as Yami lifted his sword to strike him down through Kairi's light.

"Yami—you gotta fight the darkness!"

Yami wasn't stopping…

Was the darkness too strong for Kairi's light to waver its hold on Yami's heart?

Sora called for Oblivion to defend himself—

But as the keyblade appeared, he felt Riku's panic.

He needed his help.

There was no time—!

As Kairi's light flickered and faded, Yami's sword came down upon Sora, blurring with the speed and ferocity of his dark magic.

And in that moment, Sora knew he couldn't protect himself _and _protect Riku. Not this time. He couldn't hold onto the keyblade and sacrifice his best friend to the darkness.

Holding his breath, he released ownership of their one weapon.

Oblivion flashed to life in Riku's hand, and out of Sora's.

As he felt the rush of Yami's attack, Sora squeezed his eyes shut to brace himself for the pain—

—and as Id dragged Riku into himself to bury his heart in darkness, Riku cut the keyblade through the shadows and drove the blade straight into Id's chest.

—and Yami's attack flew _past _Sora.

Shining with a brilliant light, Yami's sword plunged into the dark figure that had been prepared to strike Sora down from behind:

Xehanort's heartless.

Sora whirled around to find Xehanort's blades only inches from his face.

His breath caught at the look of utter fury in the heartless's eyes as they both realized what had happened.

Yami had protected Sora.

Xehanort's blades melted into shadow as the heartless staggered back, losing control of his own power again. He began to shed the shadows that had transformed him, his guardian's visage peeling away like black cobwebs.

Still pierced through Xehanort's chest, Yami's weapon radiated with a fierce power, and through its intense light, Sora saw the transformed shape of Yami's sword.

A keyblade.

"Xeha…"

Hollowed by his dark helmet, Yami's voice struggled out of him, breathless and hoarse with exertion.

"…_nort_…"

Then Yami's keyblade shattered, scattering into countless fragments of light between Yami and Xehanort.

With a scream, Yami stumbled back and clutched his helmet, and the veins of light branched through his armor, splintering it. He crashed to his knees and clawed at the helmet's darkness, tearing off clumps of shadow.

"Sora!"

Donald and Goofy, free from Yami's magic, tried pulling Sora to safety as Xehanort collapsed in front of them.

Intense darkness poured out of his wounds and Id's as they both strained to hold themselves together.

Riku's fingers tightened around Oblivion's hilt and shoved the blade deeper into Id.

The darkness flooded over Riku's body, seeping through his clothes and into his skin to inch towards his heart, trapping him in Id's dark embrace.

But as the shadows surged around him, Riku clung to the keyblade and the light of Sora's heart.

Even when Id's voice flowed through him, laced with venom and vainglory—

"Now you're _mine_—"

Riku wasn't afraid.

"Y-Yami!"

Caught amongst the torrent of darkness, Yami strained to free himself, locks of pale hair slipping free as he tore a handful of darkness away from his face. Through the cracks in the helmet, Sora could see his amber eyes wild with panic.

"Guys—we've got bigger problems!" Donald cried.

Xehanort straightened himself as the rest of the shadows fell away, and though he was humanlike again and free from his guardian's empowering darkness, he was no less dangerous.

He focused on Sora, his eyes thinned with vengeance, and began to chuckle.

"You weak-hearted fools…"

Feeling Riku's presence in his heart, deep and unyielding but reaching out to him for support, Sora reached back without hesitation to give him the light he needed, and he borrowed Riku's courage to bolster his own as he stood before Xehanort's heartless, face to face again.

Xehanort's smile curled with malice.

"You have no power to stop me, not here in the endless abyss where my darkness is fathomless!"

He turned towards the tall white doors and spread his arms.

"Kingdom Hearts—" His fingers curled in the air as if relishing the sight of the enormous doors. "—_supreme _darkness—" As if responding to his call, the doors trembled. "—give me your power!"

Then, with a distinct hollow sound, they began to crack open.

It couldn't be…

Dark smoke rolled out of the crack, scintilla of shadow lashing out of the black nothingness as if wanting to release its darkness.

Xehanort's face filled with elation. "The final darkness is nigh!"

But why darkness?

Sora couldn't believe it.

After how hard they'd fought—had it all been for nothing?

Sora's heart thundered inside of him as he watched the doors, trying not to feel helpless.

Something called Kingdom Hearts… It shouldn't be made out of darkness. Not after what he'd learned about hearts.

Clenching his jaw, he raced towards the doors, determined not to give up now. They were all exhausted, too exhausted for another battle, but something had to be done, and _someone _had to do it!

"Sora!"

His friends called after him in warning, but it was too late—

Sora crashed into Xehanort as the heartless suddenly teleported in front of him, blurring out of the darkness in the blink of an eye.

"What do you hope to accomplish?" he laughed, hovering between Sora and the shadows pouring out of the doors. "You alone cannot seal the door to darkness."

But deep down, Sora could feel Riku struggling against the darkness, he could feel Riku's _light_, and Sora sent his best friend all of the strength he could.

"That's where you're wrong," he told Xehanort. He clenched his fists at his sides and glared up at the heartless. "I'm _not _alone."

As long as his heart was connected to Riku's, he would never be alone.

Down in the darkness, Riku was suffocating, relying on Sora's light and the keyblade's power to keep him focused as the shadows constricted around him, within him, worming deeper into him to infect his heart. Id's presence filled him, igniting new senses and stirring his own darkness with excitement, but Riku kept fighting it as he struggled to breathe.

The keyblade—it was burning?

Light?

He could sense _light_…

Through the haziness of his mind and the endless darkness, Riku saw Oblivion and the shimmering radiance enveloping it.

Light…

Sora pressed a hand over his heart, filled with certainty.

"And if Kingdom Hearts _is _a heart, it's like all other hearts!"

Xehanort gave him a withering smile. "Born from darkness and destined to return to darkness." Gesturing at Sora dismissively, he shoved him aside with a burst of darkness as if he were nothing, and approached the doors. "I tire of your children's games."

"_No_—"

Xehanort paused.

With a glance over his shoulder, he watched as Sora's weary friends helped him back up, Goofy supporting Sora's weight as Donald managed a small healing spell.

Sora curled his fingers back over his racing heart, his friends' support giving him the courage to continue.

He thought about the moment he had met the boy named Yami, the hatred and the darkness they had faced in each another, and then the trials they had faced together as friends. He thought about the darkness that Yami's heart had once been steeped in, and he thought about the light that Kairi had helped both of them find within it. There was a reason she had been so determined to protect him—the same reason Sora had trusted Yami with his life.

Then there was Riku.

Darkness or no, Riku's darkness was only so strong because his _heart_ was so strong.

"If there's one thing I've learned about hearts," Sora said, his voice composed with hope, "it's that even in the darkest of hearts—deep down—there's always _light!_"

For just a moment, the darkness seemed to strengthen, and Xehanort began to laugh.

Until something beyond the doors awoken.

Blinding rays of light came streaming through the cracked doors, shining with the brilliance of countless hearts.

"_NO!_"

Xehanort's heartless raised his arms, his amber eyes widened with disbelief as Kingdom Heart's radiance filled the abyss with its purifying power, and swathed everyone within it.

"_IT CAN'T __**BE**__!_"

With a deafening scream, Xehanort twisted away from the doors, and Sora watched until the very last moment as he disappeared into the glaring flood of light.

Then someone's cold hand shielded Sora's eyes, protecting him, and he welcomed the soothing reprieve as the deep warmth of the light washed through all of them.

-o-o-

A numbness spread along Riku's consciousness, no longer feeling the darkness as it laced itself within his nerves.

He couldn't tell if Id had buried himself in his heart yet. All that was left of him was his darkness.

All Riku knew, through his fading awareness, was that the light hadn't died…

…no…

The light was_ growing_…

What was happening…?

A gentle warmth bloomed in his heart, and he felt _him_—

Sora was reaching for him.

It wasn't a hand or voice, but it was there, stalwart and real.

His friends were still fighting for him.

Riku reached back with the last of his strength and held onto his best friend's heart, trusting him, even as a mind-searing white enveloped his senses. He welcomed the light, letting it burn through him, knowing it wouldn't kill him—he wasn't the darkness, he wasn't _Id_—he was _Riku_.

And as long as his best friend believed in him, he would never fade into that darkness.

-o-o-

When the comfort of the light finally faded, the hand shielding Sora's eyes was no longer chilled by the darkness. It was warm.

As the fingers slipped away from his face, Sora blinked a few times and stared off into the empty abyss.

He wasn't sure what he had been expecting.

Darkness? A body?

But Xehanort's heartless was gone.

The door to darkness was no longer pouring out either darkness or light. Beyond it, all Sora could see was more black abyss and white sand.

They had to close it once and for all.

Sora turned to his friends to check on them—

And he was met by a pair of eyes as blue as the deep ocean.

His heart thumped with surprise as he took a step back, realizing who he was staring at.

Yami offered him a small smile.

His dark armor was completely gone, leaving him in the silver coat he had been wearing before he had fallen into the darkness. He looked fine, showing no signs that the darkness was lingering in him. If anything, the light of Kingdom Hearts must have purified him even more than Kairi had.

"Your eyes…"

As Yami blinked in confusion, Sora grinned at him a little.

"They're blue now."

Beside them, Donald and Goofy covered their mouths and laughed quietly as if not wanting to interrupt.

But instead of reacting to the news, Yami focused past Sora, and those blue eyes widened a fraction.

"The door…"

When Sora whirled around to see what was wrong, he felt his stomach sink with dread.

Shadows were creeping through the crack in the doors again.

"Come on, guys!"

Summoning Oblivion, Sora rushed to the doors to close them, his friends in pursuit behind him.

-o-o-

"Hey—Riku!"

The first thing Riku felt was the heaviness in his heart, a burden there that wasn't his own.

Then there was the full body ache.

Groaning, he grimaced at the hands shaking him and aggravating the bruises that seemed to cover him from head to toe.

"Pal, you gotta wake up!"

Wait… He knew that voice.

"Your majesty…?" he rasped. He squinted through the shadows, wondering if this was Id's idea of a sick joke.

But then he saw the two round ears and hopeful smile on Mickey's face, and he knew that this was real.

"Mickey!"

He bolted upright—and then immediately regretted it, a bone-deep pain clawing along his nerves whenever he moved.

"Agghh…"

"Oh gosh!" his friend gasped, and Riku felt hands rest on his chest. "This should help."

A green glow emanated from beneath Mickey's hands, and a soothing cure spell trickled through Riku, immediately relieving most of his aches. He cracked a smile at the mouse king, not hiding his gratitude. "Thanks."

That weight in his heart hadn't left, though. The only thing that comforted him about it was that it didn't feel anything like Id's darkness. No, he wouldn't be forgetting _that_ darkness any time soon.

Riku glanced around, realizing he didn't even know where he was anymore. He recognized the white sand of the world of darkness, and while that would have filled him with despair to see normally, he was just comforted to know he wasn't in Id's grasp anymore.

The winding path led deeper into the darkness one way, but the other way…

Was the end of the road.

A pair of immense white doors towered above them, one of them cracked open.

The door to darkness.

Beyond them, he could hear voices.

Familiar voices.

His heart trembled as emotion swelled inside of him, and suddenly he was on his feet and stumbling to the doors.

"Sora?"

He could hear him—

He could _feel _him there, not just in his heart, but close by, on the other side of the door!

Heart in his throat, he grasped the edge of the door and looked beyond it.

Sora's sky blue eyes.

They were all he saw at first, widened with alarm.

"R-Riku…"

Then—

"Riku!"

The utmost relief, followed by a smile that was both radiant and watery with emotion.

Surprised remarks came from behind the door, both Donald and Goofy sounding ecstatic, and then there was Yami's relieved laughter, someone he hadn't expected to hear.

A hundred questions ran through Riku's mind, but before he could utter even one, Mickey's voice drew him back to the task at hand.

"The door, Riku!"

"Your majesty?" Donald cried, his face appearing near Sora's waist. He squawked with happiness when he saw Mickey's small form behind Riku. "Your majesty!"

Now Goofy peeked in above Sora's head, ahyucking. "We've been lookin' all over for ya!"

Mickey's hurried expression softened when he saw his friends, but then he nodded, his brows drawing together with resolve. "Our job isn't over, everyone. The door to darkness _has_ to be sealed." Then, pointedly focusing on Sora: "Sora, we're gonna need your help."

"No problem, your honor! Er, your majesty!"

Sora flashed him a confident grin before he settled his gaze back on Riku.

"First, let's get you guys out of there."

On the other side of the door, Sora's hand stretched towards him.

Not too unlike the hand he had offered Sora when they had left Destiny Islands.

But now this hand was leading him out of the darkness.

Riku reached past the door and grasped Sora's hand securely, and their fingers laced together, warm and reassuring.

Real.

"Wak! Look!"

"Gawrsh, guys! Heartless!"

Still clutching Sora's hand, Riku glanced behind him, dread weighing his spirits.

The massive heartless of the world of darkness were rising around the white road, towering above them.

"Darksides—" Mickey flicked his wrist out, and his keyblade flashed into existence. "I'll take care of 'em!" He paused to glance meaningfully at Riku. "Remember what I told you about the door."

Riku watched as the small king raced into the forest of heartless, more and more rising out of the deep abyss, attracted to the open door, or maybe the hearts gathered around it.

The door to darkness…

The one they had come to close.

The one in which only shadows could pass through.

It felt like it had been forever since Mickey had told him about it even though he couldn't have been fighting with Id for long. Had he?

Riku focused on his hand clasped in Sora's.

He wasn't a shadow. He wouldn't be able to pass through the door.

That was what Mickey had been reminding him.

In other words… This was another goodbye.

Clenching his jaw, Riku fought to find the words to tell Sora the truth, but Sora was watching him, waiting for him, such hope in his eyes. Not only their hands were connected, but their hearts, too. Maybe… just maybe that might be enough?

Riku nodded to Sora, and with a determined look, Sora began to pull Riku out from beyond the door to darkness, trying to slip him through the narrow crack.

They got as far as Riku's shoulder before an excruciating pain flared up inside of him.

He retreated with a cry as veins of intense light shot up his arm and burst between them, throwing Riku to the ground away from Sora, and the recoil of light was powerful enough to creak the doors open even more. Shadows of the world of darkness began to snake through the ajar doors, and the darksides that Mickey was battling all turned towards the doors, slowly approaching them.

"What was that?" Sora cried, actually looking scared. "What happened?"

He started to reach through the doors to get to Riku again, and Riku grimaced as another explosion of light drove his best friend to the ground.

So then it was true. Mickey had been right.

Riku picked himself up, his voice soft with regret. "Only shadows can pass through the door to darkness, Sora…" He swallowed hard and tried to quell the rise of emotions, not wanting to worry Sora. He had to stay strong and show him that he'd be okay. "I can't go with you."

"But—" Sora's face filled with panic and confusion. "Light came out of it! I saw it! It got rid of Xehanort's heartless and saved Yami!"

"There's no time!" Mickey called. He flipped into the sand behind Riku, his tiny body wracked with heavy breaths from trying to hold off the darksides by himself. "Don't worry, Sora. There'll always be a door to the light, and we'll find it! But right now, we've gotta close—WAHH!"

A sphere of darkness crashed into Mickey, knocking him into the sand, and Riku's heart missed a beat.

"Mickey!"

He knelt beside the small king and helped him back up.

As Mickey breathlessly thanked him and fearlessly leapt back into the horde of heartless, Riku hesitated.

He looked back at Sora, and their eyes met.

Both of them knew right then that they didn't have any other choice.

This wasn't duty versus happiness. This wasn't his best friend versus the worlds.

The darkness that had been consuming the worlds up until now had just been child's play compared to the darkness that could come out if they didn't seal the door to darkness. It was up to them to close the doors. No one else.

They had come this far. What was this one sacrifice compared to all of the selfish mistakes he had made?

And Sora…

He knew now that Sora could take care of himself.

All along, Sora had been stuck in his shadow. As soon as Sora had had a chance to shine on his own, he had flourished.

Riku wanted that.

Riku wanted to find his own strength, too, to master the darkness that he had discovered inside of him. _His _own darkness.

So until they could meet again, Riku would be the darkness.

And Sora could be the light.

Riku's expression grew grave as he curled his hands against the door, ready.

His gaze unwavering from Riku's, Sora swallowed past a knot in his throat and gave a shaky nod.

Seems like he had come to a conclusion of his own. Though neither of them wanted this sacrifice, they had accepted it.

Sora's hands clutched the other side of the door and began to push, just as Riku tightened his grip against the smooth surface and began to pull.

Then, one by one, other hands joined them:

Donald's feathery wings.

Goofy's large gloves.

Yami's tanned fingers.

Together, they strained and put all of their weight into moving the massive door, and together, they watched as it began to creak closed, centimeter by slow centimeter.

A thump and a whisper of sand announced Mickey's return, his keyblade emanating a powerful glow that Riku could see from the corner of his eyes.

"Phew—that was close!"

With a glance, Riku saw that Mickey had managed to drive the darksides back beyond the first bend in the road—not far, but far enough to buy them time.

Mickey moved to join Riku at the door, still clutching the keyblade as he began pulling the door shut, too.

"Let's seal this together, Sora! We'll need your key from that side!"

Another determined nod, but Sora said nothing, his expression filled with resolve.

Then Mickey focused on his two friends, eyes full of hope. "Donald, Goofy…" An incredibly warm smile crossed his face. "Thank you."

Nothing else needed to be said.

The loyal duck and dog—Sora and Riku's friends both, and Mickey's dear old friends—returned Mickey's smile and began pushing against the door even harder.

When the door only had inches left to close, Riku felt Sora's fingers brush against his.

Riku lifted his gaze to meet Sora's.

They were filled with a thousand things that Sora wanted to tell him, but Riku understood. There were a thousand things he wanted to tell Sora, too.

And in that moment, it wasn't sadness that Riku felt.

It was gratitude.

With all of the love he felt for his best friend, he reached out with his heart to reassure Sora…

And smiled.

"Remember," he said softly. "No matter what."

Then he slipped his fingers free, watching as Sora's blue eyes disappeared beyond the door.

The door closed on Riku's smile with a resounding thud.

_No matter what. _

Sora stood there, his jaw trembling, with his hands pressed to the door, and tried not to cry.

He knew exactly what those parting words had meant.

It was the promise they had made. With Oathkeeper pressed between them and tears in their eyes, Riku had promised him that he would always be his best friend. No matter what.

Wiping at his eye, Sora sniffled and pulled away from the doors, reaching out to summon Oblivion.

Their trusty keyblade came without hesitation, and that was how Sora moved—without thought or hesitation, not _wanting _to think about what had just happened.

Riku was gone, but now Sora had a job to do.

He raised the keyblade into the air and opened his heart to its power, imagining that Mickey must have been doing the same on the other side.

An intense glow shimmered around the keyblade and gathered at its tip, swirling and growing into a radiant sphere.

Light poured from the thresholds of the doors, radiating upward with glittering energy, and enveloped the doors until all they could see was light. Then the light gently flared, reaching its pinnacle, and began to dwindle.

The doors faded with it, dissolving into twinkling sparkles before vanishing into the darkness forever.

When the sealing was finished, all that was left was a pale road winding into nothingness.

Lowering Oblivion, Sora wrenched his eyes shut and finally let a few tears slip free.

The door to darkness was sealed, but he felt like he had sealed away part of his heart with it.

He sniffled and clutched Oblivion, trying to take comfort in Riku's faint presence in his heart. He heard Donald and Goofy whispering to each other with concern, but Sora didn't mind being a baby in front of them.

He didn't look up until he felt something cold slip around his neck.

Sniffling again, Sora blinked past tears, surprised to find Yami smiling at him.

"I think that belongs to you," he said, nodding to what he had given Sora.

A familiar crown pendant now rested over his heart.

Oh.

Something about the kind gesture lifted some of the weight off Sora's heart, and he couldn't resist a small smile in return.

"Thanks…"

Yami reached out to wipe Sora's tears away, his blue eyes warm with affection. "Any time."

Wondering about Yami's new eye color, he stared up at him, liking to think Kairi had something to do with it. The color wasn't quite right, though… Still, it was nice to be reminded that she was in there, watching in silence.

Yami's lips curled into a smirk. "What are you staring at?" he chuckled, and his fingers flew out to ruffle Sora's hair.

"Ack!"

Sora danced away and fixed his hair, feeling warmth spring to his cheeks. He was about to feel indignant, until he remembered he still had something to do.

Right.

He smiled up at Yami. "Thanks for saving me… Xehanort." Ugh—but it felt so weird calling him that. But wait, maybe it hadn't been Xehanort… "Or was it Kairi?" he asked, hopeful.

Yami's warm smile returned. "Both of us."

Glad Kairi was there, too, Sora broke into a grin and folded his arms behind his head. That was good. Maybe he'd get Yami to make him a new Oathkeeper pendant, and maybe when they found Riku again, they could all make a new promise.

Yeah, he liked that.

"Then… thanks for saving me, Yami," he said.

Something crossed Yami's face, then, some kind of acceptance. He curled a hand beneath his chin and nodded, looking amused.

"Sounds good enough to me."

Both Donald and Goofy began laughing nearby, and when Sora joined them, they tugged him into a small triumphant dance as Yami watched on in amusement.

They had done it— they had beaten Xehanort's heartless and _survived,_ and he felt untouchable!

He knelt down and scooped Donald into a happy hug, ignoring the duck's squawk of surprise. Goofy ahyucked and grabbed him, too, the three of them piling in a celebratory embrace.

As he laughed and relaxed with his friends, he glanced up at Yami, noticing he wasn't joining them.

No, Yami's gaze was focused on something in the distance, his pale brows furrowed with intrigue.

"Look…"

Beyond the gray road where the door to darkness used to stand, gray islands were spreading within the abyss, growing and flourishing into entire worlds, a myriad of colors dotting the monochrome landscape as the worlds that had fallen to darkness began to rebuild themselves.

Countless twinkling lights filtered out of the darkness and flowed into the lands, hundreds upon hundreds of golden stars.

They were hearts, returning home.

And that's when Sora saw it:

Palm trees, springing up from a golden shoreline, the pinks and blues and greens of a tropical paradise—and a lone paopu tree.

Destiny Islands.

Home.

It sprung into existence in front of him and began to spread into the darkness, all of the familiar places of his childhood being built in front of him. He saw the play island, he saw his house, Riku's house, he saw the docks and the fish market, even his school…

The shoreline was just a step away. He could go home. Both him and Kairi.

He tilted his head back and watched with awe as golden lights coursed through the abyss above him, flowing into the growing islands, all of the hearts of his friends and family and neighbors—everyone he had ever known before this long adventure.

They were all going to be okay.

All except one.

Sora didn't take that small step towards home.

Instead, he watched in silence as his islands faded into the glimmering lights, returning to its rightful place amongst the stars.

His job wasn't over until his best friend could return home with him.

Sealing the door to darkness had only been the beginning of his journey.

Slowly, Sora lowered himself into the white sand and set Oblivion in front of him.

As Yami came to sit beside him, they exchanged small, understanding smiles. He knew what Sora had just sacrificed, because he had already done it, too.

Then Donald and Goofy flopped into the sand on his other side, and Sora yelped, brushing sand off himself as his friends laughed at him.

A comfortable silence settled amongst the four of them as they sat side by side on the winding road of the abyss as the worlds reformed around them.

And together, they watched with a gentle peace in their hearts as all of the stars returned to the sky without them.

-o-o-

* * *

_Epilogue to come. _


	48. Epilogue: Strength to Believe

_Author Notes: _

Back in 2002, barely weeks after the first Kingdom Hearts came out, I started writing tidbits between Riku and Sora that made me fall in love with them as a pairing. The universe of KH inspired me in so many ways that I could barely keep my mind wrapped around it. It rekindled my love for Disney, reawakened my inner child, and solidified my love for Final Fantasy, Squaresoft (now Square-Enix), and Tetsuya Nomura forever.

Back then, I had no idea how I would spend the next nine years. I assumed I would have finished one of my original stories by now. I never imagined I would spend all those years trying to finish something as simple as a fanfic based on a tiny what-if idea I had: "What if Sora had taken Riku's hand in the beginning of the game?"

Nine years.

What the hell was I thinking?

But you know what? I don't regret it.

Here's to you, Stygian Solace. Here's to you, brave reader, who made it this far. And here's to everyone who told me I'd never finish this.

I DID IT!

(Also, spoilers for everything ahead!)

* * *

_**Epilogue: **Strength to Believe_

-o-o-

Evening had settled her wings over the grassy crossroads.

Sora lay beneath the gorgeous heavens, his arms folded beneath his head as he proudly stared up at the midnight blue sky speckled with the flickering gold hearts of other worlds.

He wondered, not for the first time, which one of those stars was home.

Around him, his friends were setting up camp for the night.

Goofy arranged the campfire with scout-like expertise, and Donald lit it with his magic, filling their slight campsite with the comforting sound of crackling twigs. Not that they needed the fire to scare anything off. They hadn't run into a single heartless, not since they had defeated Xehanort. But the warmth a fire provided was worth the trouble of gathering firewood.

Nearby, Yami was propped against a small boulder, diligently continuing the tricky crafting of the new lucky charm he had agreed to make for Sora, something temporary to replace Oathkeeper until they could return home and Kairi could use real thalassa shells.

His friends had all agreed to donate little pieces of their clothing: a large button for the center, the lining of a sleeve or two to make the petals, the bone of a stiff hem to give it shape, the oversized tab of a broken zipper as a makeshift lobster clasp. Though the materials had been meager, Yami had undertaken the task with a smile. Sora liked to think Kairi was trying to impress him (not that he minded).

Done with the fire, Donald sprawled out next to Sora with a sigh, tugging off his hat. As always, he reached into the hat and pulled out the wrinkled, worn photo of the pretty duck he had left back home, and sighed the wistful sigh he gave every night.

Yeah, things were back to normal.

Sora smiled up at the stars.

"Ahyuck, that's lookin' pretty good!"

Tilting his head back, Sora glanced at Goofy, who was leaning over Yami to take a look at the makeshift pendant he was lacing together.

"It's not bad," Yami admitted, "for what we had. I only have two more petals to finish."

Sora flashed him an upside down grin. "Awesome! Thanks, Yami. I'll take really good care of it this time, promise."

Nodding, Yami didn't glance up from his crafting. "It wasn't your fault my heartless destroyed it."

"Gawrsh…" Goofy curled a hand under his chin as he studied Yami all of a sudden. "You know, maybe it's my imagination, but isn't his hair a little spikier?"

Donald snickered at that as he glanced over at Yami. "Sora rubbing off on you?"

A withering, playful glare was returned. "Or maybe the darkness has better hair management," Yami said.

"Hey!" Sora laughed, playfully kicking Yami's foot. "I _like _my hair." And then the rest of Yami's words sank in, and he realized—"Wait… so your darkness is gone?"

Yami shook his head, but he didn't seem upset. "My darkness is here to stay, but… I'm no longer afraid of it. This may sound weird, but I feel like a new person." He glanced up, the smile on his face reaching his blue eyes. "Like there's something else there, inside of me, helping Kairi keep my darkness at bay."

All around the camp, the trinity gave thoughtful hums as they contemplated the mysteries of Yami's heart.

Yami laughed, quiet but happy. "What about you, Sora?"

"Huh?" Sora blinked at him before realizing he was referring to _his _darkness. "Oh, uh…" Hesitating, Sora returned his gaze to the stars, already knowing the answer to this question. "I don't feel it anymore. At all. No Id, no darkness. Nothing. It's just… gone."

"Musta been Kingdom Hearts," Goofy said as he sat beside Yami, "and all of that light!"

"Probably," Yami agreed, and he seemed relieved.

As the four of them relaxed, listening to the pop and crackle of the small campfire, Sora mulled over that final fight with Xehanort's heartless and how many close calls he'd had. If his friends hadn't been there for him, there was no way he would've gotten out of that alive. He owed them everything. He hadn't been joking when he had told Xehanort that his friends were—and still are—his power.

Xehanort had called them weak-hearted fools.

Sora cracked a smile at the irony of that.

But that did make him wonder… What were the real qualifications for wielding a keyblade?

Sora hadn't forgotten what he had seen when Kairi's light turned the tide of the battle, helping Yami's heart fight the darkness long enough to strike Xehanort through.

With a keyblade.

A keyblade Sora hadn't recognized.

It had been massive, something that no amount of muscle would help Sora lift it.

So the question was—where had it come from?

"Hey Yami…"

His friend glanced up at him, his fingers in the middle of weaving another petal onto the charm. "Hm?"

"Whose keyblade did you use?"

The question seemed to catch everyone off guard. A thoughtful silence spread through the camp as each of them replayed the events of that final fight.

"Yami used a keyblade?" Donald asked at last.

"Gawrsh, I don't remember that…"

But from the way Yami's eyes locked with Sora's, he knew that at least Yami remembered. The other two had been frozen by a stop spell. Despite being under the influence of the darkness at the time, Yami seemed to have kept his memories.

"I'm not sure," Yami admitted at last. "It felt familiar. _Much_ of that fight felt familiar…"

"Guess the only way we'll ever get those answers is if we find that nobody of yours," Goofy said. He reclined into the grass, settling in for the night.

Donald harrumphed at that. "Unless he finds us first!"

That definitely caught Sora's attention. He hadn't even thought about that. They'd been walking these crossroads for days and hadn't seen a single person or enemy. Could there really be someone out there hunting them? Or just looking for them?

"You think he would?" he asked them.

Yami answered that one. "We took out my heartless," he said. "Likely he will see us as a threat he cannot ignore."

Somehow, Sora wasn't worried about that.

As long as his friends were with him, he knew they could handle anything.

Besides… Hearts were what made people strong, right?

"If he doesn't even have a heart, how powerful could he be?" Sora laughed. "Come on."

Donald and Goofy laughed in agreement, but Yami didn't join them this time. His expression grew solemn as he studied the unfinished charm in his hands.

"So I'm not gonna worry about it for now," Sora said, trying to reassure him. "We'll just focus on what we need to do."

"Right—find the king!" Donald said.

"And Riku," Goofy added, lifting a finger into the air.

"Yup!" Sora rolled onto his stomach and propped himself up, facing Yami with an expectant grin. "And like a good friend once told me, bright hearts are easy to find."

For the briefest of moments, surprise filtered on Yami's face, as if he hadn't expected Sora to remember. But how could Sora have forgotten one of the many times Yami had saved his butt? Then a warm smile tugged at Yami's lips, and he nodded.

"They are."

"See? We'll find them in no time."

Sora rested his chin on his arms, his heart feeling at ease.

_You hear that, Riku? _

Deep down, there was a gentle strength that wasn't his own, and he knew that even if Riku couldn't hear him, he'd be able to feel Sora, too.

_Wherever you are, we're going to find you._

_Then we're gonna go home. Together._

_No matter what._

-o-o-

"Xeha… nort…?"

The shuffle of his boots made the lost child raise his head.

Amber eyes squinted up at him through the shadows, a glint of hope and recognition within them.

"Xehanort?"

But it was obvious the boy was partially delirious from the suffering his form had been put through.

"Which one are you calling for?" he asked the child, his tone devoid of care. "Your misguided pet who perished at the hands of the boy that looks like you?" A pause, and then an empty smirk for effect: "Or the master you betrayed?"

The reaction was immediate, and almost impressive. The boy's darkness bristled like a cat, and his amber eyes narrowed with defiance.

"_YOU!_"

The darkness around them roiled with the boy's emotions, and with tiny bursts of magic, small creatures leapt into existence and surrounded them. Not heartless. Not nobodies. They were creatures he hadn't seen in years.

Still, when you had complete mastery of Nothingness, petty emotions held no weight.

He swiped his hand through the air, banishing the boy's twitchy pets with hardly an effort.

Though the boy growled at him, it was an empty threat. They both knew that the boy had no strength to call his own anymore. That was the only reason he had risked coming all this way to see him.

"You never could keep those irksome emotions at bay," he said as he approached the fallen figure. The darkness of the boy's body was sluggish, barely keeping itself together. "But I suppose someone like you wouldn't know how to. What were you calling yourself these days?" His feet paused in front of the boy's dark, spiky hair. "Oh, yes. Id."

"You're one to talk," Id snapped at him. "What are _you _but a barren shell? An empty clone! _Vacant_. You wouldn't even be able to use the master's keyblade if it was chained to you—because you're _nothing_."

A smirk curled his lips. "You say that as though nothingness is something to be pitied… Yet when I look at you, I see proof that the thing to be pitied is emotion."

Another growl, and the boy curled in on himself, his darkness settling into a blanket. "Figures," he muttered, his voice hoarse. He seemed to have resigned to his fate to fade into the darkness. "Is that why you came here? To laugh at me?"

"For failing to capture your prey?" he said. "No. I knew, when I tested Riku, that you and Xehanort were destined to fail. I have a different motive for being here."

"How could you know something like that?" Id demanded. "I had him!"

"Because he reminds me of someone I once knew, someone with similar rock-headed obstinacy." Then, with a secretive smile, he chuckled. "Like trying to bend a mountain. Something like that takes time… Time and innovation. Instead, you used force. Xehanort had the right idea when he seduced the boy's heart and claimed his body as his host."

Id's glare burned with a hatred that stirred the darkness again, but this time he did not summon any of his pets.

"So why _are _you here? Get to the point."

Looking pleased, though he felt nothing of the sort, he gracefully knelt in front of the boy and reached out to cup his chin in his gloved fingers. "I thought you would like to know that I have found Ventus's keyblade."

Those amber eyes widened with a beautiful myriad of emotions.

Surprise. Hate. Hope. Desire. Despair. Desperation.

"_Ventus_?" Id repeated, almost as though he couldn't believe it.

He stared into Id's torn expression, memorizing it, as a dark but subtle smile crossed his own face. "And now… I've found yours."

He rose back to his feet as Id's expression filled with fear.

"You wouldn't—!"

Answering with an empty chuckle, he spread his hand towards the boy and tapped into the endless oblivion from which his power came.

Chains of nothingness cut through Id's darkness and snared him as he screamed and struggled to get away, but the superior power consumed his form with ease.

As the nothingness wrapped Id into a tiny sphere, a glowing symbol etched itself into it: two halves of a broken gear, a symbol of what the boy had always been—a damaged tool in a much grander machination.

"You were always a nuisance, Vanitas."

He closed his hand around the sphere that contained the weakened darkness.

"I will find a better use for that blade of yours than your master ever did."

Then, conjuring a portal of darkness, he entered the corridors between worlds and returned to his own castle in the world that never was.

When he left the corridor and the darkness closed behind him, he had arrived on the skywalk that only certain members of his organization had access to. It overlooked several popular areas of the castle, but it was not that aspect that had drawn him here today.

He sought out the cloaked figure standing at the balustrade. The blue-haired diviner was not his second in command, but Saïx held a certain potential that had always intrigued him. The other members called it playing favorites. In reality, he merely trusted Saïx more than them.

When Saïx sensed his presence, he turned away from his observations to regard him with a calm nod.

"Xemnas."

Xemnas said nothing as he approached his comrade and stood beside him at the skywalk, gazing down at the common area below them. It was a lounge, of sorts, that had become popular with the other members of the organization. Xemnas himself rarely visited it, and Saïx was usually only there to delegate missions to the others.

When Xemnas saw who was occupying the lounge, he understood why Saïx had been observing them.

Axel was teasing the newcomers. And while the newcomers were fascinating themselves, he knew it was Saïx's former friend that had held his attention.

He would have been amused if he could have been.

The playful redhead seemed to be sharing a story with the two nobodies watching him with rapt attention.

There was Roxas, who was finally settling into the organization as an active member.

And there was Maiyx—

A ghost of Xemnas's past, almost. If his hair had been brunet instead of black, and those eyes blue instead of amber…

Thankfully, only he and Xigbar knew the truth of Xehanort's past. He need not worry about the others connecting Maiyx to anyone other than Yami himself.

Still, in order to avoid future catastrophe, he hadn't given Maiyx a true rank in Organization XIII.

The honor of the last rank, thirteen, belonged to the young blond nobody sitting beside Maiyx.

Roxas.

The key of destiny.

Unable to resist, Xemnas let another smirk tug at his lips, and he lifted the sphere that contained Vanitas's remnants.

Saïx's brows furrowed with interest as he studied the emblem glowing amongst the swirling mass in Xemnas's hand.

"What a dangerous toy."

"One that will prove useful," Xemnas reassured.

Saïx formed a shadow of a smile. "Ah, yes. Vexen had something useful to share, as well. The data that you collected from your battle with Riku has proven profitable. Vexen is creating a doll from it as we speak, to replicate the boy's talents."

A replica… with the keyblade wielder's power?

This meant he could have three keys under his control.

Ventus's, Vanitas's, and now Riku's.

But Xemnas knew more about the keyblade wielders than his comrades ever would. "Vexen might run into problems trying to control such a doll, more than he anticipates. That is, if the results are anywhere near as impulsive as the true Riku."

A thoughtful expression crossed Saïx's face, but then the sound of wild laughter caught their attention, and Xemnas turned his gaze below.

Axel was laughing.

Even Roxas and Maiyx seemed almost… happy.

Wondering if it was possible, Xemnas studied them.

"I have been meaning to ask…"

As Saïx's soft voice cut through Axel's laughter, Xemnas regarded him expectantly. Only then did Saïx continued his question.

"Why give only Roxas a number? Why not the other two?"

In the corner of the skywalk, seated on a low bench surrounded by scattered sheets of parchment, a young blonde girl paused in the middle of her sketching.

Xemnas glanced calmly at her, unconcerned with her presence. "Roxas is our key. As for Maiyx… We are lucky to have found him first. With him, we have an advantage over both keyblade wielders."

Saïx raised a brow. "Is that so?"

With a nod, Xemnas focused on Yami's black-haired nobody, his dark smile returning.

"As long as Maiyx exists, my heart and the heart of their precious little princess can never be separated."

Faintly, Saïx smiled. That was enough for Xemnas to know he appreciated the irony as much as he did. It was moments like this that solidified his respect for the quiet nobody. He never questioned him for the sake of questioning him; he did it to better understand their mission.

"And what of _our_ little princess?" Saïx wondered, finally gesturing to the young blonde seated nearby.

Her shy blue eyes were watching them now. No fear. Just curiosity. Her colored pencil remained stationary in her hand as if she had forgotten she had been in the middle of a picture.

Xemnas slowly approached her, pausing beside the bench to scan the drawings she had done. "Naminé is linked to my hearts," he said. He reached for one of the loose sheets of paper littering the floor.

On it was three distinct figures.

A tan-skinned man who could have been an elder Xemnas, if he hadn't known better. It was Xehanort, but not his heartless, and not the Xehanort that Yami believed he was. It was the original Xehanort, Vanitas's master.

The second figure was a petite girl with auburn hair, her hands clasped over a glowing necklace she was wearing: the aforementioned princess, and friend to both of the keyblade wielders.

And the last figure, the one who looked like Maiyx—wild brown hair, stark blue eyes, and the strong physique of someone who had been trained to be what Sora and Riku were only pretending to be: a keyblade master.

"Your hearts?" Saïx asked.

Xemnas passed him the colorful drawing, not giving him an explanation as to who the figures were.

"And she will be the perfect bait to draw them into a trap."

The blonde girl raised her face, genuine concern reflected in her eyes. "A trap…"

Her voice was soft, like the whisper of a bird's feathers against the gilded bars that caged it.

Xemnas leaned over her, and with a smile that wasn't as empty as it should have been, he spoke into her ear.

"I think it's time we returned you to your palace, princess."

Her fingers clenched against her sketchbook as fear filled her eyes. Catching sight of the two boys she had been drawing, Xemnas tilted his head and gently plucked the book away from her, studying the silver-haired keyblade wielder and his best friend on the sheet of paper.

"And I will ensure that your two princes will be there to save you."

-o-o-

"Gosh, Riku—I _know_ I saw her!"

"Saw _who_?"

The white road of the world of darkness had fragmented into a never-ending scatter of floating islands, requiring well-timed leaps to traverse—and a lot of luck, in hopes they didn't land in a nest of heartless.

Riku and Mickey raced from island to island, dodging powerful heartless as they spawned around them, sensing the bright hearts lost in the darkness. Only when they couldn't outrun them did the two of them stop to fight, Mickey with his keyblade, and Riku with his personalized Soul Eater. He'd learned a thing or two from Yami after all.

"Someone I used to know!" Mickey said. "Someone who disappeared a long time ago!"

Riku swore they were chasing after a ghost, though. He didn't have a clue what Mickey had seen or sensed because Riku himself hadn't seen anything except heartless. Mickey had just suddenly started raving about some girl he had seen out of the corner of his eye in the distance… in the darkness…

Still, if Mickey was this insistent about finding whoever "she" was, she must have been really important. Besides, Riku knew firsthand how much it sucked to be lost in the darkness. If someone else was stranded down here, he did want to find her.

As Mickey flew across a bottomless chasm and landed safely on the other side, Riku hesitated at the island's drop-off.

"Just how long was 'a long time ago'?" he wondered. For all he knew, _they_ could have been down here for weeks. Time lost all meaning in the darkness. All he had was Mickey and the warmth in his heart he knew was his bond with Sora.

Mickey paused to glance back at him, and the gravity in his expression told Riku all he needed to know, even before his question was answered.

"Ten years."

A long time.

Swallowing hard, Riku prayed they found this girl and made it out of here before _they _got lost down here for ten years.

Backing up a few steps, Riku charged forward and leapt across the chasm to join Mickey—

—only to see Mickey's panicked gaze as a darkside emerged from the chasm.

"Look out!"

Unable to avoid the impact, Riku cried out as he crashed into the heartless's back, his hands scrambling against its cold skin to desperately find a grip—only to come up empty as he tumbled past the heart-shaped cavern in its torso.

"WAAHH!"

Riku began to plummet into the darkness alone, fingers scraping against the sides of the floating island to try to find _something_, as Mickey's worried face disappeared out of sight high above him, his scared voice echoing after Riku.

"_**NO**_!"

Heart in his throat, Riku reached deep inside of himself and called out to Sora—_anyone_—

"Hold on!"

And he came to an abrupt stop in midair, a brilliant globe of light surrounding him.

_What?_

A swift figure darted from the edge of a nearby ledge, catching him with strong arms as the globe of light shattered into sparkles, its job done.

Then his savior landed elegantly on a narrow outcropping, moving as if gravity had no hold on him.

No.

_Her_.

Definitely a her.

When the woman set him on his feet, Riku fought back a blush as he tried to glance up at her—

"Down!"

—only for her to shove him to his knees as she swooped her arm outward, a shimmering keyblade clutched in her hand. That's when Riku spotted the darkside crouching to come after them, its massive hand reaching into their outcropping.

"Leave us alone!"

A barrage of bubbles arched out of the keyblade and slammed into the darkside's head, knocking it back.

A streak of black and gold fell from the sky and cut through the heartless, finishing it off with one blow, before the small figure flipped off of the darkside's dissolving body and landed beside Riku and his savior.

Mickey!

Remembering how to breathe, Riku gaped up at his friend, torn between yelling at him for being reckless—and hugging him for having the gall to come after him.

Instead, he just held a hand over his thundering heart and smiled.

"Th-Thanks… Man, I thought I was a goner."

Then a pair of long, smooth legs stopped beside him, and Riku felt his heart flutter as he lifted his gaze to acknowledge the woman who had saved him.

Blue hair.

A familiar face…

Why was it familiar?

"You're both too noisy," she laughed, dropping into a graceful kneel beside him. "The heartless will sense you regardless, but they especially like noise."

She offered him her hand.

Riku froze as he caught her gaze and was met with a pair of smiling blue eyes.

Her eyes locked with his, and she froze, too.

"You…"

They gasped at the same time, recognizing each other.

"I know you," she breathed.

All Riku could think about in that moment was the memory of a young woman, a stranger, visiting him and Sora on the beach when he was five. Not even a day after the first stranger had talked to him…

Riku felt his heart miss a beat as memories and faces of the past came back to him, memories he hadn't thought about in years, memories from before Kairi had ever arrived on Destiny Islands. Memories of a keyblade and a tall brunet giving him the hope to protect his best friend forever.

"You were real?" was all he could manage to say.

A watery smile broke across her face as tears filled her eyes, and before Riku knew what was happening, she pulled him into a fierce embrace.

And beside them, Mickey gave a happy laugh, spreading his hands with delight.

"Gosh! Then I guess I don't need to introduce you to each other!"

-o-o-

* * *

_Fin._

11-04-02 to 11-04-11

For nine years, you were my baby.

Stygian Solace, I don't know what I'm going to do without you.

Thank you, all of you, for making it this far with me. Your support has meant the worlds to me.

Please check my Livejournal for future projects or updates, as this fic may never be updated again.


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